A Bit 'O Boulder

Boulder was the first place i visited last year in Colorado. I had always sort of ignored Colorado because people in college who i really didn't want to be around would not shut up about how awesome certain places were. So i let them have it, and didn't talk too much about my own fun in Glacier Park and the Sierra Nevadas.

Boulder is definitely a very pretty town. The Ironsides rise dramatically right in front of your face, and the downtown neighborhoods full of bunnys and white picket fences. In April there were loads of tulips along the downtown concourse. On the southern edge of downtown is a vigorous stream.

A nifty bike in Louisville or Lafeyette.

A downtown Boulder neighborhood

Strolling along Boulder Canyon Trail.

My first trip i met up with my friend Allyson from High School. She's lived there for years and i hadn't seen her since she was sinking in quicksand in a tributary of the Escalante River nearly 15 years prior. Allyson took me all over the place and i was able to meet her family. That evening i took a trip of Left Hand Canyon and Gold Hill Road.

Starting off at the foot of the mountains.

The next day i decided to try some newly legal edibles, and that destroyed my life for 20 hours. Even after a night of sleep i was really messed up. I decided the only thing left to do was to try to work it out, so i went for a hike to a place called Royal Arch. It's a short trail but fairly strenuous. There are several routes but mine came out a bit over 3 miles round trip and 1,500 feet of elevation.

 Initially the trail winds through open pines.

 After a while it begins to ascend relentlessly. The trail is incredibly well maintained compared to an Alaskan trail.

 Looking south you could see downtown Denver through the haze.

 I rose quickly up above the town in a short distance.

 Royal Arch

 Dogs in a crack

 Trees growing up out of cracks in thick sheets of rock.

 The woods were thicker up higher.

 Another nice section of trail.

 The hike was a good idea. I felt horrible and nauseous on the way up but after a nice long break at the arch i felt completely normal on the way back. The next day i made my drive up to Estes Park. Like the rest of the Colorado front range towns there is nothing of interest (to me) to the East. But what is great about Boulder is just how fast you can get up into the mountains from town.  I took the Peak to Peak Highway which is an enjoyable and quick way to get to Rocky Mountain National Park. Later in the year i returned to Boulder, but only briefly to have lunch with my friend Amber who i worked with in Lake Powell. I hadn't seen Amber since the same year as Allyson.

 Boulder Falls is in a cool canyon.

 Barker Dam better not fail.

 Along the Peak to Peak Highway looking back towards Boulder

 I found the town of Ward on a Ghost Town website. It may have some abandoned mines but Ward is definitely not a ghost town.

 There's an impressive cliff on the East face of Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park. At 14,259 feet. it rises about 5,400 over the road, but sits well back from it. First ascended by John Wesley Powell!