We spent the morning sleeping in and eating a good breakfast before packing all of our stuff in the car and heading off on our last fun day in Crested Butte. We had initially planned on hiking Snodgrass Mountain just north of the ski areas, but as we were driving along Gothic road, we saw a sign that said it was closed. We decided to just drive for a bit to see what was more north along the road. The views were great but eventually we turned around to see if we could access Snodgrass Mountain from the western side of the mountain. We didn't have much luck on that side but enjoyed exploring the views from Washington Gulch Rd. We probably spent an hour in the car just enjoying the different areas of Crested Butte. Then we headed back into town and decided to hike the Upper Loop Trail system right on the mountainside of Mt. Crested Butte. We headed on the main trail for a little over a mile and then decided to stop along a pleasant part of the trail, hidden in the aspens, and eat our lunch. We saw a couple of different mountain bikers on this part of our hike. I would definitely like to come back and ride my mountain bike here. After turning around and heading back on the trail, we made it back to the intersection of Upper Loop Trail and Happy Hour Trail. We decided to head up on the Happy Hour Trail to see what the views would be in that direction. I am so glad we decided to do this trail because after hiking several switchbacks, we eventually popped out of the aspens and when we turned around further along the trail we could see how far and deep and wide the aspens stood. We didn't stay on the open trail that long since it was getting a little too hot outside, but we made it far enough along the trail to be happy about adventuring that far. By this point, everyone was ready to turn around and head back to the car. Emma did a great job being Madeline's buddy on this hike and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to their conversations as we headed back down the trail. We really got lucky this weekend with the amazing fall colors that we saw. I had always heard that Crested Butte was amazing in the fall and now I know exactly why people claim Crested Butte as one of the best places to visit to see the fall colors! We will definitely be coming back here for another fall adventure!
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