Hike #107 2020
December 19
Winter is probably my favorite season in Colorado. I love snowy trees and snowy mountains, and I also enjoy the cold more than the heat. Though something we could all do without is the wind.
On this Saturday morning we headed to the mountains for yet another cold and snowy adventure. The weather called for clouds and scattered snow showers, but mentioned nothing about the extent of the wind other than being “light and variable.” In typical Colorado fashion, this part of the weather prediction was wrong. When we arrived at the trailhead it wasn’t only cloudy and snowy, but it was extremely windy too. So windy that we contemplated hiking, as did the several other people sitting in their cars at the trailhead. We decided that since we had driven all the way up there that we might as well get out and go for a hike, even just for a short one. We spent the next 20 or so minutes outfitting the dogs with all their gear - boots, gaiters, jacket and of course their bandana. You don’t usually see them equipped with all this gear on, but considering it was also 10 degrees out, it was needed, and they don’t seem to mind.
We continued to contemplate our decision to hike throughout the 20 minutes of getting ready. The wind was so strong that it was picking up snow and creating little tornadoes around us. However I will say I’m glad we did decide to get out on the trail. It’s funny though, when others in the parking lot saw us getting out, they too started to get ready.
The trail was reasonably compacted so we didn’t need our snowshoes. I try to do my best and pick hikes that won’t require plowing through deep snow because it tires Maxi out too fast, Zeus on the other hand loves jumping through the snow like a rabbit in it’s natural habitat.
Fortunately for us because the trail is lined by trees, we had some shelter from the strong wind.
As we continued to hike along the trail the snow clouds would part for a few seconds allowing us to catch glimpses of the surrounding mountains.
It was here that we decided to turn around. If we kept going we would head downhill and lose our view.
We ended up hiking 3.8 miles with just 121 ft elevation gain. Despite the weather we still had a good morning out on the trail!