Aspen to Crested Butte via West Maroon Pass

I had always seen pictures of Colorado in magazines and wondered where they were taking the pictures.  I've seen many beautiful places in Colorado, but nothing quite like the scenery I was seeing on the magazine pictures.  That was all until this summer.  I finally found myself in the places that I had previously been just pictures in a magazine!

Early in the summer Nikki asked me if I wanted to go on this hike.  I think pretty much all she told me was that we would hike from Aspen to Crested Butte and it would be really pretty.  I really didn't need any more information to help me decide.  It was a definite yes!  I had never been to Aspen or Crested Butte, I had never seen the Maroon Bells, I love to go hiking, so why wouldn't I want to go?!  Nikki, being the great organized planner that she is, had everything lined up for us.  I basically just had to pack a bag and get myself to Aspen.  Little did I know I was about to embark on the best hiking trip I've had yet.

I met up with Nikki, Gabe, and Beth in Aspen on Friday night.  Nikki had a room booked for us at the Inn at Aspen.  But before checking in and going in for the night, we had to do some sight seeing in Aspen, a.k.a people watching.  Aspen is quite the interesting town that I can't say we really fit into, but it was fun to observe.  We couldn't resist going into the ritziest hotel to see if we could spot anyone famous.

Yes, we clearly fit right in and don't look conspicuous at all

We called it a night pretty early because we knew we had a big day ahead of us.  By 5am we were all up and moving, ready for a day of hiking.  

No time to waste!

We took the West Maroon Pass trail - a popular route through the highly photographed Maroon Bells mountains and fields of wildflowers.  I'll let the pictures do most of the talking, but I think you will easily be able to see how amazingly breathtaking the views were.  I loved it!

Here we go!

Sun just peaking over the mountains

I would love to be here in October to see all the Aspen changing

Lots of water on this trail

So lots of water crossings

There were quite a few waterfalls to see too

Quite the view of the valley

Can you tell I like waterfalls? 

Such great hiking buddies

I found my own little tree chair

Big water crossing where someone had turned a sign
and we weren't quite sure where we should be going 

The wildflowers begin!

A tricky crossing - the last thing you want is
to be hiking another 7 or 8 miles in wet shoes

Gig'em!

The pass is in sight

Just up and over that saddle and we're on our way down
to Crested Butte

Looking back from the top of the pass

Looking over the pass to where we're going

Columbines - the state flower

The trail down to Crested Butte

Now that's what I call a backdrop :)

Down through the sea of wildflowers we go!

We could not have picked a better time of year

Usie!
You can see the excitement on our faces about being
in a seemingly endless valley of wildflowers

The sign that we've almost reached our destination
and the last picture to ever be taken on my camera :(

Shortly after this picture we did reach the end of the trail.  Nikki had arranged for Dolly's Mountain Shuttle to pick us up.  We were a little earlier than our pickup was scheduled for, so I decided it would be relaxing to go put my feet in the cold water of a creek running nearby.  When I went down to the creek, I found a nice big log that looked perfect for laying on and listening to the rushing water.  Perfect, right?!  It was, until the moment when I heard the splash in the water.  As soon as I heard it, I knew my camera was laying at the bottom of the creek.  I had completely forgotten that it was in my pocket.  I scooped it out as fast as I could, but time would reveal that no amount of drying out and sitting in a bowl of rice would bring it back to life.  It was good little camera that snapped great pictures of many great memories including, Malawi, Pohnpei, and life so far in Colorado.

But you can't let something like that get you down, especially when you're on a trip as great as this. It's just a camera and life goes on.  Our shuttle picked us up right after my camera incident and we were on our way to Crested Butte, until the van broke down about half way.  Luckily we had a good natured  group and we all just patiently waited for another van to pick us up.  Then we were really on our way.

Nikki had a nice little place lined up for us called the Nordic Inn.  The owners were super nice and accommodating.  Even though we had to leave before breakfast was served, she showed us where all the food was and let us help ourselves.  That's great customer service!

So cute!

After some much needed showers, we were starving and in the mood for some pizza!  Everyone recommended the Secret Stash as the place to go.

Don't let the sign scare you away...

or the quirky decor...

they know how to do pizza!
And just what we wanted after a long day of hiking.

Even though we were tired, we managed to walk around and see the town.  Crested Butte is definitely more my kind of place with cute shops and little more down to earth feel.

It happened to also be Ice Cream Day, so I had scoped out the best ice cream in town.  The top ratings went to...

Locally made ice cream with some
unique flavors

I think Gabe had reached his picture limit

and we were all losing our minds aparently

We topped off the night with a little hot tub time - great for the muscles.  And then called it an early night so that we could get up and hit the trail the next morning.

The next day was just as beautiful as the day before.  Sunny, warm, dry, perfect!

Back through the wildflowers

Back over the pass

We made it!
Now it's all down hill :)

More clouds this day, but that's okay as long as they stay
white and fluffy

Playing with the panoramic shot

Back at the beginning lake where the masses were
all hanging out and taking pictures

But can you blame them?

 I highly, highly, highly recommend this trip to anyone who's thinking about planning a hike in Colorado.  Even now looking at these pictures, it just doesn't seem real.  It especially doesn't seem real to me that it's all so close.  Words can't describe the beauty and these pictures can't do it justice, so you need to just come see it for yourself.