Tuesday, August 14, 2012

   Summer is the time my family likes to get outside and be active. We love hiking, road trips, biking, swimming, exploring, and climbing. Recently my sister and I made a big accomplishment: hiking Mt. Sopris.
   We went with our dad's friend Paul and his two kids. Our parents stayed home (they are planning their own trip up). Paul came to pick us up on a hot, cloudless day in his little gray car. We were packed and ready to go. He drove us out of Carbondale and up a rocky, dusty road to the base of Mt. Sopris. We stopped at the beginning of a trail called Thomas Lakes Trail, where we got our packs on and began hiking.
   The first stretch we covered felt difficult. Our bags were heavy, we immediatly tired out, and I knew we couldn't drink too much water--there wasn't much. The beginning of a hike is always hard: you're just getting used to your pack. But there were plenty of facsinating things to observe on the trail, for instance, there was a variety of plants around that I recognized: oregon grape, service berry, wild rose and fireweed. The forest was bright and had mostly aspen trees with some evergreens. Warm breezes drifted our way.
   Eventually we crossed over to another hill, climbed that, and found ourselves on a clearing overlooking Carbondale. We weren't that high up yet, but the view was still pretty.
   We trudged on, through another forest and over a few more hills. It took hours, but finally we stumbled upon Thomas Lakes. The first one we saw was absolutely beautiful--glistening blue in the afternoon sunlight and reflecting the towering peaks that rose up behind it. The other lake was less stunning, but was shaped like a whale.
   We had a great night that involved swimming in the cold lake roasing marshmallows, and eating crunchy noodles. Bedtime came early. We had a big day ahead of us.
   In the morning, we were up at the crack of dawn, eating breakfast and then packing light bags for the hike to the top. We left our tent set up and most of our stuff at the campsite.
   It was steep on the trail, and then it got even steeper when the forest thinned out. There were more wildflowers, smaller trees (and mostly evergreens), and lots of rocks providing homes for rodents.We came to a clearing where we got our first real view of the Roaring Fork Valley. It was amazing. Rolling hills covered with evergreens, ragged cliffs, red rocks, Carbondale, and faint purple moutains in the distance. We ate a snack and really let that all sink in.
   When we started going again, we made it pretty far up, past the treeline, before it started getting dangerous. We went almost to False Peak. It was amazing being that high up, even if I wasn't at the very tippy-top.
   Once we reached our campsite, we broke camp and headed down to the car. It didn't take long. Going downhill with a pack on is a lot faster than going uphill. We reached the car in only a couple of hours and then drove the rest of the way down.
   It was a great trip. I had lots of fun climbing and seeing the great views. I hope to have another big adventure soon.
  

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