I traveled out to Sedona, Arizona to get away from the cold wintry mountains of Central Colorado. Lot's of sun, pool time, great food, hiking, and good companionship were experienced enjoyed. I experienced the Subway and adjacent cliff dwelling ruins for a second time, and ate at Mariposa, The Hideaway House, and Shorebird...all worth checking out if you are in town. A few pictures highlighting the trip are posted below.
I had a nice hike to the top of Humphreys Peak during late May. The peak is actually the highest point of a collapsed caldera that cut a much taller mountain down in size many many years ago. The hike itself, as well as the volcanic terrain and landscape, reminded me of Mount McLoughlin near Medford, Oregon. In general, a very nice spring day to be up in the Northern Arizona alpine zone.
I summited the ultra-easy Mount Sherman from the west Leadville side/Iowa Gulch trailhead. That trail starts at 12,000 feet, which made this hike a very fast one. From truck to summit took 2 hours, and from summit back down to truck less than 1 hour. The patches of lingering snow were still firm and the ridge walk was pure joy. A very nice, though always windy, 14er to run up and down.
Google map of Mount Sherman west side trailhead.
I followed the Black Cloud Trail from Highway 82 up to the southeast ridge of Mount Elbert. The trail to the ridge is steep, but I made good time. There are a couple of nice stream crossings, and a meadow helps the mind wander away from the relentless ascent. Otherwise, I followed the ridge route to South Elbert, then descended into a col, followed by the final upward push along a narrowing ridge filled with patches of thick snow and old cornices. Finally the summit of Elbert, and then the relentless descent, minus having to regain the summit of South Elbert, which was a bit tiresome. Black Cloud is a nice route...much more interesting than the standard Elbert routes due to the airy ridge walk.
Map of Black Cloud Trail in Google Maps.
I journeyed east to the South Park basin, north through Fairplay, and entered a deep beautiful mountain valley/gorge just past Alma that led me to the Wheeler Lake trailhead. I quickly hiked to a place of cascading water next to Magnolia Mill, and then trekked west into a glacially carved alpine valley. The trail led me across a small stream that steeply descended from an alpine lake above. That lake was covered in winter ice and snow, and was surrounded by towering cliffs and mountains. I had reached the origin of the South Platte River...a river that flows out onto the Great Plains, eastward across Nebraska, and then empties into the Missouri River next to the town I grew up in called Plattsmouth. It's always impressive to be able to jump three feet across a river that eventually widens to around a quarter mile many hundreds of miles downstream.
Google map of Wheeler Lake and the South Platte River starting point.
I hiked to within 100 feet of the summit of Mount Yale during late March, but was stopped short once again by hurricane force winds. Wind speed estimates are notoriously wrong, but I can say that forward motion was futile, I couldn't even stand up without being knocked down. So I inched my way off of the summit ridge and enjoyed decreasing speeds and warm sunshine after reaching the lower slopes. A few days later I hiked most of the way up Mt Belford, but became enamored by the beauty of the large glacially carved valley below. So I turned around and enjoyed some time in the mid morning sun watching the trees blow in the wind and the water cascade down the streams. One technical note...the snow is completely rotten and mostly melted out up in the alpine zone. Post holing was deep, and the snow instantly turned to slush after only a short time in the sun. Ski season is surely over, and the water year seems hopelessly lost.
A couple of pictures from the recent Leadville, CO 2026 Ski Joring competition. Nothing but good old fashioned mountain fun.
I traveled out to Sedona, Arizona to get away from the cold wintry mountains of Central Colorado. Lot's of sun, pool time, great food, ...
