My one goal this past weekend was just to make it above 9000Ft on our hike. I had wanted to hit a new trail and then we got on I70 going west on a Saturday morning. It was a parking lot even before Evergreen which is pretty bad. With the traffic nightmare ahead of us, I just pulled off at Evergreen and hit Bergen Peak( Hike details here). It gets above 9500Ft and is an excellent workout. Can I tell you how nice it was to have the knowledge to switch hikes at the drop of a hat! It was a proud moment for me.
The trail wasn’t too bad at all, yes there was snow and ice but not near the levels it was last spring or even this past fall. In fact, it had less snow than Evergreen Mt the weekend before, which is just down the road from it. It did still slow us down, that and hiking with our new backpacks on with some added weight made the whole hike take about 5 hours. It felt great! I was exhausted from the added intensity that snow brings to a hike. Plus the day was almost perfect with beautiful blue skies and almost no wind.
Oh and everyone must have been skiing, because we practically had it to ourselves until the last mile down. A great day of hiking for sure.
We felt very good Sunday morning and so suited back up and hit an easy 5 miles at South Valley Ranch. I felt so good, in fact, I added 5 lbs to my backpack for Sunday’s hike which effectively made it suck. Who knew 5 lbs would kill me like that!?!?! I was like the little kid being dragged along with my head and shoulders hanging down the whole way. And while Aaron was sweet enough to offer to take my extra weight, I refused because how else am I going to get used to it if I just throw stuff in his pack when it starts to feel hard. It made our quick 5 miles take a little longer then we hoped.
The day itself was AMAZING – 63 and sunny. We were hiking in shorts and just our shirt. Being on this trail on a nice day showed how insanely busy it gets. We were hiking with 100 or more other people, while more were showing up all the time.
Last Thursday I got to go to Seattle for a weekend of fun with my bestie Jason and his fiancé Molly, so no hike last weekend, but we plan to make up for it with 2 hikes again this weekend. I need to get my altitude lungs back quick because on 2/8 is our all day guided snow shoe and I am crazy excited for it.
I am itching to get out and hike now, it is going to be a long week of work!
Get out there and hike if you can!
hiking to healthy 
Oh man, I saw the pictures of I-70 on the news, lucky you could hop off and hit another trail.
It has been bad that past couple of weekends we have braved it! I am trying to think of where I want to go this weekend… since we are 1-2 feet along the divide I may not even bother going west.
I know this is random coming from someone in California, but if you haven’t been to the Paint Mines east of the Springs it is worth the effort, especially during the winter when the higher stuff is less accessible. The trail is not too long (4.5 miles or so) but it is really beautiful and interesting change of pace in the winter!
http://www.summitpost.org/paint-mines/479400
Wow! The pictures look amazing! I am totally checking it out, thank you so much!!! And not random at all, we all find gems!
I know what you mean about a long week at work. I bought a touring bike and am taking it out camping on Saturday. Can’t wait. If I were single I’d sell my house and hit the road. Haha
Aaron feels the same way, lets just live out of back packs! Not hiking this past weekend even though I got to visit Seattle for the first time, makes me feel off kilter! Have fun with that new bike!!
Bergen Peak is a great hike! We hike a lot in Arapaho National Forest since its by our house. Most of it is above 9,000 ft. If you ever want some vague trail info I can get it for you. Love your posts!
I have lots of Arapaho hikes I am dying to try but I am holding off until we do our first snow shoe so I can see if it is a viable way for us to stay above 9000 all winter long… just a little over a week until the guided snow shoe!
That sounds fun! Good luck!