Black Lake

This week we hiked from the Bear Lake parking lot in Rocky Mountain National Park 5 miles up to Black Lake. What a spectacular hike. Black lake sits in this little cirque about 1,400 feet above our starting point.

While the hike up was a little steep in places the Park Service has done a good job of maintaining the trial. We stopped here and took photos of the creek cascading down this sloping slab of granite. It was inviting us to slide down with it but of course that would've been a big mistake.

When we arrived at the lake we stopped on this little grassy ledge and enjoyed a delightful lunch together. I had my turkey wrap and granola bar and watched the fish jump in the lake. The fellowship is wonderful and together we give our blessings to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

As we left the lake we realized that it was now downhill. Unfortunately, it was 5 miles downhill! That was okay because we took it slow and easy and stopped to enjoy the scenery and dink lots of water. Oh, that's right, this was a 10 mile day!

Being together on a hike like this, we should grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity!

Diamond Lake

Diamond Lake lives up to it's name and is one of the prettiest hikes we've done this year. Just a few miles above Eldora, we drove up a steep gravel road for 4 miles to the trail head. We were not disappointed on this hike. The trail was interesting with big vistas, waterfalls, small creeks crossing the trail, and deep woods with ponderosa, blue spruce, aspens, and fir trees. The wild flowers were out in force reminding us that God renews nature each year, and in a similar way He renews us.

We stopped to get a group photo at Boulder Creek, pictured below. Here, there is a nice cascade of water we enjoyed, taking in the beauty of it all.

My first impression of the lake was this. Covered with Indian Paintbrush, Blue Bells, and Fire Weed, the shores of Diamond Lake were just as beautiful as the setting in this high mountain bowl.

At the lake we enjoyed some great laughs, good fellowship, and an excellent lunch together. This is a place I would recommend to all and will certainly return when I get a chance. On the way back we caught a rainstorm about five minutes from the car. It's a good thing we were all well prepared with rain gear. The rain in Colorado is of course, a welcome site.

Comb Ridge, Bluff hikes

Bluff, UT is off in the distance, where the sun is shining. We are hiking the rough trail to the Sand Hill petroglyphs. The purpose of this long trip was fellowship, and finding Puebloan ruins and rock art from 500 years old to 1,000 years old. We found quite a bit of interesting places on this trip. To get to this point, we hiked up a ridge to the edge of the cliffs. This is where we began to see the rock art.

As you can see, Sand Hill is sandy. We were in the shade much of the morning, but the hike down was hot and in the sun. We probably hiked a couple of miles in total but it was a little rough and rocky, and then sandy in places.

We hiked to four or five different places. The one pictured below is call procession panel. It depicts migrating natives, the animals they killed and ate, as well as their way of life. This hike took us up the slick rock on Comb Ridge for about a mile and a half. We were not disappointed, it was the best yet. The fun part was to try to figure out what they were trying to say and illustrate in their art.

At the top of Comb Ridge, we looked over the other side. Dan enjoyed getting a real birds eye view of the valley below. During our trip we visited Monument Valley and the Moki Dugway as well.

Beaver Brook Trail

Our group hiked a portion of Beaver Brook Trail and all of Chavez Trail. Located between Genesee Park and Clear Creek Canyon. This hike was beautiful. The flowers were blooming all along the trail, and the views were magnificent.

As we hiked along, I remembered reading somewhere that God's desire to give Himself to us is greater than our desire to lay hold of Him. One way to get closer to Him is to seek Him through prayer. Walking along the trail, I can do this. I've discovered that praying silently on a hike comes naturally and it's easier than taking a breath. What makes it even more magnificent is to pray while walking through His beautiful creation.

We stopped here for a break, a granola bar, and some fellowship time together. Heather brought her dog who really enjoyed cooling off in the creek. After we got back to the cars, we all met in Golden and had a nice lunch together at the Capitol Grill in Golden.

Meyer's Ranch

Our group hiked yesterday at Meyers Ranch open space park. We noticed that it was a little hazy due to the fires in New Mexico. Believe it or not, the smoke blew all the way across the state and it smelled like a campfire outside.

There are a number of trails you can take at Meyers Ranch and we opted to hike the Old Ski Run Trail which is a loop that goes up to some nice rocks with a lovely view of Conifer.

Dan and Jim enjoyed sitting on the rocks and taking in the views. We saw a few flowers out but not as many as expected. Maybe later. After the time hiking we drove back to Denver and enjoyed a outdoor cookout at  Mark And Teena's place. The fellowship was wonderful and sat around talking for hours.

Lions Gulch

Today we hiked up Lions Gulch trail to the old homesteads, long abandoned for 75 years or more. The hike was delightful and the sun was shining in the morning on the way up. On the way down, it started to snow a little, but that's the Colorado we all know and love, in the high country. We had a nice lunch here in these rocks and enjoyed some great fellowship together.

On our hike up the trail we ran into some deer just a few feet off the trail. I got my camera out and quickly snapped this photo from the trail. Two more seconds, and they were all gone.

Below is one of the homesteads we checked out. It must have been a hard life here a hundred years ago without electricity and modern conveniences. We take so much for granted today. How many of our spiritual benefits do we take for granted? Remember, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, in Christ. We are adopted as His sons to the praise of the glory of His Grace! In Him we have redemption and forgiveness, according to the riches of His Grace! We have obtained such a great inheritance and you've been sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. When I remember these things, my gratitude and Love for God soars. Check it out by clicking here today.

Ouzel Falls

Our trip to Ouzel Falls was a wonderful hike. The weather was nice, the snow conditions were perfect for just walking, and the fellowship was sweet. Ouzel Falls is in the Wild Basin area in Rocky Mountain National Park so the scenery was really nice.

After a couple hours of hiking we arrived at this little bridge over the frozen river, just below the frozen falls. As you can see, we all enjoyed a lunch together on the bridge.

Just around the corner from the falls was this beautiful view of Longs Peak. And, as you can see, not a cloud in the sky.

We decided to take a photo near the falls to remember what a nice hike it was. I for one plan on returning this summer. It is a pretty place. God is so good to us and we're all so grateful for His creation and the joy it brings to us on every outing. Praise His name!