It was an unexpected but wonderful weekend in the Front Range. We had planned to head to Leadville with the Dierkers for the weekend, but a bad weather forecast quickly made us reconsider our plans to hike Elbert and instead stay close to home. Chad was awesome and let Mary and Chris stay in his part of the house. We had a lovely time on Saturday hiking up through the wildflowers to American Lakes (the mosquitoes weren't quite as bad as the previous weekend with the ladies), then enjoyed burgers and beers at the Mish on our way back to town. On Sunday, we had to turn around a little early on our hike to Chasm Lake due to building clouds; we were glad we did! We did a short guided meditation close to treeline, and just as it was ending, we heard hail starting to ping off rocks around us. We hustled down the trail as hail poured from the dark clouds and thunder rumbled nearby. We splashed down the trail in the new rivers of water and hail, shoulders hunched, bracing for impact. The storm broke and a brief window opened to let the sun through when we got back to the car, but we were soaked head to toe. We made some wardrobe changes (thanks for the loaner pants Papa D) and warmed up with some bacon wrapped jalapenos, beer, and margs at Eds.
Unfortunately the work week was a little crazy, but Mary and Chris moved to a vacation rental near old town for Monday and Tuesday, and I think they thoroughly enjoyed themselves hiking in Estes and exploring old town with Alex. We did discover a new delish sushi restaurant, and that Crazy Karl's pizza expands in your stomach. :) Thanks for a great time guys, miss and love ya!
