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Poudre Lake in the early morning sunshine
(which readily shows the damage to my lens acquired during the last hike) |
Woke up early Friday morning to head over Trail Ridge Road to Milner Pass with four of my park cohorts. Having heard that the Continental Divide Trail towards Mt. Ida was "beautiful, like being in Tibet," we were very eager to hit the trail.
The trail quickly rises above treeline, and much of the hike goes along the edge of many rolling peaks. At the peak, Mt. Ida is 12,880 ft, the highest point of land I have ever stood upon; 5.5miles one way and 2,112ft elevation gain (quite a doozy when you're already starting above 10,000ft).
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| Dave leading the way, with Diana, Kristen and myself following behind. |
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| the tundra wildflowers were still very much in bloom above treeline |
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| looking towards Grand Lake (far off in the distance) |
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| the Never Summer Mtns. Towards the center you can see Trail Ridge Road winding through the pines. Just above and more to the left is the Grand Ditch, which moves water from the Colorado River north towards Wyoming. |
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| One of only two times I saw bighorns in the park. These lovely ladies (there were about 5-6) ran right alongside us for a bit. |
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| Bighorn sheep! |
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| Western Yellow Paintbrush |
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| Western Yellow Paintbrush |
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| Within the boulderfield, very near the peak, looking out towards the Never Summers |
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| Kings Crown |
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From the peak of Mt. Ida, looking southeast
(panorama, click for larger image) |
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from the summit of Mt. Ida, looking west towards Grand lake
(panorama, click for larger image) |
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