Almost There

Today was our 5-year anniversary. Ideally, we would have hiked back to the place we were married - Chasm Lake - but it is quite a bit longer, higher and more exposed above treeline, and we would be carrying Elliot with us this year.

Instead, we decided to hike Estes Cone, a 6.2-mile hike to 11,000 feet overlooking Estes Park, and with great views of the surrounding mountains.

Estes Cone


We planned to get to the trailhead by 5:30 AM to get up and down early, but one consequence of our marriage (kids) means never getting to leave the house on time. We finally got started at 6:00 AM, and realized we forgot Elliot's gloves - a necessity in the 40-ish degree weather. So he borrowed Mandy's fleece gloves. We stopped a couple of times to feed Elliot, and were concerned about how warm he was. We improvised an infant "snuggie" out of Mandy's fleece (don't worry, we still had plenty of clothes for her).

At the trailhead

Pausing for breath. Note the stylish gloves.

The trail towards the top

Elliot slept a lot of the hike in but as the trail ascended, the air got thinner and the temperatures got colder, and as he was being bounced around by my trying to navigate the boulders that the trail had become, he decided he had had enough of the backpack.

We were almost to the top, and decided to turn around. A disappointment after being so close, but we didn't want him to hate the backpack forever and were still worried about whether he was warm enough. He quickly fell back asleep as we decended.

Sporting the infant snuggie - he's got his legs in the fleece arms, which are tied in knots, and the rest of it wrapped around his body.

Longs Peak in the background.

Coming back down. Yes, that is the "trail".

Taking a break from the backpack

Warmer and happier

Family self-portrait: A feat that will likely never be repeated - it was my first try, with a telephoto on the camera, with all three of us in the frame and all of us actually looking at the camera.

Why does the hike down always seem twice as long as the hike up? We eventually got back to the car, and Elliot was relieved to be out of the pack after more than four hours.

We spent most of the rest of the day just relaxing at home. Noah woke up right after we left, so he was in a fine, sleep-deprived mood when we came back. He took a much-needed nap as I drove Anita and Sam to Bear Lake for some hiking. He and I went for pizza after he woke up, while Mandy took care of Elliot and a little bug he seemed to have caught.

Our anniversary dinner was grilled hot dogs and Mac 'n Cheese. Good times.