TUESDAY, 7 NOVEMBER 2023

(Glenwood Springs, CO)

The plan was to leave a little bit earlier this morning – not early, just not too late. And so, after breakfast in the hotel, we left at about 1015 and headed up the Roaring Fork canyon towards Aspen and Snowmass. I started getting excited as soon as I saw the first mountain…

To be honest, today was part planning and a lot of luck. We were hoping to hike at Maroon Bells. To get to the trailhead before the end of October, you either need a permit for the car (which are very limited) or you have to ride a shuttle bus, which requires a level of pre-planning. After 1 November, there is no bus and parking is available, first come, first served. The road also usually closes by mid November, with the first snowfall, as it isn’t ploughed and becomes available for snowmobiles. As we drove up, signs said the this would be closed from 20th onwards, so just two more days of use. Last week’s snow still sat at the sides of the road, but the road itself was dry and clear.

When we got to the car park we were pleased to see there were spaces available. We got ready to hike and set off…only to return and fit our microspikes to our boots, as there was plenty of packed snow. Second time lucky… The trail soon reached the lake. The scenery was amazing. Just…wow. We hiked alongside the lake, where people were skating and practicing iced hockey on the frozen lake surface. We continued up to a bridge over the creek, where we could see fish swimming. We didn’t want to stop, so we went to a group of trees…and then on to the next bridge… we could (probably should) have gone further, but we didn’t have a map. Considering the elevation was 9,600 feet, we felt fine. Perhaps we have finally adapted!

As we walked back towards the car, the clouds blew away and blue sky appeared behind the mountains. The whole moment was magical. We were so lucky to have had perfect weather on one of the few days you can just drive to the trailhead, and to get in before the first closes. Special memories.

We drove back down the mountain and had a quick tour around Aspen, before descending down to the town of Basalt, where we stopped off at a Starbucks for a muffin and my first latte of the trip (yes, really!).

Back at our room we quickly grabbed our swimsuits and headed to the Iron Mountain Hot Springs. This is a collection of thermal hit pools, and we moved from pool to pool, trying different mineral and temperature combinations. One of my favourites was the Dead Sea pool, which was based on the mineral combination of the Dead Sea, and you could float around doing absolutely nothing!

Then it was time for dinner, and after last night’s tasty pizza, we decided to go back again. So we did.

And that’s it. Tomorrow we’re heading for Denver.