Mahogany Loop | Soapstone Prairie Natural Area Wellington, CO | 04/08/21 | 8.59 miles | 704' gain After returning from an awesome trip to Texas and New Mexico, I was back to the grind of work and bland winter hiking. I was ready for green grass and colorful flowers, and sick of the endless brown …
Dripping Springs Trail | Organ Mountains - Desert Peaks National Monument Las Cruces, NM | 04/04/21 | 3.99 miles | 1,187' gain We decided to take it easy on the last day of our trip; sleep in, hike a little, and then slowly make our way back down to El Paso for our 6pm flight. …
Continue reading Dripping Springs Trail | New Mexico | 04/04/21
After an incredible morning at Carlsbad Caverns, we set out on a 3.5-hour drive across New Mexico to our second National Park of the day; White Sands. Home of the world's largest gypsum dunefield, White Sands is also adjacent to the Holloman Air Force Base and the White Sands Missile Range. In 1945, the world's …
Continue reading White Sands National Park | New Mexico | 04/03/21
After a big day in Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Allie and I continued on to Whites City, NM, our hotel, and a much-needed hot meal. We were excited to visit Carlsbad Caverns National Park in the morning. It was only upon our arrival to our hotel that we learned that we should have pre-purchased tickets …
Continue reading Carlsbad Caverns National Park | New Mexico | 04/03/21
After our trek to the Top of Texas, we had very little time left to explore what else Guadalupe National Park has to offer. We decided to visit two accessible historic sites on the way to our hotel, neither of which require much walking, perfect for our tired feet. Our first stop was "The Pinery" …
Continue reading Historic Sites of Guadalupe National Park | Texas | 04/02/21
Guadalupe Peak (8,751') | Guadalupe Mountains National Park Salt Flat, TX | 04/02/21 | 9.82 miles | 3,044' gain Although 2021 started out slow (with no traveling and very few exciting hikes), April started with a bang and I haven't slowed down since. On a whirlwind three-day trip, Allie and I road-tripped around Texas and …
Continue reading Guadalupe Peak (8,751′) | Texas’ State High Point | 04/02/21
Bayou Gulch Perimeter Loop | Bayou Gulch Open Space Parker, CO | 03/20/21 | 3.9 miles | 229' gain Kyle and I planned a nice, easy loop around Bayou Gulch Open Space. This open space is mostly prairie, sandwiched between the encroaching city and enduring agriculture. We parked at the main trailhead and walked along …
Elk Meadow Loop | Elk Meadow Park Evergreen, CO | 03/17/21 | 5.10 miles | 666' gain Diana and I had planned a weekday summit of Bergen Peak (9,701') near Evergreen. Both of us had climbed Bergen before (though in summer) and while we knew the mountains had gotten quite a bit of snow recently, …
Grizzly Peak D (13,427') | CO Rank: 302/637 "Cupid" (13,117') | CO Rank: 555/637 Front Range | White River National Forest | Dillon, CO 03/06/21 | 6.12 miles | 2,951' gain | Class 2 Some mountains climb easy and some make us work for it. Some of the easiest mountains can be the most mentally …
Continue reading Grizzly Peak D (13,427′) & “Cupid” (13,117′) | Colorado | 03/06/21
A fresh snowfall had closed down Kyle's jobsite and he unexpectedly had a Thursday off work. Unfortunately, those of us who work from home don't get snow days, but I was able to finish up my work in the morning and we headed up to Rocky Mountain National Park for the afternoon. Neither of us …
Continue reading RMNP: February Mini-Hikes | Colorado | 02/18/21
