Mountaintop adventures
I arrived in the small town of Westcliffe on a sunny Saturday morning. I sped along some dirt country roads towards the ‘lower trailhead‘ for the Crestones. This trailhead sat below treeline, in the open fields at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo range.
Continue reading “Humboldt Peak”
June 26, 2022
My day began zipping along the winding curves of Interstate 70 through Glenwood Canyon. This breathtaking stretch of highway involves a continuous series of bridges and tunnels over the Colorado River and through rocky canyon walls. This short section opened in 1992, among the last major links in the interstate system. At its heart, lies Hanging Lake Canyon.
Continue reading “Hanging Lake”
June 25, 2022
We arrived at the Castle Creek trailhead around dawn. We drove the rough, 2-wheel drive road up towards 10,000 feet, parking just below the creek crossing. And after fiddling with some gear we were off, up the long dirt road towards Castle and Conundrum peaks.
Continue reading “Castle & Conundrum Peaks”
June 19, 2022
Mount Princeton rises dramatically above Buena Vista, Colorado. While the Sawatch Range includes perhaps a half dozen taller summits, Princeton likely ranks among the most commanding and charismatic.
Continue reading “Mount Princeton”
June 17, 2022
Beaver Creek ski resort offers ample hiking opportunities in summer. Many routes stay within the confines of the ski resort, crossing grassy ski slopes and ducking into lush, piney tree islands. A few other trails connect into the adjacent Holy Cross Wilderness, where they amble on for miles into the alpine.
Continue reading “Beaver Lake Trail and the Royal Elk Trail”
June 12, 2022
Summer 2022 would mark my second year of Colorado 14er peak bagging. But staring at a spreadsheet of these hikes mid-winter, I discovered something concerning. Of the 17 peaks I had climbed in 2021, the vast majority sat within a couple hours drive of Denver. Thus I reached one obvious conclusion: it was time to venture further afield.
Continue reading “Culebra Peak and Red Mountain”
May 20, 2022
Glymur waterfall marked the final hike of my Spring 2022 trip to Iceland. I had spent a week encircling the island nation along the Ring Road, seeing literally dozens of waterfalls. That said, Glymur would prove particularly spectacular.
Continue reading “Glymur Waterfall hike”
May 18, 2022
I drove into the Lake Myvatn area of northeast Iceland on a moody, mid-May morning. After touring some belching, sulfurous thermal vents, I headed over to Hverfjall Crater for the day’s only ‘proper hike‘.
Continue reading “Hverfjall Crater Rim Hike”
May 16, 2022
Skógafoss lies in the south of Iceland roughly 2 hours from Reykjavik. The famed waterfall sits just off the “ring road” near the eponymous town of Skógar. The massive falls appear from the Ring Road, and tower above the large, dirt parking area.
Continue reading “Skógafoss and the hike of never-ending waterfalls”
May 15, 2022
I visited Gullfoss on a drizzly day in Mid-may, 2022. The Waterfall lies at the furthest point from Rejkavic along the famed Golden Circle route. Gulfoss means Golden Waterfall in Icelandic, and it lends its name to the route itself. The massive falls lie just 10 minutes down the road from Geysir. It thus provides an incredible one-two-punch of natural wonders for day-trippers from Iceland’s capital.
Continue reading “Gullfoss”