​We love spending a few days in the mountains biking and hiking during the summer months. Mike and I got away for a few days to do the things that we love the most together. We stopped first at Breckenridge to bike from Breckenridge to Vail Pass and back. It was a great training ride for our upcoming Triple Bypass bike event in July. Then we drove up to the Park Hyatt in Beaver Creek (one of our favorite places) to stay for the night. It was so nice to have chocolates waiting for us in our room when we arrived. We quickly showered and headed over to our massage appointments at the spa and then enjoyed some time afterwards in the hot tub section of the spa. It was the perfect way to soothe our legs after our 50-mile bike ride.
 
After an incredible ride the day before and an evening of pampering we enjoyed a wonderful hike in the early hours while it was still cool and peaceful on the trail. We took the Beaver Creek Trail up to the pond and then took the trail back down but meandered to the Alleys way trail. At one point we came to the Overlook junction and should’ve taken that down. But we didn’t so we ended up going straight down the mountain at the end because we needed to get back for breakfast. We love this place so much. It’s been a couple of years since we’ve been here and every time we come we are renewed!

Since we weren’t going anywhere for the Memorial Day weekend we decided to head up to the mountains and hike the Crags with Abby and Madeline while Emma was gone racing at the Garmin Running Lane track meet in Alabama. The Crags has been one of our favorite shorter hikes closer to home. It takes a little less an hour to get to the trailhead. We knew there was a possibility of snow still lingering on the trails so we made sure to bring our hiking poles with us. It was a good thing too because as we got further along the trail there were a few sections of snow and ice mounds and using our poles was extremely helpful. This hike was the first time for Madeline and the second time for Abby. Abby has really become such a great hiker. We loved being together today and enjoyed our time at the top soaking in the views. We ate our light lunch consisting of sandwiches, cheese, crackers, and grapes. Then we made a quick video to send to Peter on his mission before making our way back down the mountain. I love that our kids love the outdoors. My favorite moments usually involve doing something outside with the people I love the most. It is during these times that I feel so lucky to live in such a wonderful place. 

​Running Rim to Rim to Rim at the Grand Canyon was so incredible. It was my first ultra, and Mike's first time running anything over a half marathon. This was one of the most exciting adventures ever! There were so many good moments. The atmosphere, views, and people were awesome. Dionne, who is our good friend, was our ultimate guide as this was her 7th time running this. She knew the tricks to ultra-running, and she gladly shared them with us. Those things were truly lifesaving. Here is a breakdown of our adventure:

Total Distance: 43.68 miles
Total Running Time: 6:14:52
Total Hiking Time: 7:23:07 
Total Ascent: 11,405
Total Descent: 11,429
 
South Kaibab to Phantom Ranch:
This 7-mile section was done mostly in the dark as we started at 4:20am. We ran the entire downhill section, and it was way more technical than even Barr trail that I trained on for the Ascent. I was so happy to follow Dionne on this section.
Phantom Ranch to Manzanita:
This 9-mile section was amazing. We ran 90% of the canyon floor as it was a flowy trail with a gradual ascent of almost 2000ft. We stopped plenty of times for photos and once to apply moleskin to my toe.
Manzanita to North Rim:
Manzanita was a zoo. There were so many people who were coming from the North Rim and South Rim since this was the last weekend before they turn off the water at the North Rim. This 5-mile ascent was relatively easy, and we hiked the entire thing except for a few flatter sections that we ran. We even got to see the solar eclipse. The only tough part was the last 2 miles. When we got to the top we were floored to see Mike wander up there only 15 min after us. We thought he was going to turn around at Manzanita! He’s a beast and even did a few pushups at the top to prove it!
North Rim to Cottonwood:
We thoroughly enjoyed running down this section and spent some time admiring the amazing rock formations and cliff views. We blew past Manzanita and filled our water at Cottonwood. Then it was time for the hot box.
Cottonwood to Phantom Ranch:
I had been warned about the hot box (Canyon floor in the afternoon) on the way back. Most people do not realize but the canyon floor is 15-20 degrees hotter than it is at the rim. We were extremely blessed with magical wind and shadier sections when we got to the canyon walls. After a few miles I knew we weren’t going to make it in time for the lemonade before it closed at 4pm. Dionne encouraged me to keep going and since I had legs left I booked it for 5 miles down the canyon floor. I flew and it was fun. I got to the lemonade stand at 3:58pm and then saw it was open until 8pm. They had changed the time. Oof. Either way, we got our lemonade. We waited around for an hour but didn’t see Mike, so we made our way out of the canyon.
Phantom Ranch to South Kaibab:
First 2.5 miles were spectacular with great views. We even saw Mike making his way up and he was fast. He is such a good hiker. As the sun was setting we put our headlamps back on. We eventually waited for Mike at Ooh Ahh point and made the most horrible 4 miles out of the canyon in the dark together. Those were truly grueling miles that tested everything I had. I didn’t think I was going to make it. It truly was one of the hardest things I’ve done in terms of endurance. I’m so glad we all finished this amazing adventure together!

Every year a bunch of girls in my ward get together to hike the Crags while the fall leaves are still beautiful. I wasn't able to join last year and was in a different ward the year before that. I have hiked this trail a couple of times, and it is always so much fun. Between the crazy windy weekend and a small dusting of snow the morning of the hike, we knew this would be an adventure. The hike was a little chilly, the conversation was amazing, and even though there weren't as many yellow leaves as we were hoping for, we all still had so much fun. I am excited to do this every year with so many wonderful friends!

Griesap to Kandersteg via the Hohturli pass

​The monster day. Yesterday was a beast. Today was the beast’s ugly brother from out of town. Fortunately, it started with breakfast where we had the most wonderful Muesli ever created. It was divine. We packed up our stuff and picked up lunch from the hotel and headed up the path. And up it was from the start. Through beautiful forest, by the river, by waterfalls we hiked past endless spruce trees until we emerged onto the side of the mountain. The sun was high in the sky, and it was hot. With over 4,700 feet of climbing to the highest pass on the Via Alpina, we had a long day ahead of us. We headed up until we came to the first farm and restaurant of the ascent toward Hohtürli / Blümlisalphütte. When we arrived at Oberi Bundalp, we ate some chocolate, used the restrooms, listened to the swine make horrible noises, and then headed on pretty quickly so we could gain the summit by lunch. The hike from the restaurant got real steep, real fast. Fortunately, there were benches along the way which we took advantage of as our legs were tired from the prior day. The last part of the hike was up steep, steep steps, the Swiss incline! Sara decided to strut her stuff and basically ran up the last 250 meters to the summit. Mike just did his best not to fall off the mountain, but still managed to pass people on his way to the summit. After a brutal ascent, the reward was amazing views of the mountain’s glaciers and a cool mountain hut where we had lunch. They had a restaurant there and people were eating sausage, hashbrowns, and drinking beer. I don’t know how the Swiss hike so fast while eating such heavy food. They are a remarkable people in both engineering but also functioning highly while eating food that is clearly not on any diet plan.
 
After taking in the amazing views, we started out on the long (and I mean really long) steep descent from the pass to lake Oeschinesse. The descent was long, steep, and rocky with crazy steep grades. So naturally, there was some lunatic mountain biking down it. He had mad skills, because we could barely walk down it. 
 
By the time we got to the lake, we were pretty exhausted. None the less, Mike stripped down and jumped in the water and Sara soaked her feet. It was a nice moment to regroup for the long descent to Kandersteg. The lake was beautiful and the cliffs staggering. However, our favorite part was the ice cream. Without it, we would not have made it down the final steep descent to town.  We skipped the gondola to show how bad ass we were and wandered into Kandersteg exhausted but thrilled we made it. We never did see that other American family. For all we know, they are still trying to find Griesalp. 
 
Kandersteg was gorgeous. The views of the mountain pristine. Our hotel was delightful and the dinner perfect on the patio. The lamb was exquisite, there were some people in old school Swiss outfits (like Cosplay for Alpine folk), and the guy sitting next to us just enjoying life. No phones, no distractions, just the perfect Alpine air, beautiful views, and delightful food. Our view from our room’s balcony was probably the best of the trip in many ways. Not as grand as the Eiger, but just perfect. The little church in the field had a light go on as the night settled into the valley. In our minds, a little Swiss lady was playing the organ as people sang hymns in that little church thanking God for this wonderful place.

Wengen to Lauterbrunnen to Murren via train and cableway
Murren to Sefinenfurgge to Griesalp via Via Alpina route 

​The big days begin. From the moment Mike planned this trip, he has been dreading today and the next day.  These were the big ones. Wengen to Lauterbrunnen to Murren to the pass and down to Griesalp was our adventure for the day. We ate breakfast, probably the most meager one of the trip, and then headed out early to catch the train down to the valley. There were no clouds in the sky.  It was a perfect day for what is commonly known as the most beautiful segment of the Via Alpina. It did not disappoint. The views of the valley from the train were spectacular. Having already done Lauterbrunnen the day before, we headed directly to the gondola, bought our tickets, and headed up the mountain. What a blessing it was to go up to Murren by gondola and train. We met a man on the train who had been hiking in Switzerland but didn’t invest in good socks. Good socks are where it’s at when you’re hiking, but especially in the Swiss Alps. From Murren we headed out into the forest and began our steep ascent up to the pass, the Sefinenfurgge. The views were absolutely amazing. The Eiger, the Monch, and Jungfrau loomed large the whole trip and were soon joined by other mountains, more glaciers, and more peaks. It was staggering in the bright sun with alpine flowers blossoming everywhere. Truly, this was a heavenly place! As we climbed, we ran into a family from America that was not prepared for this hike and clearly had no idea what they were getting into. You could tell the dad didn’t think it through very well before he planned this hike. It was as brutal as it was breathtaking, and they had a long way to go to get to the hotels in the Kiental valley. Half way up, we stopped at a little farm (after busting our way through the herd) and ate some lunch on the bench in the shade. We saw a cowgirl walking with a big stick to go beat the crap out of a cow, or maybe the Americans, but either way, she was a little intimidating. So, we ate lunch, and headed back out on the trail that was now fully exposed in the sun as we crested the peak to the pass. The views from the pass were second to none and we celebrated our summit with selfies and chocolate. From there, we started the long and grueling descent to Griesalp (actually our mountain hotel was past Griesalp, so bonus hiking for us). In all, it was a beautiful hike, but a brutal descent. In stark contrast to the American family, was an old Swiss lady we saw hiking up the mountain at a perfectly steady pace. She caught us on the descent as we were filling up water at one of the randomly placed water spickets that dot Switzerland’s mountains. She told us which way to go, and we descended into the woods toward our hotel. We did finally see some goats, one of which was desperately in need of a good milking. After a long descent, we arrived at the hotel Waldrand, a historic hotel where we got to share a bathroom with two other couples. Dinner was wonderful and we sat outside looking at the mountains and giant waterfalls in the cool summer evening. It was a wonderful meal, and the people were super nice. The menu was all in German and we asked the hostess what one of the dishes was, and she thought for a moment and said, “little moo”. Perfect, we’ll have the little moo and the pork cordon bleu. It was a great meal and a wonderful end to a long and tiring day. With memories of beautiful mountain peaks, we fell asleep listening to the Germans next to us laugh and make commentary that we could not understand at all as we snuggled under our fluffy Swiss comforters. It was bliss.
 

Grindelwald - Eigergletscher - Jungfraujoch 

​Goodbye Belvedere, Hello trail! One more amazing breakfast and then back out into the wild, well sort of.  Because the weather was decent, we decided to go to the top of Europe (or at least the highest train station in Europe), the Jungfraujoch. We took the Eiger Express gondola from Grindelwald and then hoped on the train that goes through the mountain (literally for 20 minutes) in a tunnel dug over 100 years ago. When the Swiss get bored or have a problem, they did a tunnel. The top was cooler than I thought it would be. The views of the glaciers and the three main peaks (the Eiger, the Monch, and the Jungfrau) were staggering. We could have done without the annoying Chinese tourists (not being racist here, but Chinese tourists are the worst since they have no sense of personal space, how to wait in line, or be politely quiet). It was pretty obvious that even the Swiss were constantly annoyed. 
 
Undeterred, we enjoyed our tour of the summit, the ice caves, the freezing cold, and the grand vistas. From there, we headed back down to the mountain in the train to a different stop where we had lunch looking back up at the mountains. We then made a critical error. Instead of hiking up the mountain and taking the gondola down to Wengen (or the train for that matter), we then hiked down to Wengen. While there were some good views, this was a rather forgettable hike on a gravel road and our feet were not happy to be going down for many, many, steep, steep miles. Oh well, we made it to the hotel with sad feet.
 
Our hotel that night was quaint (a far cry from the Belvedere), but pleasant. Thomas, the inn keeper was very nice and helpful. Since it was so early in the day, we decided to take the train down to Lauterbrunnen (our second mistake of the day). Where Wengen has amazing views of the valley and is very quiet, Lauterbrunnen was overrun with more tourists. Having already had our fill of tourists at the Jungfraujoch, we weren’t impressed and didn’t stay long. We headed back up to Wengen for dinner to escape the hoards or humanity. Our third mistake was not making a dinner reservation before we left, so we got turned away from the restaurant nearest our hotel.  We then wandered deeper into Wengen and stopped at a pasta place that smelled like ass, so we went to a traditional Swiss restaurant (finally not a mistake)! The food was excellent and the couples around us chatty and fun. We sat next to an Anglican pastor and his wife of one year who were very chatty and full of commentary. He runs a church outside of London, but in the summer comes to Switzerland to run the church there. What a gig! Then there was a couple from Greece with their little kiddos. Everyone was quite jovial, so the day ended on a very positive note, especially when the ice cream and apple strudel came out. We gave our unused train tickets to the Greek family, so they didn’t have to walk down the trail to Lauterbrunnen in the dark and returned to our little hotel full, exhausted, and laughing about our conversations with our dinner friends. 

Meiringen to Grindelwald via Grosse Scheidegg Summit ​

​After such a wonderful dinner, and with a full day of hiking ahead of us, we were eager for our Swiss breakfast. It did not disappoint. There was so much wonderful food in the morning to fuel our day. The chef asked us what our plans were for the day and gave us some hiking advice, which we followed and ended up making the day awesome. He told us there was no rush since the clouds wouldn’t start clearing until nine o’clock, so we took our time then headed out into the rain to take the funicular up to Reichenbach falls. These are the famous falls where Sherlock Holmes met his end. Of course, none of that is real, but the town really markets it like it was a real thing. The funicular was awesome and saved us about 1,000 feet of steep vertical ascent, which was great because we still climbed over 4,000 feet later on. When we got to the top, we got to talk to Peter on FB messenger! What fun it was to talk with him. It always makes our day better. After using half Mike’s phone battery on that call, we headed up the steep trail away from the falls and toward the Grosse Scheidegg pass. 
 
The chef was right, and the hike was staggeringly beautiful along a soft dirt alpine trail, slowly rising toward the pass through lush forests. It was truly magical and didn’t feel like we were climbing as much as we really were. About half way up, the clouds cleared, and we got our first glimpse of the Wetterhorn and were completely blown away. It’s so big and grand that it’s hard to take in. We ate lunch at Rosli by a little hotel on a little green bench. Sara discovered the joy of Orange/Peach Capri Sun and Europe’s version of Sun Chips.
 
From the lunch spot, the trail got more and more Alpine with less trees and more staggering views. We made it to the top, exhausted, but exhilarated by the amazing climb and the views of the mountains. We were so grateful that the clouds cleared up enough for us to see the mountains in their grandeur. With it being late, we decided not to head over to First and take the gondola down, rather we took the Post Bus down to Grindelwald. This proved fun because the bus plays this wonky little horn medley when it comes around the corner, so you know the Post bus is coming. It was entertaining. 
 
We walked over to our hotel, the Belvedere, which would be our home for the next two days. We checked into our room, then headed to the hot tub and just soaked away our sore legs and feet. Both of us were sore! We weren’t used to hiking 12 miles a day, so it felt good to sit in the hot tub, listen to loud annoying Americans be loud and annoying, and then be grateful when they left. 
 
The Belvedere is a fairly swanky little establishment so for dinner we had another five-course meal.  However, there was a problem in the kitchen and the main course took a long time to come out. In all, it was like a three-hour dinner. The main course was pretty forgettable, but we were just glad to be warm, cozy, and looking at the magnificent peaks of the Eiger, the Monch, and the Jungfrau looming large over the village. It was quite a sight to behold. 

Engelberg to Meiringen via Alpina Route 1 and then took Route 40

​With the closest church being hours away, Sunday saw the start of our hiking excursion rather early. We got up, enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with our hotel mates from yesterday (the happy coupe with a baby and the grumpy couple from the Middle East). We checked out, left our bags for the delivery service (Eurotrek) and headed across the street to the Coop to get some lunch supplies. From there, we walked over to the gondola and rode up to lake Trubsee. This would cut off quite a bit of the hike in the rain, which was the right thing to do. At the lake, we found Schmuggli! It was probably the highlight of that part of the trip. We then walked around the lake in the cold rain to the chair lift that would take us up to the pass. Fortunately, the chair lifts had plastic covers, otherwise, we would have been even more cold and wet. It was a fairly mixed sky at the top and it was clearly snowing just a few hundred feet up from our location. Fortunately, we were headed down. Sara wanted to take some quick shots with her camera and promptly dropped her hiking stick in cow crap without realizing it. She then proceeded to smear the cow crap all over her jacket, hat, and hood. I turned around and she was covered in crap, it was raining, it was windy and cold. Not a great start to our long hiking adventure! Fortunately, we recovered from this moment and started hiking down the mountain. The skies would clear from time to time, but overall, it was a rainy day. By the time we reached the halfway point, the hotel at Engstlenalp, we were wet and tired. We stopped to use the restroom, ate some overpriced carrot cake, and met a young couple from the states. They were camping their way through the Alps and looked wet and stinky. She was from Vail, and he was from southern California. It’s good to be young and stinky!
 
We headed out from our latest Wes Anderson hotel and decided to change plans and follow the lower route to our destination instead of the higher route. This was probably a good decision and saved us from hiking in the snow. We also got to hike down this ravine with amazing waterfalls and followed Gandalf for a while until we found Rivendale. It was such a lush and beautiful canyon that the time passed quickly, until it didn’t. Going downhill for 12 miles gets a little rough on the feet and we were starting to get tired and needed a bathroom. There was a farm selling Alpine cheese and butter. So, we rang the doorbell and discovered that the young girl didn’t speak English, and as our kids will tell you, we don’t speak German. Fortunately, she spoke French so Mike negotiated the purchase of some Alpine butter and Sara got to use the bathroom in the barn. We then continued hiking briskly until we got to the Meiringen gondola. Oh, blessed gondola that took us down the last 1,000 feet to the town. I think we would have been found dead on the trail if we had to go down another 2 miles of steep rocky trails. In all, the first day saw us traveling 18 miles, so we didn’t feel bad taking the gondola down. We arrived at our boutique hotel and gave great thanks for the abundant hot water in Switzerland and their awesome water pressure. 
 
After returning ourselves to human form, we headed downstairs for dinner. It was quite amazing. The chef prepared a five-course meal, and we enjoyed every inch of it. From the ceviche (yes ceviche in Switzerland) to the perfectly cooked steak, it was quite the treat after our long, long cold hike in the rain. After dinner, we promptly fell into a food coma. Someone must have taken us upstairs because we woke up the next day in our room.
 

Mike took a quick trip out to SLC to go and visit with Andrew. The car rental even upgraded his car to a speedy little Dodge Charger. Mike and Andrew ate and talked and even went shooting at the range together. My mom was in town and so they had lunch at Thanksgiving Point during the day and at night Mike hung out with his nephew Josh and his wife Lexie at a baseball game. He even fit in a little hike up to the Living Room lookout behind the University of Utah campus. The trip may have been quick but there was no shortage of fun to be had while visiting Utah!

Sometimes, there are touristy things on websites or in guidebooks and you wonder if they are really worth it. The road to Hana is one of those things. It's become kind of a destination thing and there are a million possible places to stop along the way, so you really have to figure you out what your priorities are when you make this trek. For me, the priority was not sitting in traffic all day. If I've learned one thing living in Washington D.C. it's that you want to be going against the flow of traffic during your morning commute. The same is true in regards to the Road to Hana.

With that as our guide, we got up early and headed out before the other sleepy heads on Maui were awake and ready to go. By daybreak, we were well on our way to making our first of six hundred and twenty twisty turns on our way to the other side of the island. We didn't stop at the first set of waterfalls, or the second. We made a beeline for the end of the road with the idea of hitting things on the way back.  It was definitely the way to go. 

One stop we did make on the way was at the Hana Farms store. The banana bread there was legendary and with good reason, it was delicious and clearly made with bananas that had been crossed with cocaine. I could have eaten five loaves myself. It was so good. They also had cookies that were bigger than Madeline's head. In fact, a lot of things on this trip were bigger than Madeline's head....cookies, flowers, whales.

After filling ourselves with banana bread, we continued our twisty journey. We did have to stop by one of the dozens of roadside waterfalls because everyone got a little car sick, but we didn't stop for long! The drive itself was ridiculously beautiful with glimpses of the ocean, waterfalls, tropical forests and stunning vistas. Even if you are stuck in traffic, it's probably amazing. It's also very narrow in places which ads to the time it takes to make it all the way to the National Park. 

When we arrived, it was raining gently, which is ok on a hike in Maui because its 80 degrees outside. The Pipiwai trail is well worth the drive. It's an easy trail and it is stunning. The giant banyan tree is incredible, but we really enjoyed the walk on the boardwalk through the bamboo forest. The bamboo would knock together in the wind and it sounded so cool. On the way to the main waterfall, there was another amazing waterfall. Truthfully, the whole hike was fabulous and we barely noticed the 1.8 miles to Waimoku falls. Once done with the hike, we hiked down along the seven sacred pools and had lunch by the ocean. That was just as stunning as the hike in many ways. As we sat by the ocean, the sheer power of the waves against the lava rocks was fabulous. The vistas were stunning and the wind refreshing. 

After lunch, we began our journey back to the other end of the island. As we made our way back up the road, it was clear to see that we had made the right decision. There was a line of cars trying to get to the National Park. As we cruised back through the six hundred and twenty curves, we made a few stops. The first was for some coconut ice cream that was supposed to be super amazing. It was not. It was the most overrated ice cream I have ever had. Not worth the stop. The second was to see the wonky bark on some of the Eucalyptus trees. They were cool. The final was at a garden aptly named the Garden of Eden. A little pricey, but certainly worth the stop. The views were amazing, and all the flowers and trees were beautiful. It was a nice place to stretch the legs after being in the car for so long on the way back. After that, we headed back to the resort. We laughed at all the signs that had been changed to be somewhat inappropriate and marveled at all the broken-down cars. In fact, I thought it would be clever to just make those junked out cars mile markers, there were plenty of them to see.

All in all, the road to Hana was an amazing and fun filled day. It was well worth the drive and the one thousand and forty turns. 

While the beach in Maui is amazing, our skin tone dictates that if we spend three straight days on the beach, we will spend the rest of the vacation applying Aloe and feeling miserable. So, we decided to spend today enjoying one of the other amazing aspects of Hawaii: hiking. The first place we headed to was the Waihee ridge trail. We brought our hiking poles and sturdy shoes with us on this trip for this very trail. It's steep and muddy. The views are amazing and the forest divine, but it's a solid climb. At least it's at sea level! The climb starts out in a really cool forest and quickly gains the ridge line where you can look out over the lush, green valley. It really is an amazing hike with gorgeous views. If you want to know more about it, check out Mike's website: whatmikeyliked for a more detailed description of the hike itself.

On the day we went, the clouds blessed us with some solid rain, making the trail more muddy but keeping us cool. We saw lots of people sliding down the steep trail and creating lasting stains on their clothes. We were grateful to have proper hiking gear. Teva's are a great sandal to bring to Maui as most of the hikes are doable with Teva's except for maybe the trails around the summit of the volcano. At the top of the trail, there is a little viewing platform where you can sit, have a snack or lunch, before you head back down. All in all, it was a great little hike that got us off our butts and onto the trail.

On our way back into town, we stopped and got ice cream cones and then headed to Iao Valley State Park. There is a little fee to pay to access this area. The hike to the cool views is super short and on a paved trail. It's a pretty cool little vista, but the real gem here is the creek that flows out of the park. There is a dirt trail that parallels the creek and there are endless little pools that you can sit in, jump in, and play in. We spent the rest of the afternoon here in the shade of the trees rejoicing in the cool waters. It was an unexpected find and it is very accessible.

After we had played in the river, we headed back to our condo for dinner, sunset, and a walk along the ocean. Maui couldn't be any more paradisiacal.

When the weather is warm on the weekends during the winter, we try to take advantage of it by being outside doing something fun. Since it was a rather warm Sunday, we got the itch to go hiking. Abby and Madeline didn’t feel like going for a hike, so Mike and I took Emma and headed to Spruce Mountain Open Space for a jolly good time. We hit some snowy sections on the way up which wasn’t all that surprising since it was technically still the winter. We ended up hiking the big loop all the way around the plateau and back. The views were incredible, and it was so enjoyable to be hiking at a rather brisk pace. Sometimes it is fun to have an adventure with one kid at a time. We loved being with Emma and listening to her talk on our hike. She is such a great girl!

Hiking up in Mueller State Park during the changing of the leaves has been our annual tradition since we moved here 8 years ago. Last year was the first year we didn't make it to the park, and it's been 3 years since we were able to do it with all five of our kids. With the boys in town visiting during their college fall break, we packed an awesome lunch and headed up to enjoy the beautiful fall weather. We lucked out since the leaves were still vibrant and beautiful. Peter, Abby and Madeline all found great walking sticks on the first stretch of the trail. We all loved watching Madeline copy exactly what Peter was doing. She was his little sidekick for the day. We ventured along the Outlook Ridge trail to the Raven Ridge Overlook and set up our picnic lunch on the big rocks. We love the views from this overlook. In the distance we could still see lots of yellow popping up through the evergreen trees. It was absolutely beautiful. After stuffing our faces full of sandwiches, cheese and crackers, chocolate covered pretzels, and veggie chips, we headed down the rocks to explore a bit like we do every time we come to this place. We were amazed and shocked to see that the teepee we had made 2 years ago was still standing. There were a few more tree branches that people had added which was fun. Madeline was the most excited to play there and in the cave down below the teepee. All the kids were able to squeeze in the open cave for a quick photo. After playing around for quite some time we climbed back up to the overlook, grabbed our bags and headed back to the car. It was great to be able to build more memories together at Mueller State Park.

We have lived in Colorado Springs for 8 years and this was the first time that Mike and I hiked the famous Crags trail. The 5-mile trail started through a beautiful aspen lined meadow with mountain peaks in the distance. After walking through a forest of aspen trees we came to another clearing with the coolest rock formations in our view. As we rounded the corner from this first rock formation, we began to make the climb to the top of the granite dome. As we made our way to the top we came upon some astonishing gnarled ancient Bristlecone Pines sprinkled throughout the rocks. In every direction we saw the coolest rock formations and were amazed at the beauty of these rock formations and at the view of the Rampart Range, Ute Pass, and the Catamount Creeks drainage. We could've stayed up there all day, but the wind was pretty brutal at the top. After eating a quick snack, taking in the 360-degree view, and playing very quickly with an Australian Shepard, we headed back down the trail. This was a relatively easy hike and one in which we will have to do again with our kids.

It was so nice to sleep in this morning before heading out on our last adventure in Crested Butte. We packed our lunch and then headed out on Gothic Rd. We drove all the way to the Judd Falls/Copper Creek Trailhead, just past the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (which resembles a sort of eerie ghost town). The weather was much cooler than the day before and so we headed out with our jackets. This trail was lined with the most beautiful yellow aspens and the hike to Judd falls was just gorgeous. The falls was magnificent to see from the viewpoint up above and it reminded me of the falls at Salish Lodge in Washington. It was fun to read the history behind this area and how it started as a mining town, then turned to a ghost town, and then to a scientific field station. We decided to continue on the trail and head on the Copper Creek trail towards Copper Lake. As we neared an opening to the vast mountain range, we saw several cows journeying in the same direction. It was fun and unique to see cows on the trail. For sake of time, we decided to turn around and head back instead of trying to push it to the lake. This trail is one we will come back and do again when we have more time. After we got back to the car, we drove up a little further to a small lake and ate our lunch and skipped rocks for a bit. Everyone got into the rock skipping fun and we all took note from Mike who is the ultimate rock skipper. Our trip to Crested Butte was shorter than the year before but we had just as much fun hiking different trails while still enjoying the changing of the leaves. This is definitely one of our favorite places to adventure during the fall season.

Emma and I got up this morning and went for an early run before getting ready for a day of hiking with the family. Running at 9000ft is no small task and I expended a lot of energy just to keep up with her. It was all worth it, though, as we ran through the most beautiful scenery. The leaves were absolutely amazing as they were in the middle of turning colors for the fall season. We all hopped in the 4runner and headed back to Ohio pass to walk the Beaver Pond trail again. Since we were a week or two early from the peak time to enjoy the changing leaves, it was not crowded at all. We essentially had the trail all to ourselves which was amazing. Even though not all of the leaves had started changing, the beauty inside the aspen forest on this trail is pretty spectacular any time of year. At the beaver pond there was a beautiful section of yellow leaved trees across the pond. It was magnificent. We would have circled the pond but since the cows were roaming around we decided to head back the same way we came. On the way back to the car Madeline and I walked a little slower than the others so that I could take some photos of the aspen trees and enjoy the beauty a little longer. She was not disappointed at all to go slower and eat a fun snack along the way.

After leaving Ohio pass, we decided to hike up the Scarp Ridge trail to see the magnificent views of the Maroon Bells and other mountain vistas from the top. It was a brutal steep ascent and the sun was out in full force since it was the middle of the day so we were all a bit warm. The hike was more about the views at the top than it was about viewing the changing leaves so it took some of us a hot minute to be ok with that. The views at the top did not disappoint. It was pretty spectacular. We didn't spend very long at the top since the sun was hiding behind the clouds and the wind was pretty strong. We hiked back down trail until we met up with the 421 loop. We found a nice sheltered area along the ridge line and stopped to eat our lunch. We hung up the hammock between two small trees but only Madeline was small enough to sit in it since the trees weren't strong enough to hold us big people. The 421 trail was really pretty and I enjoyed going back down that way a whole lot better than the trail we took to the top. By the time we got back to our car we were all exhausted. I wasn't surprised since the hike was a little over 5 miles roundtrip and we ascended 1600 ft in the 2.5 miles it took to get to the top. We spent the rest of the night back at the hotel, refueling and relaxing. 
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