Today was day 1 past the official end of my residency and my first day of tent camping. A lovely though chilly
morning, I made the hike through Glacier Gorge to Mills Lake and
Jewel Lake. So beautiful. I am enamored of this area around Bear
Lake with its peaks and cirques and the series of lakes, creek,
falls, and cascades cradled in each valley. Truthfully I'm enamored
of many locations here, it would not be fair to call this the
favorite, however it does have a most enchanting personality and I
love it dearly. A spectacular hike to some amazing views.
Headed into town for supplies, came back and had a
late lunch, then in the afternoon I went back out to the Bear Lake
area to hike up to Bierstadt Lake. I chose to go the hard way, right
up the moraine from the parking area. I moved quick, seeing rain
clouds nearby and hoping to avoid a downpour. It did rain on me, but
how worth it that was! As the rain lifted and I turned a switchback,
an enormous double rainbow arched across the sky and down into the
valley below. Hiking the moraine makes for much elevation gain in
little distance, so it was a relief to reach the top and start the
trail around the lake. I expected to run into more people and more
lake views, instead the journey was solitary and the surroundings
seemed like a forest that people forgot. I think there had been a
fire in the area, which may explain the small amounts of green.
Don't get me wrong, it was neat to walk through and reassuring to
know that I'd likely see any large wildlife before stumbling upon it.
There were a couple spots where you could hike in to the lake.
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Spotted this doe in the woods, she kept looking
back behind her at something... |
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| Turns out her fawn was further back. |
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| Approaching Mills Lake |
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| Mills Lake outlet |
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| Mills Lake |
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| Mills Lake |
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| Mills Lake |
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| Mills Lake |
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| Mills Lake |
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Watched this guy soaring on the thermals, then
plunging into the lake for fish. Pretty sure he's
an Osprey. |
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| Mills Lake |
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| Jewel Lake |
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| Jewel Lake |
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| Jewel Lake |
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| Mills Lake |
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| Above Mills, along Glacier Creek |
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| Above Mills, heading out |
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| HIking up Bierstadt Moraine, looking toward Bear Lake |
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| Rainbow over Glacier Basin area |
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| The trail up the moraine |
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Another view toward Bear Lake area. I can spot each of
the series of lakes I hiked to in this area. Great view here. |
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| Yet another version of the view |
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The moraine is covered in Aspen here, the first species
to grow after a fire. |
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| Chickadee(?) in Aspen |
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| Near Bierstadt Lake |
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| Bierstadt Lake |
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| Bierstadt Lake |
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| Bierstadt Lake |
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| Bierstadt Lake |
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| Hiking back down the moraine. |
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