March 2019 – rocky mountain tot

Add This to Your Hiking Bucket List! Blue Lake in Indian Peaks Wilderness

One of my favorite places to hike in Colorado is in the Brainard Lake Recreation Area. I was flipping through our family hiking journal and came across what is best described as a love note about a hike we took to Blue Lake a few years ago. Despite the cold and rainy weather, I left enamored with the beauty we enjoyed along the trail. I’m surprised I haven’t written about this hike until now.

Brainard Lake Recreation Area

The hike to Blue Lake begins in the Brainard Lake Recreation Area, a popular hiking destination in Colorado. It is located approximately 1 hr 20 minutes from Denver, 50 minutes from Boulder, and 50 minutes from Estes Park. If you buy a pass to get into Rocky Mountain National Park, it’s good to know that there is a separate fee to get in to this National Wilderness Area. There is a lot of great hiking here for both humans and their pets. (dogs are allowed to hike on leash.)

The best way to get to Blue Lake is to begin at the Mitchell Lake trail head, but because of this destination’s popularity, we had to park a little further away near Brainard Lake.

Mitchell Lake is 10,500 ft in elevation.

Our hike was 6.2 miles round trip and gained 1,250 feet in elevation. Brainard Lake Recreation Area starts at a high elevation so snow typically sticks around longer in the season. Ideal hiking is late July through August.

Once past Mitchell Lake, the trail climbed up through rocky terrain with expansive views of the surrounding mountains.

We took this hike back in August 2016. It felt like an accomplishment for all of us because our toddler endured the rainy, cold weather. My husband carried our daughter the longer distance and greater elevation gain on his back. I was carrying a little one too because I was pregnant with our second daughter who is now 2!

Time flies, but it’s great to look back at all of the memories we have made along the way.

Additional Information About Blue Lake and Brainard Lake Recreation Area:

Blue Lake via Mitchell Lake Trail

Brainard Lake Recreation Area Summer Season Map

Week 1: Living with Less Waste Lent

This Lenten season our family is focusing on ways to cut back our wasteful habits that have a negative impact on ourselves, neighbors and the environment. This week I am very excited about a couple things that are related to this goal.

Free Ozark Native Tree & Shrub Program

The Beaver Watershed Alliance provided our community a variety of trees to plant in our yards to reforest. My husband spent an afternoon planting a dozen or so trees (because he is awesome) and I’m crossing my fingers some of them grow. I’m also thankful for the local volunteers who planted trees along the river. It’s inspiring to see people working together to keep our lakes, rivers and streams healthy.

Beautiful Lives Thrift Boutique in Fayetteville, Arkansas

There are just so many reasons why I loved shopping with my sister this weekend. One of the highlights was discovering the Beautiful Lives Thrift Boutique that sells upscale used clothing at an affordable price and donates profits to charities. My sister bought me a green Express shirt for $5 that I’m looking forward to wearing on St. Patrick’s Day. I enjoy consignment shopping because I can get new items in my closet without contributing to some of the social and environmental negatives that come out of ‘fast fashion’.

Ways We Are Reducing Waste at Home

I mentioned our goals last week (here), but I thought I would share a few updates:

Less Glass – We are limiting alcohol consumption to weeknights only, so instead of having a glass of wine and watching an episode of Mad Men we are sipping decaf tea. We thought about stocking up on sparkling water, but decided the extra cans would be counter productive.
No Drive Thru Foods or To-go Drinks –We’ve been doing a good job at mostly eating at home, but my daughter requested Chick-fil-A this afternoon and I obliged. I don’t think we cut out much waste by going inside which was a bummer, but I cut back where I could by not taking a plastic straw or the awesome disposable place mats that they offer for kiddos.
No Shopping Bags – This goal was the one that I got the most feedback on. I’ve heard several people are giving up plastic bags for lent and I’m excited we are doing it together!
Avoid Single Serving Packaging – This goal has been harder – my kids basically ate a big bag of goldfish in a day. Also, I’ve been struggling to maintain portion control on things like almonds. We will figure this out, but I think it’s our biggest struggle so far.

#lesswastelent

Finally, I said I would share updates on instagram (#lesswastelent) and I’ve been failing at this mission because reducing waste is hard to get a pretty picture of. I tried to pose our 2-year-old with an umbrella by one of our new little trees, but it was raining and the umbrella blew away and she fell down and got muddy. It was a complete picture taking fail. So, if you want to share any ideas or pictures with me, I would love to see them!

A Trail Less Traveled: Hollowell Park to Mill Creek Basin in Rocky Mountain National Park

It’s official – we have been away from Rocky Mountain National Park for far too long! But the count-down is on because we reserved our cabin for a trip at the end of May. In anticipation, I’ve been taking a look back through our family’s hiking journal and came across a hike that I haven’t shared before.

Hollowell Park

Back in May of 2016, we ventured to Hollowell Park because it was an area in RMNP that we had never explored. We hoped it would be a good place to hike with our toddler during the spring season when some higher altitude hikes are still covered in ice and snow. The Hollowell Park turnoff is approximately 8,300 ft in elevation according to the park’s website. In comparison, Bear Lake is 9,475 ft.

I took a picture of the sign at Hollowell Park to give myself a visual of all the destinations you can hike to including Cub Lake, Bierstadt Lake, and Bear Lake. Hiking from Hollowell Park is not the most direct route to these popular attractions, but it could be a good alternate route to avoid some of the crowds during peak visitor season.

Hikes from Hallowell Park in Rocky Mountain National Park

Mill Creek Basin

We decided to hike to Mill Creek Basin, which is a less popular destination in the park. Our hike was 1.9 miles each way which began in an open grassy area and climbed an additional 600 feet of elevation through towering pines.

The trail followed a mountain stream called Mill Creek. Several snowy patches remained on the trail along with muddy portions caused by recent snow melt. We crossed over a small wooden bridge to get to the Mill Creek Basin, a meadow with aspens which I imagine are even more beautiful in autumn.

Hallowell Park in RMNP Rocky Mountain National Park — Hollowell Park – Open meadow with views of Rocky Mountains

Deer in Rocky Mountain National Park's Hallowell Park — Deer on the hillside

Mill Creek flows in Rocky Mountain National park — Mill Creek

Hallowell Park trails to Mill Creek Basin, Bierstadt Lake, Bear Lake and Cub Lake. — Trail signage points to Mill Creek Basin, Bierstadt Lake, Bear Lake and Cub Lake

Wooded trail leading to Mill Creek Basin — Towering Pines

Small wooden bridge crossing Mill Creek — Small wood bridge crosses Mill Creek

Avoid Crowds in Rocky Mountain National Park

If you are interested in additional trails that we think are good for avoiding crowds in Rocky Mountain National Park, I wrote a post about the Glacier Creek trail here.

Spring Hiking in RMNP

Spring can be a tricky season to visit Rocky Mountain National Park because the weather varies day-to-day. Here are some additional lower elevation hikes you might consider:

Deer Mountain
Gem Lake
Cub Lake
Lily Lake -this post really highlights the unpredictable weather in RMNP!

Best Hikes Under 5 Miles

The hike to Mill Creek Basin was just under 4 miles round trip. When we plan hikes for our young family, we typically aim for hikes that are similar in length. We broke down some of our favorite family-friendly ‘short hikes’ with details to help plan your adventure in the pages linked below: