Mt. Flora + the Perseids

I joined Anna and Alex to hike Mt. Flora on a Saturday morning in early August. This 13er features airy alpine travel and diverse tundra ecology with an elevation gain of 1,825' over 6.5 miles. Located an hour west of Denver, the trail begins on a service road that winds steeply over Berthoud Pass. The Continental Divide Trail (CDT) splits left off the road and narrows through treeline.

From here, the trail moderates northeast across broad, verdant slopes. It rises steadily to a saddle below Colorado Mines Peak (12,493') with good views down the Blue Creek drainage.

The route levels across the saddle before climbing steeply up the far side of the mountain.

Travel eases to a false summit and levels again for half a mile above the Mad Creek drainage.

At 13,132', the large flat summit has several rock shelters that protect against strong winds. Views to the north include the brilliant turquoise hue of Ethel Lake.

The CDT continues toward Breckenridge Peak, but our trio turned back to complete the three-hour hike.

Afterwards, we met Anna and Alex's friends at the Winter Park Beer Festival. This annual event in downtown Hideaway Park offers great live music and samples from 40+ micro brewers. Unfortunately, none of the beers there counted towards my Colorado brewery count (which requires physically going to the site of brewing). Still, the beer was good, the weather was perfect, and the crowd size was just right.

The following weekend, I joined my friends for a Wyoming camping trip to watch the meteor shower. Three hours north of Denver, North Fork campground is located in the Snowy Range of Medicine Bow National Forest. It contains 60 sites along the banks of the North Fork Little Laramie River.

Sarah and I drove up Friday afternoon with her pups, Alice and Shea. Joined by the rest of the crew, we set up camp and shared deliciously vegan fajitas around the campfire.

The next day, Nick cooked us pancakes before hitting the trail. At 9,240' the trailhead leaves the campground and follows the winding river through the forest for about 4.5 miles. Early into the hike, I spotted a moose standing farther up along the trail. Initially reacting with caution, we eventually continued on as the animal--startled by our group of nine humans and four dogs--took off into the trees.



After getting a late start, we turned back early due to the intense midday sun and heat (low 80s). We did, however, take a dip in the icy river!

The rest of the lazy afternoon was spent lounging around the campsite, reading, playing cards, and cooking dinner--veggie burgers with grilled vegetables.

That night, we layered up to watch the meteor shower. The Perseid meteor shower occurs every August when the Earth passes through a stream of dust from the Comet Swift-Tuttle. The meteor shower consists of pieces of comet debris that heat up as they enter the atmosphere and burn up in a bright burst of light, streaking a vivid path across the sky (shooting stars). The Perseids is so named because meteors appear to fall from the constellation Perseus.

Clear skies and a new moon created ideal viewing conditions. Besides the meteors, several planets could also be seen, including Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. One of the most exciting parts for me was the ability to view the sweeping band of the Milky Way Galaxy.

A lack of equipment has previously kept me away from the camping scene, but I was fortunately able to share gear with my friends for this trip. The outdoor activity comes with its challenges (always being dirty, getting little sleep, extreme temperature fluctuations), but it's a small price to pay for the chance to drop off the grid, unplug, and connect with nature. I also love stargazing--and s'mores. I am eager to make the effort to camp in Oregon!