Day Two

After some coffee at the Windy Saddle in downtown Gloden, Stina and I headed out for a hike at Long Lake. The drive is about an hour along Canyon Rd outside of Boulder and over rt 72 into Nederland. After about a billion twisty turns(many cyclists out riding), we arrived at the Brainerd Lake recreation area which sits at 10,000 feet.

This hike is along the Pawhnee Pass/Isabelle Glacier trail. You can hike 4-5 miles out and end up right in the middle of the Indian Peaks. It's a valley of several 12,000 foot mountain peaks. The Isabelle Glacier Trail is 15 miles and goes over the Continental Divide. Our plan was to hike the Pawhnee Pass trail. We gathered our gear and headed out. The first mile the trail is relatively flat with lost of rocks and roots. After that you make a right and it's all uphill from there. The trail becomes very rocky and off camber. Lot's of man made creek crossings, basically logs cut in half and bolted in place. We stopped after 3.5 miles for a snack and a break to take in the scenery. There is also some snow still left, so I threw a few snow balls for fun! The 1.5 miles were very windy as we went above the treeline. The view is literally breathtaking! We'll have some pictures up shortly. We turned around and headed back down the trail. Not sure which was harder, going up or coming back down. The trail is super rocky and you have to concentrate so you don't lose your footing. Made it back safe, but definitely a little tired.

Today most likely a chill day. Maybe an afternoon ride or a trip to Wheatridge Cyclery.(Owned by Ron Kiefel of Team 7 Eleven fame)