http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/The-Obsessive-Hiker/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from The Obsessive Hiker en-us Thu, 07 Jan 2010 22:34:36 +0000 Thu, 07 Jan 2010 22:34:36 +0000 Distance 2 milesDifficulty easymoderateOur third and final full day in the Moab area saw us splitting our time between Arches and Canyonlands. After reading about the Fiery Furnace tour on Protrails.com I knew we needed to include it as one of our activities on this trip. The opportunity to get a glimpse into the most rugged and unexplored area of Arches National Park was something I did not http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Utah/Arches-National-Park/blog-378368.html Distance 8.5 milesDifficulty moderatedifficultFor our second day in the Moab area my dad and I headed down to the more remote Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. This area had been recommended to me by a coworker and after seeing pictures from his trip I was sold on visiting. The weather was warmer than the previous day but we expected that and planned accordingly. We got an http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Utah/Canyonlands-National-Park/blog-377358.html Distance 5 miles Balanced Rock 0.25 mile The Windows Loop 1.25 miles Double Arch 0.5 mile Delicate Arch 3 milesDifficulty easymoderateMost of the first day of our trip to Moab was spent in the car so we were definitely ready to get out and stretch our legs upon arrival. As soon as my dad and I checked into our hotel room we dropped our bags changed into hiking gear rushed out to ge http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Utah/Arches-National-Park/blog-377056.html For our second annual FatherSon bonding trip my dad and I headed out to Moab Utah for some hiking in Canyonlands and Arches National Parks. We got in a ton of great hiking over the four days we were out there and rewarded ourselves with some great Italian food in the evenings After setting out early on the morning of May 5 we arrived in the early afternoon in Moab and headed straight into A http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Utah/Moab/blog-363609.html Distance 9 milesDifficulty moderatedifficultThe end of April brought a continuation of the warm and windy conditions that had been in place for most of the spring. I finally found out that the weather pattern was due to the La Nina water phenomenon that had taken root in Pacific. This event was according to one meteorologist at KUSA9 News in Denver the reason why we were seeing so much win http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/Morrison/blog-358028.html Distance 5 milesDifficulty easymoderateWith spring weather taking hold I was finally able to get onto more of a regular hiking schedule. While the weather was steadily warming up in the Denver area the mountains continued to get pummeled by storms that seemed to be dumping feet of new snow on a daily basis. I generally expect the months of April and May to be occupied by lower elevation hik http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-351607.html Distance 6.5 milesDifficulty EasyAh the unpredictability of the Colorado Spring After some warm but extremely windy days at the end of March I had to wait until the middle of April for my next hiking opportunity. Thanks to the weather pattern that sat over the entire state for most of the spring wind was an everpresent pest on most of my hikes. With the temperatures finally starting to w http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/Boulder/blog-348538.html Distance 5 milesDifficulty moderateAs Irsquove mentioned before March weather in Colorado is inconsistent at best. Nice days without rain or snow tend to be few and far between. After an unusually warm first day of the month winter took over again and the hiking would have to wait. Warmer weather finally returned at the end of the month so my dad and I decided to play hooky and head up http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/Boulder/blog-323624.html Distance 6 milesDifficulty easyWith temperatures in the high 60rsquos I couldnrsquot resist getting out for my first hike of the year. I generally consider myself lucky if I can get in one or two hikes in March as the weather tends to be pretty temperamental this time of the year. This was actually the earliest hike that Irsquove done in the four years since I became an avid hiker. No http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-323499.html Distance 6.5 milesRating ModerateWhen I told a coworker about this hike he remarked about my unusual ability to find trails in the most unlikely places. Indeed one probably wouldnrsquot expect there to be much in the way of good hiking as far east as the area encompassed by Castlewood Canyon State Park. The canyon is hidden in the heart of the forested hills east of Castle Rock and south http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/Franktown/blog-284894.html Distance 6.5 milesRating ModerateI get a real kick out of the winter people who complain about Coloradorsquos Indian summer. Most of these people are agitating over the fact that the ski season hasnrsquot begun yet which is something I couldnrsquot care less about. Ever since I became an avid hiker Irsquove come to love the summer and despise the winter. As you might guess that mea http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-283440.html Distance 6 milesRating EasyModerateWhen you are as focused on hiking as I tend to be you manage to find opportunities in some of the most unexpected places. My sister and I both decided to take some vacation time to go visit our aunt and uncle out in Columbus Ohio. This was a special trip for Jill and me as we donrsquot get to see Karen and Anthony as often as wersquod like to. In add http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Ohio/Hocking-Hills-State-Park/blog-279744.html Distance 3.75 milesRating ModerateAfter climbing a 14er earlier in the week see the Mt. Democrat entry I decided to take advantage of the Indian summer weather and get in another hike. Rather than doing something strenuous I decided to use this opportunity to do a fairly easymoderate hike that would allow me to see the changing aspens. While autumn in Colorado has nothing on the colors se http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-278461.html Distance 4 milesRating StrenuousWith winter weather already showing up in the mountains my dad and I decided to get in one more difficult high altitude hike before the season ended. I settled on the cluster of 14ers just west of the small town of Alma in the Mosquito Range Mt. Democrat Mt. Lincoln and Mt. Bross. According to several books and websites these three mountains can be climbed http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-276435.html Distance 4 milesRating moderateFor the second day of my impromptu Glenwood Canyon minitrip I decided to head south and cross over Independence Pass on my way home. This route passes through Aspen I felt poor just driving through town along HWY 82 before climbing up into the mountains south of town. Along the way travelers pass by four different wilderness areas Maroon BellsSnowmass Hun http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-270375.html Distance 8 miles roundtrip from trailhead to junction with the Gulch TrailRating strenuousAs is usually the case when September rolls around I found myself realizing that I still had a lot of hiking that I wanted to do and not too much more time to do it. In 2006 the hiking season was essentially over by early October so I got worried that I didnrsquot have too much time left. With that http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-269951.html Distance 7 milesRating difficultJust off of I70 near the Continental Divide is a popular and difficult hike that travels through some of Coloradorsquos highest country. The Herman Gulch Trail leading up to Herman Lake is part of the broader Continental Divide National Scenic Trail which runs on and off from the Mexican border up to the Canadian border. The trail can be found in five states http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-269502.html Distance 9 milesRating DifficultFor my third and what proved to be my final trip to Rocky Mountain National Park this season I wanted to attempt a long and relatively difficult hike. The trail to Sky Pond takes hikers past three beautiful lakes two impressive waterfalls and passes through some of the best scenery that the eastern part of the park has to offer. This was easily one of the b http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/Rocky-Mountains/blog-268506.html Distance 6 milesRating StrenuousFinally my first 14er Admittedly I had never really been too gungho about climbing any of Coloradorsquos 14000 foot mountains but after having enough friends and coworkers tell me about their experiences I decided to give it a try. With my dad in tow or perhaps I was the one in towhellip Irsquom not sure I decided to head up to Guanella Pass and http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-268106.html Distance 12.8 miles to junction with Wigwam TrailRating ModerateStrenuousFor my first hike back in Colorado after the Wyoming trip I picked right back up where I left off with my Wilderness Area tour. Irsquove mentioned the Lost Creek Wilderness in many of my entries but this is the first time that Irsquove actually entered it. The wilderness area is a vaguely boomerangshaped 120700 http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Colorado/blog-267800.html