My Wish for the New Year!

http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/W84iQIAWZv8ckELB

Merry Christmas Hike

Hussie Hiking in the city for a Christmas Celebration! We walked the three bridges into Downtown Denver.

We had lunch at the Ritz!

North Table Mountain

Donna and Carol climbed North Table Mountain. They, of course, forgot rule number 1 in Hiking 101 and did not take a map. Ended up hiking about eight miles. It was beautiful fall hike: warm, sunny, and lovely!

Donna got some great pictures of cattails with her new camera.

Hiking Hussies Hiatus Halted

After a short hiatus, the Hiking Hussies resumed their pursuit of beautiful places in Colorado!

On Wednesday, September 29, we headed up to Eldorado Canyon State Park.

We admired the climbers going to the top by way of cliffs and ropes, however we chose a more conventional route up utilizing the Fowler Trail and Rattlesnake Gulch.  We covered about 5.6 miles.

Here is the Continental Divide Overlook.
We hoped to see fall colors; the summac were beautiful.

We lunched at the Crag Hotel ruins.

A good time was had by all!

Golden Gate Canyon on a Perfect September Day!

Carol, Beth and Donna headed to Golden Gate Park to mark the beginning of September. After a short stop at the Visitor Center, we found the Mule Deer trailhead and headed out.

The trail took us through lovely aspen meadows, uphill beneath the pines, and into the expansive Frazier Meadows.

Hopefully, not what will happen to us in our later years...

In Frazier Meadows, we read the story of John Frazier who lived an incredible life in a small cabin. It's hard to imagine the extremes of both hardship and beauty that he experienced.

Our plan was to intersect the Coyote Trail and hike to a higher point, but alas, the trail was closed for tree mitigation. So we turned around and had lunch on a rock outcropping with a great view of Mt. Evans and the Indian Peak Wilderness.

On the way back, we enjoyed summer's last blush of wildflowers as well as the early signs of fall.

At the end of the hike, we drove to Panorama Point - a short distance up the road.

The views of the Continental Divide from the Point were extraordinary, tempered only by the sounds of rambunctious children with unchecked energy, ignored by fathers who lounged in the shade and skillfully looked in the other direction. We decided that Golden Gate Park would be a great hike when the aspen leaves turn golden.

Pippi Longstocking made a guest appearance

Chief Mountain Birthday Bash

Carol, Connie and Donna meandered up Chief Mountain to celebrate their birthdays - all occurring within an 8-day period in August. Specific ages will not be mentioned, except to note that Donna is officially the baby of the group.

Spotted Saxifrage

We only saw a few hardy wildflowers, and wistfully noted the approach of autumn in the reddening foliage.

At the top, we toasted ourselves with Hussie wine-glass necklaces and pink champagne!

Carol modeling her Hussie Wine Necklace

Top 'o the Mountain (and morning!) Toast

Is 9:30 am really too early to drink champagne?

 The views were spectacular, the weather was cool, and we lingered for almost an hour at the summit.

After a quick visit to Echo Lake Lodge, we ate heartily at a Vietnamese restaurant in Evergreen.

Mitchell and Blue Lakes

On July 19, Beth, Carol and Val hiked to Blue Lake in the Indian Peaks Wilderness.  It was a beautiful day, tons of wildflowers, and the most breathtaking views!

Into the Indian Peaks Wilderness

On our way to Blue Lake

Mitchell Lake

We can see forever!

Two Waterfalls at Blue Lake

Lunch is so Important

It Was Gourmet all the Way!

And the nap was important !