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by T. Duren Jones
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Let it snow … NOT! |
By the end of April, we just want to strangle Colorado weather’s neck. |
 Springtime in the Rockies
Ahhh … springtime in the Rockies!
What a wild weather ride. (Let’s just say that spring and summer arrive late where we live.) Had about four inches of snow dumped on us one night last week. Fortunately, it all melted by the next day. It’s all so welcome, charming and sentimental around Christmas. But by the end of April, we just want to strangle Colorado weather’s neck. While we got the quick melt, and could again see our greening grass, not so in the high country. That same week I had hiked up around Brainard Lake, northwest of Boulder, between Nederland and Estes Park. I had gone snowshoeing to this scenic setting several years ago and wanted to revisit. Wow, what a shock. The snow was so high around the still-frozen lake that in some areas the drifts were up to the bottom of the road signs. I understand that the Colorado Rockies (the mountains, not the baseball team) got about 120 percent of the average annual snowfall this season. Good for our thirsty reservoirs. Soon into my three-mile round-trip trek, I wished I had again brought my snowshoes. As I tromped around the edge of the lake, hiking boots only, I post holed with every exhausting step. At one point I sank with both legs into the deep snow up to my thighs. The more I struggled to get out, the more stuck I felt. I thought I might have to just stay there totem-frozen until the full summer thaw. I eventually rolled out of my predicament—an unpleasant and ungraceful sight I’m sure, if anyone else had been around to see it. Brainard Lake, sitting before a half-circle audience of snow-covered peaks, was as beautiful as I had remembered. I guess I should come back some summer or fall for an entirely different view of this lovely, pristine landscape. At least I wouldn’t have to push through all this snow. More adventures |
