On our first day in the mountains it snowed. We had a great day climbing Bible Point and experiencing the joys of hiking at altitude. While Bible Point was a good acclimation destination topping at 8,600 feet our destination for the next hike was a little more ambitious and a little higher. In fact, the trail started at 8,900 feet, a full three hundred feet higher than the previous summit!
It was still snowing and hadn't really stopped. The trail to Deer Mountain covers about three miles and gains about 1,200 feet. Not much more than Little Si back home if you don't consider the elevation. If you're good at math you'll have figured that we would summit at over 10,000 feet.
Amy and Clara hadn't been able to join us on Bible Point so they weren't quite ready for the extra work required of their lungs. Our first mile or so was slow, but the locals were patient with us lowlanders and paused so we could catch up. After another half mile Lilly and Henry were done, but Clara was intent on keeping up. Amy turned back while I followed the rest of the group.
The kids and I have had the opportunity to hike with adults on a couple of occasions and I'm always impressed at how inclusive and welcoming the others are. For the last two years we've hiked on National Trails Day with Tubbs Ambassadors and in spite of the age difference they treated the kids like equals. I saw the same on this trip. Clara hiked with women twice her age and Henry was at home with our PR coordinator who was... more than twice his age. (Of course, compared to me all the other ambassadors seemed like kids so maybe it wasn't such a stretch for them to accept the kids.)
As we climbed higher the snow got deeper and the cold intensified. By the time we reached the summit I had icicles on my hood and Clara didn't object to the less-than-stylish wrapping of a puffy around her. And yet... smiles. It was her first time above 10,000 feet, which is a pretty big deal for us. As nice as it was, though, we didn't stay long. Too cold and too few views. (I've seen the views when it's clear and we'll definitely have to return, but it was just gray on this trip.)
On the way down we were treated to bouts of heavy snow and even a few sun breaks. Yeah. The sun. In Colorado. Who knew? Clara and I spent much of the way down marveling at the red bark of the Ponderosa pines and the dry, fluffy snow. The trees seemed to shine in the bright light of the sun. We also got a brief glimpse of a peak across the valley. It hinted at the towering mountains that were likely all around us reaching up in to the 14,000 range.
Clara and I had some good walking-in-the-snow conversation time. She's growing up quickly and struggling with the usual teenager angst. Time in the mountains does her good just as it does me.
The only downside to the trip was that we knew the next day was Sunday and we would have to return home. Maybe. Most of the flights out of Denver had been canceled so if the storm didn't let up maybe we'd get another day in this resurgent winter, but that would mean all manner of trouble as we rescheduled classes and meetings and all the rest of regular life at home. A small price to pay if we would be able to play in the snow for one more day.
