Aspen - Maroon Bells

  I had just finished the scenic and upper scenic loop and came back to the base of Maroon Creek. Ranjan had left for Crater Lake, another beautiful hike that I chose not to undertake. While waiting for Ranjan to complete the loop, I adored the enormity of nature’s creations. I was utterly in awe, looking at the most photographed mountains in the US. Both are fourteeners (used for mountains with a height of 14,000 ft or more).

The scenic loop hike is the easiest and most beautiful one in the entire trip. The path was almost hidden amid beds of gorgeous wildflowers and the cascading maroon Creek. Our guide, a wonderful college student, gave us much helpful information. 

Crater Lake

The maroon color comes from mudstone, which is quite fragile. Once upon a time, the height of maroon bells was more than Himalaya! We saw a flower throughout our vacation, which we came to know as monument flower which blooms once in at least 20 years and dies after one-time bloom only. A single plant may have some 600 flowers and can grow quite tall. 

Monument plant bigger than me!

Maroon Creek 

 I loved the flow of the creek. We sat down under the footbridge to enjoy the soothing falling of clear water. As we finished the loop, we had a lovely picnic at the base while watching the trouts beneath the water and the geese taking dips to cool off. The Emerald green water created quite an ambiance when the sun was right above our head.

The park had a regular stream of visitors. The shuttle came every 15-20 minutes (the park doesn't allow cars, one has to book in advance and be on time so that you don't miss your much deserving trip!)

With this visit, we concluded our stay at Aspen and prepared ourselves for the subsequent two beautiful train journeys; I will be writing in another post.

Crested Butte - Oh Be Joyful Trail

 Crested Butte has a plethora of wonderful trails; each one being distinctly different from others. One afternoon, we decided to go check out Oh Be joyful campground. The trail was very close to our condo, a few miles on dirt road. We could see the river from the road and the bridge, looked lovely. We parked a little higher ground and decided to hike from there.

A few campers were busy fixing dinners. We went past them and started walking as not to lose much time before sun sets in. I was still getting used to altitudes in Colorado and I do not consider myself as a serious hiker, very soon I felt tired. I paused, had a sip of water and almost decided not to proceed further. While I was resting, Ranjan went a little further to check out and, then he returned. He was all excited and told, one shouldn't miss the valley for a little more hike!

I was reluctant but the lure of getting  a few good pictures was enough reason to push me to hike again. It was absolutely, beautiful visual treat – A valley full of wildflowers and from the side of the mountain, there was the gorgeous river which was falling down with roaring noise. The sun was shining brightly.

As it often happens in mountains, we felt droplets of rain. Ranjan is always prepared for the hikes, he got rain gears out. The slopes were thirsty for water and created the lovely smell of dirt and rain. We rushed to the river. Though drenched, rain was short. As we hiked up to the vehicle, we saw the double rainbow on our back! Hope to return someday to complete the trail.

  

A short hike to Judd Falls

 It rained the entire day but mountains loved it. They looked fresh and clear. This was our fourth day at Crested Butte and we didn't want to let it go as this was our chance to see the  town in rain. We stayed at the foothills of ragged side of Mt. Crested Butte.  We went to see the ski side of the same mountain  . I could visualize the crowd during spring. One could still clearly see the district mark of ski slope on the summer. The mountain told plenty of stories of how families came from all over and had unlimited fun of skiing during spring. 

The hustle bustle of ski lift, the noise at restaurants or ski rentals couldn't be felt around this time of the year. The ski lift still takes people up to the mountain to get the best view of valleys, meadows and wildflowers. In summer the ski rentals turn to be bike rentals - business continues. This is one of the favorite places for mountain bikers.

We were already on Gothic Road and determined to go see the Judd falls anyway! A few minutes later, an amazing vista of a valley came with full of sunflower which spread till the end of horizon, where mountains began. It was still windy and raining but we could manage to capture the moment. 

The entire Gothic Road, one could see the bluish green mountains as backdrop, the the top to bottom, were filled with wildflowers, predominantly with sunflower but a mix up many varieties of wild flowers. the place just looked like heaven - no word would describe it. Rain almost continued as we drove through lofty mountains, meandering roads, hair clip turns, a few scary cliffs. Below the road, the river flowed like a reptile, no photo would do the justice to the unfolding landscape. 

People are very kind, polite and helpful. Visitors come from all the states in US. Particularly, nearly post pandemic, people are eager to step out in the wilderness, meet people and share stories. We exchanged tips on various trails. 

We came close to the trailhead. This is just right outside the Gothic town. Temperature had gone down and we were feeling cold and put on thin jackets. One could see a spectacular view of Gothic mountain and Mt. Crested Butte. We were standing at 9600 feet. 

I am not used to big hikes! But the trail was quite well defined. As I started warming up, I didn't feel chily anymore. 

Rocky Mountain Biological Research Laboratory does quite a bit of research here, particularly to study the movement of animals. We could spot a few cameras installed strategically. The tiny squirrel or chipmunk (can't ID clearly) were roaming like kings.

I must say, the trail offers a lot of vantage points to take pictures or just admire the grandiose vistas. The trail is carved with flowers all around. One could easily lose the sense of time but the setting sun would remind you. 

Finally, we heard the roaring fall of water and knew the Judd Falls was close. Very comfortably nestled among pine trees, the fall provided a spectacular view.
The rain had almost stopped by the time we reached the parking lot. We took a bit rest with a few snacks and water and headed back home. As sun was behind mountains, this side was getting dark. Glad we made the trip. 

As we were almost out of the park, we had a surprise - a dear munching on sun flower! hahaha...what a moment to end the day! 

A small and wonderful hike of 2.5 - 3 miles will stay in our memory forever!

Hike around Lake Grant - Crested Butte

Crested Butte, is one of the most beautiful small, quaint town in Colorado. Very well known for the scenic lakes, lofty mountains, biking & hiking trails, lovely mountain rivers, fishing...you name it!

We stayed very close to the town of Crested Butte and woke up seeing the varying colors of Whetstone Mountain - the best when clouds touched or a slight drizzle happened after a long spell of heat.

Lake Grant was right behind this community and was strongly recommended to visit by our Landowner. One evening, we decided to go for a hike and see the lake. It was a very easy hike. Particularly, being summer, the valley was full of wild flowers (Crested Butte is known as wildflower capital of Colorado). With a nice breeze flowing, we continued walking as the lake approached. With the mountains standing magnificently tall, the calm lake appeared serene and grand at the same time. For a sec, I felt quite overwhelmed, didn't want to let go a few minutes of bliss in earthly heaven.

and decided to go around it. We were not alone. Many families with kids and dogs were equally enjoying the lovely moments.

I could see the trouts sliding through the water. A goose family with babies was quite a sight. The patches of many different blooms were creating quite a landscape. Sometimes, the meandering path with flowers on both sides created magic. We were hearing the distant thunder signaling rain was coming close.

 We came across a small creek (probably a man made one to enhance the beauty to attract more visitors to the valley) and next to it was a tree (not sure the type) and a humming bird was loving it.

The simmering of Aspen leaves were pleasantly loud and I wondered how pretty they would look in Fall, when they all turn gold!

We had almost come full circle and chanced upon this patch of sneezeweed and luckily, 

Sneezeweed - wildflowers seen everywhere throughout Crested Butte

sun came up for a few seconds providing a magnificent view of mountains, valley and lake.

Soon, the top of mountains were engulfed with clouds. I could feel a few drops on my hand. The thunder in mountains could be scary. We rushed to reach our 'home'. By the time, we reached, rain started and Whetstone Mountain looked very pretty with a shower. A cup of spiced tea completed our evening.