Colorado Explored

Kenosha Pass is an easier hike that gives adventurers an opportunity to see spectacular fall colors and experience part of the famed "Colorado Trail" . Lots of people will make the drive out only to hop out and take a few pictures before getting back in the car and heading back but the secret is, to see the best stuff, you have to hike a bit. This trail extends on both sides of 285, you will find bikers, hikers and doggos too. During peak "leaf season", typically late September to early October this trail will be packed with folks trying to get their best photos and experience all those warm colors before it gets cold. Last year we came about a week late. The leaves had already fallen and the aspens were bare but it made for some truly amazing (and a bit creepy) black and white shots, like this one. While driving Guanella Pass to Mt.Bierstadt last weekend we took note of the color change and made plans right then to head to Kenosha Pass the following weekend. Fee...

Out of all the 14'ers in Colorado we picked Bierstadt because we had heard and read that is was an easier hike to start with when compared to some of the other more difficult and notorious 14'ers. What is a 14'er you ask? Well, a 14'er is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least 14,000 ft. There are 96 14'ers in the United States all west of the Mississippi with 58 located in Colorado.  As the day approached we spent a good amount of time mentally preparing ourselves and reading up on what we might need to pack , how to prepare and what to expect.   Trial Snapshot: Mt. Bierstadt Hike Distance -1-7 miles round trip Difficulty -Easy-Difficult Duration-1-6 hours Trail Type-Out and Back  Elevation Gain-Up to 2400' Seasons-Best Late Spring to Fall Dogs-Allowed on Leash but discouraged bc of the fragile ecosystem Hike Trail Map - Click for a Trail Map Denver Drive Time-1 hr 30 min Directions- Click for Google Map Nearest Town-Georg...

With beautiful cooler weather across Colorado this week we heard adventure calling!!! This time we brought a couple friends and some fresh gear to review! So bright an early on Saturday morning, sleep still in my dogs eyes we loaded up the car and set out for Deer Creek. The short trip took us over Loveland Pass, a high mountain pass at an elevation of 11,990ft (3.655m) above the sea level with a steep, steady 6.7%  grade, hairpin turns and dangerous drop-offs.  Say and I  personally found ourselves stuck in the snow on this road in a snowstorm with zero visibility, and that's why we have a shovel mounted to the cargo basket now but I digress. Loveland Pass was the easy road getting out to this spot with the county road maintenance ending this road gets a little...bumpy.  We settled on a spot with an existing fire ring that had a decent amount of shade and was within earshot of the creek. The previous tenants were some a-holes and had broken glass all over...

Ever since we arrived here in Colorado, Say and I have wanted to check out St. Elmo to get some good photos, video and well, check out a GHOST TOWN!!!. So finally, after a year we loaded up the car and headed out into the ether labor day weekend to see what we could see.  The drive to St. Elmo was nice, after you exit the main road you have quite the trek via dirt road to make it to the town. I'd say about 20 minutes or so driving through the national parks and forest to get there. WIKI- St. Elmo  is a ghost town  in Chafee County,Colorado.   Founded in 1880, St. Elmo lies in the heart of the Sawatch Range , southwest of Buena Vista  and sits at an elevation of 9,961 feet. Nearly 2,000  people settled in this town when mining for gold and silver  started. The mining industry started to decline in the early 1920s, and in 1922, the railroad discontinued service.  It is one of Colorado's  best-preserved ghost towns . It was ...

Once again this purchase happened because I needed something fast and once again, Amazon to the rescue. Now I don't really have a lot of miles behind me with poles so this really was the first experience I had with them and all you need to know is I was fortunate to have had them with me. These are the poles I used on Mt. Bierstadt. For the ascent to the summit they stayed in my pack and even when I started back down I remember thinking that I wasn't going to end up needing them and I bought them for nothing.....then the terrain got steep and my legs got weak. You see, all that energy I used powering up the mountain was gone on the way back down and my gummy worm legs didn't want to support my weight anymore. Out came the poles and while I can't say it was a walk in the park they certainly helped and proved themselves to be well made. On the steeper terrain they proved invaluable in navigating the loose and rocky descent. I really can't tell you how many times my fe...

I bought these out of  necessity  on the fly, these are the pants I wore when we hiked  Mt. Bierstadt. We sort of decided on doing this hike in the middle of the week so I needed something other than jeans and I needed them fast.....so, Amazon. The weather was predicted to be a bit cooler (30's-60's)and I certainly didn't want to be hiking in jeans. The fleece lining on these and and the windproof/waterproof features are what attracted me to them . I hate ordering clothes online because simply put, they never fit. I'm 6'2 about 210 with long legs, long arms and a long body....like Slenderman but not quite as scary. This means its difficult and really a bit of a guessing game with sizes. Large? What exactly is a large? Well, what I can tell you is a large in these pants fits me awesome. The pants did great the whole hike and kept me very warm. I actually like these things a lot more than I had thought I would and can see myself buying more. Lightweight but warm, the ...

You know I do love to grill, and some burgers or chili while camping is always great but when your're out and that's just not an option, the Mountain House Pro Packs will do the trick! And you wont be eating sawdust, I mean it, these things are actually GREAT! I admit I was skeptical at first but if I had not known it was dehydrated there would have been no way I could tell, yes, they're that good. Even half way through the steaming phase I thought the concoction still looked a bit questionable but after it was all done and stirred properly, color me surprised. The breakfast scramble, biscuits and gravy and the chili mac we tried were all fantastic.With tons of options for breakfast, lunch, dinner and even desert just because you are out in the elements doesn't mean you have to sacrifice on flavor. Add water, let it do its thing and then dig in, not much to it. Eat it out of the bag for easy clean up and you only end up using a utensil and a pot for the water. ★★★★ ☆ ...