Month: April 2012

Colorado Mountain Club: Snow Day

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On Saturday, we had our dreaded “Snow Day” with our CMC, Wilderness Trekking School class.  It is the class that the instructors had been warning us about since we started because the weather is so strange in April.  It could be 50 degrees with snow, or -20 with snow because we would be at over 10,000 feet.  One instructor even e-mailed us a video from his Snow Day in 2009, which looked brutal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=re8byHYirCI

We arrived at St Mary’s Glacier trailhead early and geared up.  The school provided everyone with helmets and ice axes, as these were required for the days’ exercises and to traverse the glacier.  We checked the temperature when we arrived and it was a chilly 23 degrees and windy.  There was a fresh dusting of snow on the road and the trail.  As we neared tree line, we could see the wind blowing snow off the glacier and the adjacent peaks.  We estimated 30-40 mph winds.  Our instructors made the call to stop in the trees and conduct a few classes before heading up to the glacier, as we wouldn’t be able to hear them (they were right).  These lectures echoed our homework and the previous class we had on avalanche awareness and snow travel.  We learned to read slope angles to predict avalanche prone areas and learned about snow shelters.  We also tested the snow by cutting about 3-4 feet down with a snow saw and dissecting the different layers to determine how stable the snow layers were.  After the lectures, we geared back up and headed towards the glacier.  The wind was furious and we couldn’t tell if it was actually snowing, or just blowing snow.  The glacier is located between two peaks, which created a wind tunnel at over 11,000 feet.  We zig zagged up the glacier, using the different travel methods we had learned with the ice ax.  The instructors guided us over to the side, where we had lunch.  Thankfully, the winds started to subside.  After a brief lunch, we moved up one of the slopes and dug out a few snow benches, so we could learn the last portion of our class: ice ax self-arrest.  We were instructed on how to stop yourself from sliding if you fell on a steep slope.  The ice ax is your lifeline!!  The weather after lunch couldn’t have been better.  The winds slowed, the sun came out and we had temperatures in the 40’s.  It was a great day, aside from a little wind burn.  We headed to Tommy Knocker Brewery in Idaho Springs after we packed up.  What better way to thaw out than with some great brew and food???

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Colorado Mountain Club

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K and I joined the Colorado Mountain Club a few months ago and quickly signed up for our first school – Wilderness Trekking School.  WTS is designed to teach the student the basics of navigating the backcountry off marked trails.  The CMC is:  “An organization devoted to connecting those who love the Colorado Rockies or who study or seek recreation in them.”

“The primary purposes of the club are to gather and disseminate information regarding the Colorado mountains in the areas of art, science, literature and recreation; to furnish facilities for the enjoyment and study of the mountains by the Club members and the public; and to advocate for the preservation of the alpine regions.”

We meet at the American Mountaineering Center which is the old Golden High School.  They have converted it into the rich mountain learning center that it is today.  We have been nothing but impressed with the facility and the professionalism of the instructors.  There are about 80 students in our class, which we meet for a lecture once a week for 2.5 hours.  We then have a “field day” where we apply the principles discussed in class on the trail.  This course is about a month and a half, so we decided to post our first two hiking trips and then we will do our last 2-3 in another post.  We went to Eldorado Canyon State Park, outside of Boulder, for our first trip and then we went to the Beaver Brook Trail near Evergreen for our second trip.  The hikes are gradually getting longer and more difficult.  Next trip is snow travel, shelter building and avalanche awareness.

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He is Risen

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“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”  John 15:13
 
 Easter morning we woke up early so that we could celebrate Easter at Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre for their annual sunrise service.  We were glad we arrived soon after the gates opened at 4:30 a.m, as there was a record crowd this year.  The amphitheater filled with over 10,000 people eager to honor our Lord and Saviour.  It was a beautiful Easter morning with a magnificent sunrise.
 

Hippity Hop Easter Trot 5k

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We visited Central Park (not New York) this morning for our first Spring run of the year….and even Furry B came along.  Central Park is located in North Denver in an area known as Stapleton.  The park is spacious – over 80 acres! – with spectacular views of the Rockies.  It is the 3rd largest park in Denver.  The park sits on the site of the old Stapleton International Airport. The control tower is still standing just west of the park. The community is still debating on how to make use of the tower and hope to have a plan by year end.  The Stapleton Airport was Denver’s primary airport from 1929 to February 27, 1995 when the last airplane departed. Click here to view a pictorial history of the Stapleton Airport.

It was perfect weather (as usual) for a race; and the Easter Bunny even competed in the Kid’s Fun Run race. Our 5k course was “flat and fast” which made for a fun morning run.  Furry B loves to run! (Three things at the park today that Furry B does not love include people in costumes, small children, and modes of transport with wheels aka tricycles, bikes, skateboards.)

Furry B is a competitor - He completed his first 5k!