Columbine Trail

Prior to today I'd gone hiking in North Cheyenne Cañon Park in Colorado Springs three times, and enjoyed every one.  So when I was looking for a place to hike today, I decided to make Trip #4!

The Columbine Trail was today's option, which was made even more attractive by the road being closed for construction so I wouldn't hear cars as I was enjoying my nature.  North Cheyenne Creek was looking pretty as I started off from the trailhead around 7 a.m.

It's not immediately obvious how big this waterfall is.  Not sure I can even call it a waterfall, since it's only about two feet tall.  Charming, though.

I'm getting some really nice sunburst shots with my new Nikkor 10-24 lens.  Possibly because it hasn't gotten sand and oil inside yet to add distracting lens flare?

Helen Hunt Falls were flowing more briskly than I'd expected.  I didn't lug my tripod with me, but handheld was still fine.

I lowered the ISO to 100 and shut down the aperture to f/29 to see if I could get that nice feathery look to the water.  This was the best I could manage, which tells me that if I intend to shoot waterfalls in the future I should bite the bullet and carry the tripod to get the longer exposures.

I did the 9.18 miles and 1,674 feet of elevation gain in a tidy 4:06.  Apparently I can hike faster with only one camera body, a smaller lens, and no tripod. :)

Related Links:

• Mount Muscoco
• Kineo Mountain via Seven Bridges Trail
• St. Mary's Falls, April 2024

Mount Muscoco

The school year is over, and I've got a road trip scheduled next week to hike, camp, and shoot a dozen waterfalls in southwest Colorado.  I wanted to get a "practice hike" under my belt first to shake off some rust.  I've loved my two previous visits to North Cheyenne Cañon, and found Mount Muscoco on AllTrails which seemed like an easily doable distance (less than four miles) and elevation gain (roughly 1,300 feet).  In a rainy, overcast week Wednesday offered a nice block of mostly sunny skies, so there I was at the trailhead just after 9 a.m.

First thing I learned: I was WAY overdressed.  With temps forecast in the 60s and expecting possible windy conditions at the summit, I wore long pants and my windbreaker.  Less than a quarter mile into the hike, the windbreaker was in my camera bag -- too warm and humid for it.

It's a good thing I did a "practice hike," because I struggled with the climb.  Hopefully just out of practice, because I can't point to anything in particular that was especially challenging about the trail.  But I eventually made it to the top, and was rewarded with the expected gorgeous views and none of the wind I had feared.

The splash of blue on the tree in the foreground bugged me at first.  When I zoomed in I discovered it was a bracelet (or possibly a small collar) that read "Fly High KyRy."  I can make an exception for a tribute to a lost loved one and not be such a curmudgeon.

A close-up of that tribute.  I give the person who went out and attached it credit for their gumption.

Wildflowers like these Sidebells Penstemon were just starting to bloom.

Rocky Mountains Ponderosa Pine cones were still young and green.

I like the star patterns in which the new cones grow.

As usual, the decent proved much quicker than the ascent.  I stopped just once to shoot the view towards Colorado Springs with rain clouds beginning to gather in the sky.

The hike ended up being 4.34 miles (I'm starting to grow accustomed to AllTrails' distance underestimates) and took me just under two and a half hours, which in hindsight I suppose isn't significantly slower than the 2 MPH pace I normally strive for when shooting.  But it sure felt slower than that for whatever reason, which I'll keep in mind on next week's excursion.  That said, I couldn't have asked for better conditions for my first hike of summer!

Related Links:

• St. Mary's Falls, April 2024
• Kineo Mountain via Seven Bridges Trail

Garden of the Gods: January 2025

Extreme conditions often result in memorable photos.  With that in mind, I drove down to Garden of the Gods on MLK Day before sunrise to see what I could find.

When I say "extreme," I mean bone-chilling cold.  The coldest reading on my car thermometer was -5.
After bundling up at the Central Garden parking lot and heading out into the frigid morning, I made the mistake of setting up for two shots.  By the time I finished the second I hustled back to my car, where I turned the heat on full blast and sat until my nausea passed and I had feeling in my fingers again.

Having officially received my painful reminder of the perils of shooting in the bitter cold, I drove the loop through the park and got out of my car for single shots only before returning to warm back up.

The loop brought me back to the Central Garden as the sun broke over the horizon, providing a different mood for the scene.

The dusting of snow on the National Natural Landmark sign is the kind of thing you can't plan and can't create yourself.  Absolute serendipity.

Balanced Rock is a detour of the loop, but a necessary one.  The predawn clouds had burned off and blown away, leaving bluebird skies with a miniscule moon in the distance.

Recomposing doesn't count as a second shot.  And with the sun up my fingers weren't losing sensation anywhere near as quickly, anyway.

Pikes Peak looks stunning with a fresh coat of snow.  Then again, everything does.

A great couple of hours in one of Colorado's many magical places, and I returned home with all my fingers still functioning!

Related Links:

• Garden of the Gods: September 2012
• Garden of the Gods: December 2012
• Garden of the Gods: December 2013

Kineo Mountain via Seven Bridges Trail

I've got aspirations of trying to do another 14er this summer -- Pikes Peak.  That's a 14-mile roundtrip hike with roughly 4,300 feet of elevation gain.  Building up to that seems like a good idea, so I decided to return to North Cheyenne Cañon Park and summit Kineo Mountain via the Seven Bridges Trail.

An early start meant nobody else was at Helen Hunt Falls when I drove by at 7:30, so a stop for photos was in order.

Both portrait and landscape options were required, as usual.  And I honestly can't decide which I prefer!

North Cheyenne Creek had some beautiful dappled light and very few other hikers.

There's a great spot at the base of this cascade about 10 yards off the trail, with steps provided to help you clamber down.  You have to keep your eyes peeled for it, though.

Conditions had clouded over a bit when I reached the summit, but the view to the east still impresses.

The sun peeked through for a moment when I turned my attention to the west, and nicely brightened up the vista.

I love this aspen grove that you pass through about 2.5 miles in, and again had a moment where the sun provided some areas of contrast.

I stopped at the same cascades that I'd shot earlier to capture it in full sun.  I think I prefer the shaded version from earlier in the day, but this is hardly ugly.

I completed the 6.68 miles and 1,969 feet of elevation gain in 3 hours, 30 minutes, minus a rest and photo stop at the summit.  Can I do slightly more than double the distance and elevation gain at a higher altitude?  Right now, I'm feeling optimistic that I can!

St. Mary's Falls, April 2024

The calendar may say spring, but winter hasn't completely released its grip on Colorado just yet.  So I made plans to capture some through my lens while I still could.  The destination: St. Mary's Falls in North Cheyenne Cañon Park.

I woke up the morning of my planned expedition to low temperatures and low visibility.  Undaunted, I made the hour drive and hit the trailhead. electing to savor the conditions rather than bemoan them.

Not sure what this bird was, but I do appreciate silhouettes.

An apparent abandoned mine distracted me for a moment, but I had a waterfall to get to so I didn't explore it extensively.

The fog and barely freezing temperatures resulted in quite a bit of frost on tree branches...

...and lower-lying vegetation.

The last half mile or so was pretty steep, so I became laser-focused on just getting to the falls.  And that focus was rewarded with precisely the sort of wintry scene I'd been hoping for. 

I had gambled that the falls would no longer be completely frozen over, and the gamble paid off. 

I soon became fascinated by the ice build-up on the surrounding trees, so I switched from trying to take in the whole scene to zooming in on smaller details.

This occupied me for quite some time.

I don't like the results zooming out to this degree quite as much for some reason.

Yeah, splitting the difference just doesn't do it for me.  Tight close-ups I like, and the full views of the falls I like.  All or nothing, I suppose.

On my descent, I stopped much more frequently to capture what I was seeing.  This frost-covered plant reminded me of a sea creature.

  

Frost spikes on a yucca caught my eye.

As did these, though again I feel like this middle-ground view is my least favorite.

I've got a pretty good idea what picture is going to be on my Christmas card this year.

I definitely appreciated how clear the trail itself was of ice and snow.  That made the journey much more manageable.

Pasqueflowers still delight me.  I don't understand the science behind them blooming in freezing weather, but I love their role as heralds of springtime in the Rockies.

I know it looks like I got down on my belly for this shot, but I'll let you -- dear blog reader -- in on the secret.  This flower was going on the side of a steep embankment along the trail.  So I was really just standing comfortably with my camera at eye level.  Still, I really like the shot.

I had passed a couple of other hikers on the trail who remarked how much they liked the spiderwebs along the trail.  I replied that I hadn't noticed them but would keep an eye out on my way back.  Turns out there were only hundreds of them, cleverly hidden a couple of feet off the trail.  Apparently I was not at my most observant at the onset of my hike.

Roughly 6 1/2 miles and 2,000 feet of elevation gain in 3:20:48, which I included my time shooting the waterfall because I forgot to pause my app.  And worth every minute!

Palmer Reservoirs, February 2024

Snow was forecast for this past Friday night, with partly cloudy conditions at sunrise giving way to mostly sunny skies.  That meant a winter hike was in order, and the La Deux Reservoirs to Ice Cave Creek and Swank Trails Loop -- while a mouthful -- was my choice.  So I woke up dark and early Saturday morning and made the 30-minute drive to Palmer Lake.

Fourth time getting up to shoot a sunrise so far in 2024, and fourth time not getting the color I hoped for in the sky.  I did get some frigid temperatures though -- seven degrees when I hit the trailhead at 6:30 -- so I had that going for me.

The scenery was absolutely what I'd hoped for -- rock formations and evergreens all covered in a fresh blanket of snow.

After my third time stopping to take a picture in the first half mile or so, which involved taking off my glove shells but not the liners to manipulate the buttons -- my hands were freezing.  Like, so-cold-I-wanted-to-vomit freezing.  I actually started back to my car, thinking it just wasn't my morning.  But the wave of nausea passed and I reconsidered.

I was closer to the first reservoir than I had realized, which I did stop to shoot.  But then I just put my head down and pushed past the second reservoir to the Swank Trail.

By now the sun had come up, temperatures had risen, and my mood had improved.

I was glad I'd also brought along my D750 with its 400m zoom lens to get some more intimate scenes.

Still a sucker for individual trees, especially tiny ones.

The sun was low enough in the sky that while the landscape was well lit, I could still catch bursts behind tree trunks.

Conditions were perfect, and I saw only one other hiker on the loop.  So I could stop and shoot at my leisure, while the AllTrails app kept me on course.

Even as the morning wore on, temperatures remained cold enough that the snow seemed in no hurry to melt off the trees.

Sundance Canyon was an absolute joy as I started heading back towards the first reservoir.

I couldn't quite figure out how three-quarters of the way into the hike it seemed I was still trending upward in elevation.  Whatever the reason, it did result in stunning views to the east.

I would stop at a vista, say "Wow" under my breath, set up my tripod and shoot, then repeat the process about 10 steps later.

I got to play one of my favorite games more than once -- Portrait...

...or Landscape?  I personally lean Landscape on this one.

This was an obvious portrait orientation to me, with the three tall trees in the mid-ground.

Round Two!  Landscape...

...or Portrait?  Probably Portrait for me this time.

A final snap of snow-covered branches, and a MUCH more enjoyable return to the trailhead than my initial departure had been.

Unsurprisingly, I set no speed records on this hike.  Almost exactly five miles in almost exactly four hours.  Elevation gain of 913 feet and 658 calories burned, which earned my a hearty breakfast at the Speedtrap in town (a recommendation from that other hiker I saw).

After overcoming that touch of adversity at the start, this turned into one of my favorite winter hikes ever.  I want to bring Danelle to Palmer Lake sometime in the summer, and come back to this exact trail sometime in the fall to see the foliage!