hike

WOW: Hiking in the Snow

On Sunday morning, I made a date to meet up with the fabulous Tiffany and do some hiking! I hadn’t hiked in months, so I was excited to get out and enjoy the outdoors.

When I saw that the temperature was in the 30s when I woke up on Sunday morning, I wasn’t as excited. Just the same, I got bundled up with a hat, a scarf, and some gloves and headed out.

I didn’t get quite this bundled up… but if I had that red snow suit, it could’ve happened!

On the way to Golden, I heard this song on the radio… There’s something about a little 90s rap that gets me going. I grew up in the 90s (and when I say “grew up” I mean I was in college then), so I just love those songs that I used to dance to at parties with my friends… and this was one of them. Thanks, 90s on 9, for getting the blood flowing and prepping me for this hike!

We chose Matthew Winters Park for our hike this week. It’s right on the edge of Red Rocks, and one of those places I’d always meant to check out. It was GORGEOUS!

I’m also always shocked that once you get your body moving and you’re in the sun, it really doesn’t feel like it’s in the 30s. The trail was pretty open when we arrived. We’d see an occasional person on a bike or off in the distance, but by the end of the trip, the place was hopping.

Now, you’d might think this would make for a pretty quiet trail walk…. but did I mention that I was with Tiffany? We tend to be chatterboxes, which was also the case today. It was so nice to catch up and hear about all that had been going on in each others’ worlds. If you don’t follow her blog Snack Snark Bark, I highly recommend it.

PS… Don’t judge my hat. Had to keep the ears warm!

This picture was taken at the top of our trek. There really was quite the incline to get there, and we could have gone a LOT further but after an hour we were ready to turn back. But, not before we took a few pics at the peak of our hike.

I swear, I live in the most gorgeous place. Seriously beautiful all year round. Today’s hike made me appreciate that once again, and made me want to get out there and hike more in the future.

Something that was new for Sunday’s hike was that there was SNOW on the ground. Thankfully, not throughout… but I had never hiked in the snow. It really slows you down a little bit, because you have to be careful (in my opinion.) However, it was interesting to see people running through there and riding bikes through there. Yeah… I’d rather take my time.

Overall, our hike took two hours. TWO HOURS on Super Bowl Sunday was quite the success. My Fitness Pal estimated that I had burned just under a thousand calories, and had already clocked more than 10,000 steps by 11am!

After burning all those calories, Tiffany and I needed coffee. We headed to Starbucks and got some coffee, but we were both a little more hungry than that…

Have you ever heard of Kolache Factory? It’s this ridiculously good place that I can’t believe I haven’t been before. They sell these little stuffed rolls, stuffed with tasty goodness.

Even though it was a little more decadent than I usually go for, I couldn’t even begin to resist a little bread ball that was stuffed with… WAIT FOR IT… Sausage and Gravy??? Ooooooooooh, yeah…

It was SO delicious. I was able to find the nutritional information online later, and was surprised that the damage wasn’t worse than it was… for all that flavor, just 250 calories. Not bad. Tiffany opted for one that was Jalapeno Popper flavored (really??)

I’d also brought some vegan donuts for us to munch on, but seriously, the Kolache took the prize…

When I stood up after we visited at Kolache Factory, I could feel some pain poking in the hip area, and I was sure that I was going to feel the work we’d done on the mountain for a few days. Totally worth it, and a totally fun morning.

We’ve made plans to get out there again in a few weeks…. I’m looking forward to it already!

Do you enjoy hiking? Have you ever hiked in the snow?

So much to post....

What a Weigh-In!

Weekend Weigh-In and Whatnot

WOW: Hiking Camelback {AKA December in the Desert: Part Two}

Welcome to the Workout Wednesday post, that was supposed to be on Thursday, that ended up being on Friday.

While most of my posts are geared at recapping a story, sharing a breakthrough, or motivating others…. today’s post is really for me. To remind me of why I like to workout and to get me back in the gym.

This weekend at Montelucia, we had an amazing time lounging on property, relaxing in the spa, and enjoying our favorite cocktails. What I haven’t shared with you yet is that we also worked out every single day!

Donna and I have a very different workout approach.

Donna is more SPORTY than I could ever be. She does bootcamp several times a week, enjoys running, plays soccer, and is competitive with her workouts.

As for me, I prefer yoga, cardio activity like treadmill or elliptical, group classes like Pilates or Spin, and an occasional Zumba class.

Very contrasting in our approach, Donna has also worked out consistently most of her life… where I’m still getting my feet wet. As a result, I lean on her experience from time to time.

For the past several years, she has been heading off to tackle Camelback Mountain when we are at Montelucia. In the early years, I would simply sleep late. Over the past few years, I’ve opted for yoga or treadmill time. This trip, I decided to see this mountain that she’s been talking so much about up close and personal.

True Story: This was the first time I’d ever walked off the property. And, it felt like a completely different world… I took quite a few pictures along the way. There were beautiful cacti and interesting decorations as you can see….

We walked about 4 blocks to get to the base of the mountain, and entered the trails at Echo Canyon Park.

There were a ton of people out on the trails by the time we arrived. It was possibly 9am by the time we got there, and I’d definitely say that if you were hiking here in the summer you’d have to get there MUCH earlier so as to not fry yourself in the sun.

The cooler December weather and the shaded path made 9am the perfect time for us to be on the mountain. When I saw international travelers on the mountain, I knew that they had the right idea in shielding the sun and wished I had applied sunscreen before I left the room.

Just the same, we had a huge trek in front of us… there was no time to go back. Much of the path was created with stairs. Many stairs that went up… and then many that went down. Some stairs formed by rocks, and others by beams. My legs were going to be WORKING on this hike.

We made the decision that we would climb about half way up the mountain during this (my first) trip up Camelback. It was such a gorgeous walk… even if I was whining a bit of the way.

About halfway to our destination, this girl needed to take a breather. As you know, the higher you get in altitude the more challenging breathing can become. Even though I live way about sea level (6200 ft. to be exact), these stairs kicked my behind!

Can you believe I climbed up all of this??

This is where we decided to pause. The sun was very bright, so it’s hard to see how the rest of this climb looked. It was DEFINITELY a CLIMB.

Beginning at this point, you would have to literally pull yourself up and rock climb up this steep hill. Hmmm… that’s a little much for this girl. I wanted to see it, but easily made the decision to turn back at this point.

What’s interesting about the way down is that it’s just as treacherous and exhausting as the way up! You have to watch your steps and be careful not to slip on the rocks. I even used the fence a little bit when I got nervous about the downward climb. The last thing I needed to do was fall.

We decided to take one more trail before heading to the base. We spotted a sign for Bobby’s Rock which is situated near a cool canyon and we decided to check it out!

When we finally got to the bottom of the mountain, my legs were super tired. I noticed that I overcompensated a little with my right leg… which I knew I would pay for in the next few days, but the hike was SO worth it.

I had once again done something that I never had done before… and tackled a new obstacle that was in front of me. Maybe next time, I’ll climb to the top, but for now… I’m super happy with my arrival to our halfway point.

Week Three's Lessons Learned...

I Heart Southern California

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