Family Adventures in the Rockies // Grottos Ice Caves/Mount Sherman

 My mom and nephew made a trip to central Colorado during early summer and we all had a blast hiking a couple of unique geological features, such as Grottos Ice Caves near Aspen, which was carved in slot canyon fashion by ancient torrents of glacial melt water during a relatively recent ice age. My nephew had fun climbing on the rocks and I found the site interesting as well. A day later we hiked up the Iowa Gulch side of Mount Sherman. Mother and nephew, who dwell permanently at around 2000 feet above sea level, made slow steady progress up the mountain, and summited in a respectable amount of time. I was impressed with both, as this was my nephew's first 14er, and my 70-something mom performed exceptionally, showing that age is never a factor when the will is there.

Google map of Grottos Ice Caves.

 

Peak One // Frisco, Colorado

I ascended Peak One located on the western edge of Frisco, Colorado during mid June. The route to the top was always up, with few if any places to catch one’s breath. The final push to the summit included some mild scrambling depending on which path one selects, but overall it was a nice hike with low sketch the entire way. 

Google map of Peak One.

 

Mount Yale // Third Time is the Charm

 After two failed attempts to summit Mount Yale, once due to heavy snow, and a second due to hurricane force winds, I finally made it to the summit in surprisingly fast fashion. Three hours up and around two jogging assisted hours back down...with a beer awaiting the finish motivating my fast downward descent. The final summit ridge was a fun mix of scrambling across boulders, and the very top was garnished with growing cumulus towers in the background. Yale is a great 14er, both above and below treeline...I very much appreciated the creek crossings/encounters down low, which were full of cold cascading snowmelt.

Google map of Mount Yale.

 

Sedona, Arizona Spring Getaway

 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 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.

 

Humphreys Peak // Arizona Highpoint

 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.

Google map of Humphreys Peak.

 

Mount Sherman // West Side Leadville Route

 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.