Trail Ridge Road, known as the “highway to the sky,” fully opened on Friday morning. My stressful hike around Monarch Lake on Thursday was apparently just the appetizer for the insanity that is driving to the top of Rocky Mountain National Park. I can confidently say it was the scariest drive of my life.
This has been a month of firsts for me, and I finally checked off another big one: my first solo hike in the mountains. Little did I know the 4-mile hike would be as stressful as it was. I seriously thought I was going to get mauled by a bear or trampled by moose. And it’s all because I don’t know sh!t.
Much of Colorado experienced my favorite kind of snowstorm this Friday and Saturday: heavy, wet snow that sticks to the trees and melts within a day or two. It snowed 11 inches here in Grand Lake and just 24 hours later there was only a trace of snow remaining.
It’s Mud Season here in the Rockies. The ski resorts and snowmobile hotspots have closed and snow from the mountains is melting. Trails, unpaved roads, and basically anywhere with dirt all turn to mud. Summer isn’t quite here yet—in fact, it’s forecasted to snow “up to a foot and a half” this Friday and Saturday.
Sunday was a picture-perfect day here in Colorado. Vibrant blue skies, 65-70 degree temps, and not a care in the world! The perfect conditions to explore the Colorado River and Gore Canyon.
Friends, don’t let me do this again! I haven’t even been in Grand Lake for a full two weeks and was close to buying a home here. I knew this would happen.
Read More from It has only been 2 weeks, and I almost bought a house
The Idle Speed Only sign right outside my front door perfectly sums up the first five days of my big adventure.
Almost ran out of gas, got stuck in a May blizzard, but made it to the lovely town of Grand Lake, Colorado.
My travel adventures start in a few days, and I couldn’t be more excited. How did I get here? Well, it’s been on my mind for quite a while.