I am on cloud 9, seriously 50 pounds lost on my weigh in yesterday and then today we kicked major butt on our hike. We did Bergen Peak last August and to be honest it was insanely tough then, like I was practically in tears on the way down thinking “why the hell did I let myself get this way”…. it felt great to finish it with more of a “wow I can still do more” today.
First, we did a repeater today because frankly the weather is all over the place and I am super not confident about what we can do when the trail gets insanely unpredictable. For me, a trail I know is much easier than one I don’t regardless of what ice and snow may be present. Plus this park is amazing and it got us up to 9700 ft, we need to gain altitude and work on our lungs again, so I managed to get an extra 2 miles out of this park, which is of course not that hard. So in total we did “officially” 12.5 miles and my fitbit said 13.5 miles, which took us 6 hours to complete.
In looking for any recent hikes here, I found very few pictures showing trail conditions, so here they are. There is not much before we got to the Bergen Peak trail, then there is ice and snow periodically throughout:
but really until we got to the summit trail at the top, we didn’t need any aids. It was mostly bursts of ice here and there, but at the top is was consistently snow and ice.
And it was still not that bad, probably because we were some of the first on the trail so the ice hadn’t settled in when we passed through so we never put anything on until the way down and then it was only me wearing extra help. I imagine that after we went through it may have been a little more challenging but by then it was getting warmer and digging in was not all that bad.
The day was perfect, it started out a little chilly with some clouds expected. For the first time we didn’t over dress, even though we had more on board just in case. As we climbed there were things we hadn’t seen the last time we hiked this, like Pike’s Peak.
When we hiked this last August,we were in the middle of a series of fires and the views were limited because of all the haze from those. I had no idea that we would be able to see Pike’s peak on a clearer day, it is 60-ish miles south of Bergen peak, so imagine my delight as looking up from our climb up to see this.
The other bonus on hiking today, there was not all that many people out this early in the season we didn’t even see one other person until we got on the summit trail and then it was 3 people in like an hour. We were almost 9 miles through the hike before traffic picked up. It looks like the lower trails have much more traffic this time of year.
All and all, it was a great hike and we felt really good getting it done in a way that made us feel so strong and confident about our future hikes.
Here are our favorite pictures from the hike, and for the record I am in love with Mt.Evans. Everyday it greets me as I go to work and tells me the weekend is going to be awesome because it means I will be up there, some where getting more views of the amazing prowess of mother nature. Please forgive my over attention to it, this hike gives you breathtaking views of Mt. Evans and so I couldn’t help myself in paying it extra homage! Do this hike if you can one day, it is worth every single step!
hiking to healthy 
i know I’m redundant but that sure is some beautiful country. Talk about an incentive to get out and move.
You are so right John, it is exactly why I moved from Chicago to here. I can’t get enough of these views!
Wow. 50lbs down. Congratulations. That’s a big achievement. You must be so proud of yourself 🙂 My partner has lost 11kg (25lbs) and today went on her first proper hike (7.5km / 4.7 miles) with me. I’m so proud of her. So I can totally imagine how proud your husband and you are of your achievements and the new shared experiences you can share (if he’s anything like me, he’ll be loving that your new lifestyle enables you to share the trails with him).
I just wish we had Colorado here … it looks so beautiful. My partner thinks so too 🙂
Yay for your Partner, 25lbs is an amazing achievement! My husband is incredibly supportive and loves all the new stuff that we can achieve together! Thank you!
You see Mt. Evans everyday??? NOT FAIR ! The first time I went up mt Evans was in the month of October and I was all alone. Thought it was the most beautiful place on Earth. Years later, I took my wife there in July, People everywhere ! A sad day for sure. You are so lucky to live there.
I know, right!?! I love seeing those mountains so much it gets me through every day. I am on the fence about climbing Mt.Evans & Pike’s Peak for exactly why your July visit wasn’t so hot. A lot of local people say it is disappointing to get to the top and have all those cars and tourists up there after you spend hours hiking up. But I still want to do it so we will see….
Those are some amazing views. If you have to go to work, it is nice to be able to drive by some gorgeous scenery like Mt. Evans. Congrats again on your achievements.
This is awesome Kathy! I love that you are blogging about it! Can’t wait to see where you guys go next!
Thank you for sharing! Such gorgeous pictures.
Thank you! I wish they did the view justice, it is just beautiful up there!
Congratulations of your weight loss. Wow 50 pounds, I bet you feel wonderful. You are looking awesome on those trails, beautiful scenery and a great guy by your side. What a super day!
Thank you Bam! I do feel wonderful! The scenery here does make it easier to stay motivated and of course my cutie pie hubby!
Wow! You lost 50 pounds! That is a rare and wonderful thing. Not many people can accomplish that. Congrats!
Thanks! I am pretty thrilled! It took a while and I still have more to go but this a great milestone!
Thanks for liking my post on More Snow a Good Thing. Among other things, it introduced me to your blog. I have enjoyed your posts about hiking and weight-loss — two subjects that I can relate to. The facts that 1) you are hiking almost every weekend and 2) you are moving closer to your goal are both remarkable.
At the risk of sounding like an advertisement, come back and see my posts at Colorado Geography. You might find something that makes your hikes even more enjoyable.
Wow, thank you so much Amy! I have actually been thinking about your blog since I found it earlier this week!I agree that Your blog has a lot to teach me so I am now following you! Thank you for the follow as well. I can’t wait to learn more about the geography of Colorado!