Day 1 started at 3:30 am.
The car was packed (read: overpacked) and I was on the road well before 4 am, putting me at the Longs Peak Trailhead before 5 am. Actually I was parked a quarter mile from the trailhead because by 5 am that place was already jam-full! I blame the Longs Peak crowd who start their 15 mile day way earlier than I was. Kudos to them.
The sun was rising as I headed through the trees for the first 2 miles.
Then there was "above treeline". The trail was almost paved and it was adorable.
I took pictures all the way to the top... there were columbines, waterfalls and peaks.
It almost made the rentless uphill an existential experience! But 2400' of gain later, and a scramble that was a wee bit uncomfortable, I found myself sitting peacefully beside Chasm Lake munching on a powerbar, my magenta toenails bathed in sunshine as my feet rested in the cool air.
Later that afternoon, having recently checked into Glacier Basin Campground I pitched my tent and attempted a wee lie down. 85 degrees and climbing. I couldn't take it!
Off to Trail Ridge Rd and 12,000' with this gal. Besides, my legs were tired from the 9 mile hike but my trigger finger was itching to take pics of wildlife.
Day 2... 4-lake loop from Bear Lake with a late start. Super well trafficked after the first lake! Not my favorite, but 8 miles later I dragged myself down to Glacier Gorge bus stop and caught the shuttle back to Bear Lake.
I drove myself back up Trail Ridge Rd to escape the heat again that afternoon. Never enough pika pics, am I right?! LOL I also met a kiwi family at the continental divide and chatted it up for a good while.
Tonight, new moon arising! I had a plan that was losing motivation, to photograph the milky way at 3:30 am. The trouble was, I had been tootling around RMNP for almost 15 hours and got back to camp after 8:30 pm. Then my camp neighbors had an "outdoor voice" conversation at 11:45 pm (which I crankily shut down) and my alarm went off in the middle of my REM. I rolled over, ready to cancel my plan entirely and unzipped the tent to find a sky FULL of stars. It was about then I decided to shove my shortened tripod outside the flap and just take some 15-20 second shots.
Day 3 did not result in an early hike... or a long hike! I dismantled camp and packed up while sipping coffee from the traveling French press.
At Morraine Park I got the last spot for the Fern Lake Trailhead (curiously, I got the last spot at Bear Lake yesterday too!) and meandered down the trail hoping to find more than little rodents and butterflies. I did not. But it was still pretty!
Last effort was for the building clouds on Trail Ridge Rd... then I headed home for a hot shower and some AC. Solo camping adventure was complete and would have been absolutely perfect if my favorite person had been with me. He's still adventuring in Alaska and I love that for him too.
