Maroon Bells Wilderness..

With a fully loaded backpack (read foul weather gear) and three nights of nourishment, I set out with good intentions. The forecast was leaning towards sodden, damp and chilly. Great news for ducks, not so much for a cold weather weenie like me.

All was going well until I ascended my second 12,000 foot plus pass of the day. That's when BB bullet sized hale ambushed me. Just a bit of irony that the pass is named "Frigid Air." 

It was a slip sliding descent for two miles until I found a home for the night. By then, a obscure sun came out long enough to dry some gear. Silver lining stuff! 

I woke to the sounds of distant rumblings (not my stomach) and the pitter-patter of wet stuff striking my tent. Both were unwelcome guests. After a quick breakfast, I packed up. I was shivering by the time I stowed

my wet sponge of a tent. A bad good morning way to start the day. 

At this point I had two options:

A) Continue in misery for one or two more days covering 15 miles and two more passes...

Or

B) Retreat the 11 miles and two passes back to warm and dry Barley the Van. 

I chose option B. 

Before you think, "Jeff is getting soft. I wonder if he is making inquiries about assisted living arrangements in Florida." 

Consider this: most backpackers grind out the 4 pass, 26 mile loop in 3-5 days. I did 4 passes and 22 miles in 2 days. I'm not ready for Carefree Village yet.

BTW: the last four miles were crazy wet. The trail became a quagmire with a brown creek running through its length. There were no trout sighted though.

See accompanying photo. Not a hike for those with mysophobia. 

The Maroon Bells are awesome if hyperthermia doesn't get you!

Be safe out there,

Jeff

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park...

Is gorge-ious. 

Geologists claim the steady assault of river water vs. rock created this wonder. 

Personally, I believe it's the handy work of ancient aliens engaged in an early Civilian Conservation Corp water project. 

Whatever the reality is, this preserved area is a sleeping beauty where wildlife seems to outnumber Homo Sapiens. 

The BC of the G is a park for everyone. 

It features hard yakka hikes that cleave the gorge's gut down to the source of all that erosion. I still have throbbing knees from one of those so-called trails.

For the less masochistic there's gentle strolls along the scrubby oaks and the rim. You can even drive the scenic road and occasionally peer over the sides. 

Fun Factoid: In 1901 Abraham Lincoln Fellows (great name) and William Torrence floated 33 miles of the river in 9 days-on a rubber mattress! 

Enjoy the photos. Please visit this way cool place before it gets on humanity's radar. It's worth the detour.

PS. I didn't fall (literally) for the old "take one step back to make the photo better" line from another wilderness photographer. 

Cheers from rainy Colorado,

Jeff

I'm still hoping for a weather break in order to backpack the Maroon Bells Wilderness. 

Meet Barley...

 My traveling companion and shelter when I'm not hiking a trail, on a bicycle or in a bar. 

The photos are old. Isn't  this "Throw Back Monday"? Barley has a new look too. He had his popped topped in 2013. Now, even a six-footer can stand tall in Barley. 

Check out all those amenities! 

Plenty of space in the Great Room to frolic with Fido, my trusty, loyal and obedient pug.

Full court basketball court.

Master bedroom equipped with state of the art lighting.

Kitchen area capable of anything from scrabbled eggs to roasts. Drop in for a fresh cuppa coffee or a cold IPA when you are in the neighborhood. I never run dry, even in Utah. 

Barley is truly a Van about Town!

Jonathan and I are now waiting out a Noah's Ark forecast before we venture into the Maroon Bells Wilderness for a multi day hike. 

Later on, we'll risk it all in Montrose, Colorado en route to the Horsefly Brewery for Happy Hour.

No one said retirement was easy.

Cheers! 

Jeff

The Weminuche Wilderness

Is three-quarters the size of Rhode Island. (There are Walmarts bigger than Rhode Island too).

 Nevertheless, this massive piece of WOW is Colorado's largest protected area. There's 500 miles of trails, numerous Continental Divide crossings and an average altitude of 10,000 lung gasping feet. It's home to elk, weasels, neighborly mountain goats, wild flowers and way too many deer flies. (I killed thousands but still they kept coming). 

Jonathan and I covered over 50 miles of it, and never made a dent in seeing the big picture. We went over the Great Divide so many times we weren't sure if we were drinking water splashing toward the Pacific or Atlantic Oceans. (They both tasted the same too BTW.) 

I left there feeling mentally and physically refreshed despite the thumping on my knees from hauling sustenance, shelter and one book for six days.

Thank You President Lyndon Baines Johnson for signing the Wilderness Act of 1964 into law. (Another invention besides jazz, baseball and National Parks we Americans can be proud of).

 

To sum up its gist, here it is: 

“A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.”

Ain't that great?

So...go out there and explore LBJ's legacy. 

Jeff

Ice Lake and Basin...

It's Saturday,  a Jew's day of rest. I'll go easy on the text and allow the eye candy to do the tawking. (NYC speak for talking). 

OK. I did manage to slip in a shameless marketing scheme for my book. It hasn't worked.

Enjoy the photos, 

Good Shabbas to all,

Jeff

PS. If you want more info on this hike just email me @ jeffsambur@gmail.com

Mount Sneffels...

Is an amazing 14,150 foot peak with a strange name. No worries, once on top nothing but the grandeur seems to matter. This is my favorite 14er and I've been up 49 of the state's 54.

This will also be my final resting place when I'm in the "ashes to ashes, dust to dust" phase. I've given explicit directions to my nephews on how to divvy up the gray stuff. They will be my official urn pall-bearers. It'll be easy, I'll be dehydrated then. 

One-third facing east to see the rising sun. 

Two-thirds facing west for these awwww inspiring views. 

Keith and Justin promised to carry a measuring cup to get it right. 

If you decide to pay me a visit, a splash of Odell's IPA would be appreciated. A fella can get mighty thirsty at altitude.

As you can see from the third photo, the mountain requires a blood sacrifice as a show of respect. It's a small price to pay for a perfect morning like this. 

Although there were no nude women to point out the way to the summit!

Cheers from The Switzerland of Colorado. AKA Ouray,

Jeff

Mount Sopris...

Stands tall in the lower Roaring Fork Valley near Carbondale, Colorado. Although only weighing in at 12,966 feet (a pipsqueak compared to Colorado's numerous 14,000ers) it's an impressive peak.

I set out to hike it, with cooperative skies, light winds and an early start. Everything was honky dory until my descent. I followed some sporadic cairns that led me into another drainage. I checked my map. It showed a route down along West Sopris Creek, which would eventually lead to an exit. All was not lost! Bonus miles! 

I followed game trails and at times no trails. Down, down down I went until I saw a Black Lab and a pile of clothes nearby. I quickly surmised the garments didn't belong to the dog. 

"Hello!" I called out. I didn't want to surprise anyone.

It was just like Adam meeting Eve for the first time, only different.

I was wearing shorts and a tank top. She wasn't even sporting a fig leaf.

"Uh sorry. I kind of got off track from Sopris, could you please point the trail out to me?"

I made a monumental effort to make total eye contact. (Mostly).

"Sure. Follow that trail downhill and it'll take you to the trailhead." She wasn't even blushing!

I thanked her and awkwardly apologized again.

Her answer? "The pleasure was mine!"

You gotta love it!

Jeff with clothes on from Ouray, Colorado