Camping on Mount Evans

I spent my Labor Day weekend camping with friends.  It was awesome!  Living in Colorado is everything I expected and much more.  A spontaneous trip into a mountain landscape so beautiful that people from around the country make it a destination point for vacations.  I am so fortunate to be about an hour from truly spectacular outdoor living.
On this particular trip, I rode up with my friend, Kelly.  She is such a fun, outgoing personality.  It enhanced the camping experience.  Then we met up with other incredible people.  Jason, Antonio, Nate and Laura are friends I had not previously had the privilege of camping with before.  I made new friends, Steven and Renee, as well as Kayla and Greg.  There is something about making friendship around a campfire that is unparalleled anywhere else.  The lack of phone service prevented outside distractions from interfering with deep bonding.  We shared our thoughts and dreams.   We had a chance to share a depth of conversation that one rarely finds outside the realm of mountain tops.
Me, Melissa and my Warrior Dash buddy, Matt star watching in the middle of the mountain road.

The first night we joined about 50 other people for a bonfire down by Echo Lake.  Bonfire might not be an accurate term, it was an outdoor stone structure with fireplaces in each of the four corners and one bigger one in the center of one wall.  It had about 4 picnic tables inside the structure and people milled around snacking and socializing.  A few guitars were brought and soon the live music played from one side of the structure.  Walks were taken around the lake to take advantage of the lack of light to better view the stars.  The stars seemed strangely magnified although we were only about 10,000 feet closer to their light years away.
Sam, Brad, Jason and myself.

Mountain air is always cooler and that is so refreshingly different from the city temperature.  The lows were a brisk 40 degrees which helped justify the presence of campfires.  My sub zero sleeping bags also proved their worth once again.
On the second night, we drove up Mount Evans, which is a 14'er (over 14,000 ft).  The lack of guardrails never fails to instill morbid dread of an over-the-cliff, fiery death.  That only excites me in a distorted way.  Adrenaline is my drug of choice.  On the way up we came across a herd of mountain goats.  Regular readers know of my fondness for wildlife in the wild.

 I was downright giddy with anticipation as we drove up and back through switchbacks.  When we finally could drive no further and had to hike to the summit, a half mile further up, someone had the bright idea to run to the top.  We went about a hundred yards before the altitude seared my lungs.  Then we walked/ran the rest of the way trying desperately to get to the top before the sun had set completely.  We were partially successful.  It was my first time being above 14,000 feet in over 5 years.  When I post my video pay attention to our exhausted, exhilarated faces on the mountain top.

Kelly and I at the top

 Nate and Laura

 All of us (Antonio stayed with the car)

We went back down to the campsite feeling elated.  Under the cover of darkness, the lack of guardrails and the steep drop offs failed to produce the same terror as the ride up.  Good thing too, since now we were in the lane right next to the edge.
Back at the campsite we gathered around the campfire for warmth and conversation.  Soon, we began lobbing the camp ax at a tree to test our woodsmanship.  Good fun.
I feel the need to mention the food on this camping expedition.  It was splendid.  Most of the cooking was taken care of by Antonio and his portable gas grill.  We has scrambled eggs with cheese, Kielbasa and fresh fruit and breads for breakfast.

Another great time in the Colorado mountains!