Ambling in the Rockies

For the past couple days I've been hanging out high in the Colorado Rockies. Here the Lizards and I are at Loveland Pass, 11,990 feet above sea level. Blow up the pic and you can see I-70 far below. We are above the Eisenhower Tunnel at this point. Temp here was a chilly 54 degrees, an hour after my car thermo registered 86 in Denver. Here we're a little more than 6000 feet above Denver, so the air is warming dry adiabatically as it descends from here into the city.

Summit county is a year round recreational mecca. Of course in the winter everyone skis or snowboards, but it's equally busy in summer with white water rafting, hiking, camping, and cycling...there are many miles of bike paths that are then used for cross country skiing in the winter. This is Lake Dillon, nicely full...not like a few years ago when it was very low due to drought. Notice the old beaver lodge in the foreground...I have no idea when it was built.

I'm currently staying in Breckenridge, 9600 feet above sea level...and all the hiking trails go up from there. This shot is along the Spruce Creek Trail, just south of town, at an elevation of about 10,900 feet. At this elevation on Mount Rainier, you've got...glaciers! But here, far to the south and well to the east, summer temperatures are much warmer and snowfall, though plentiful, is considerably less than on Rainier.

I was surprised to see these massive mushrooms growing near timberline, around 11,300 feet. The largest 'shroom is about a foot across.

A tranquil scene. The log and the grass to its lower left are real...most of the rest of the pic is a reflection. I hiked about 5 miles today, with around a thousand feet elevation gain and loss, all above 10 thousand feet elevation. All by noon. Not bad for an old sloat! I've done a lot of hiking on this trip and have gotten into noticeably better condition than a couple months ago. Loooong way to go on that score, though.