A Colorado State of Mind: October 2011

When weather forecasts called for snow and wind on my first Saturday morning off from school in weeks, I excitedly planned for a day of reading, listening to music, drinking coffee, loading up the crock pot, and watching movies. And it was all I hoped it would be, up until around 1:30 pm, when the skies cleared and for a brief moment, not a cloud could be found. I knew then that I had to get out of the house to revel in the fresh mountain snow. I headed for Garden of the Gods, a great place to go on a cooler fall day as there is not much shade.

I wish I could bottle the smell of the Colorado mountains after an October snowfall. As the sun creeps out and the snow quickly melts and evaporates off the red rocks still covered in summer's foilage, an intoxicating mix of juniper, sage and pine, with a hint of lavender escapes into the air. Divine!

Under the impression that our long string of Indian Summer weather will soon be coming to an end, I decided to head for the hills this weekend for two high altitude hikes. The first, on Saturday, to Catamount Trail in Green Mountain Falls, CO (elevation from 7800 ft to 9200 ft). And then on Sunday to Pancake Rocks, in between Divide and Cripple Creek and even higher, with a starting elevation of 9500 ft and topping out around 11,000. But my first stop was to Wal-Mart to pick up some bear spray. I have been on guard ever since I came face to face with a bear a couple of months ago in Mueller State Park. But truthfully my new fear is mountain lions, which are reportedly much more aggressive. Admittedly the bear I saw really couldn't have cared less about me. It took one look and then went back to eating the tree branch it was working on. But reading about mountain lion attacks is utterly terrifying. The first rule is to never hike alone (oops); just about every documented attack has been on solo hikers. Secondly, make yourself appear as big as possible if you confront a lion (also not comforting given my height). Third- do NOT run. It will chase you and mountain lions can run much, much faster. I also read that they usually hunt during the night, so if you see one during the day it may be very hungry.
So, as I am plotting my next hike on the Catamount Trail I convince myself that mountain lions don't frequent that area. I have myself convinced until I read that "catamount" is just another name for a cougar, or mountain lion. Signs posted all over the small town warn you of their presence. Speaking of which, Green Mountain Falls is a seriously peaceful, idyllic mountain town- almost painfully so. On this particular warm, sunny Saturday, most of the people I saw walking around had sort of a glazed smile on their face, like they had just stepped into some wonderful dream. I passed one lady under the a gazebo on the town lake and she looked at me (with that same glazed smile) and said "this place is just amazing... it's just so... amazing...". It's hard to say specifically what makes Green Mountain Falls so wonderful compared to all the other mountain towns. It think it is it's warmth and coziness. There are certainly more grand and impressive Colorado mountain towns, with towering snow capped peaks and wide main streets with gold rush era buildings lining both sides. The magic and loveliness of Green Mountain Falls is much less expected, and it sneaks up on you, as you are walking around its quaint town center.

And from the town center most of the trails begin. There is something very intriguing about being able to walk right out of a town and into the wild within a matter of minutes. Catamount Trail rises quickly, up and eventually over the brilliantly green mountain ridge from which the town is named for. The trail drops you into an area named (with a sign and everything) The Garden of Eden Meadow, to which you just want to reply "thank-you" because it is such a wonderful and welcomed sight after the tough haul of endless switchbacks up the mountain. Pictures of the meadow really don't do it justice, but I would be hard pressed to think of a place I would rather spend picnicking or just lounging around on a sunny afternoon.