Trail Thursday: Capitol Reef National Park

Happy Friday-eve! Does anyone ever have those days where your hair is completely unruly and you are SO CLOSE to chopping it off?

Yeah… that was me the other day. It’s at this length where it’s in-between short and long and just not the most flattering (I think). I want to grow it out, but I also just really want to stop feeling like I look like a boy with long hair…

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Anyways, we’re almost to the weekend! I really wish we had some pumpkin patches near us here in Steamboat, but I guess I’ll have to settle for one at Safeway. I’m also thinking of doing a really cool pumpkin carving this year. Thinking either this one or this one. Do you carve pumpkins? If you do - do you use one of the stencils or freehand it?

I’ve got 7-8 easy miles on tap with some strides at the end this morning and hoping to fit in some strength either before my run or tonight. It’s always ten times harder to get my strength in after work for whatever reason- anyone else feel this way?

NOW- let’s get to our Capitol Reef National Park Recap!

Here’s some quick things that I took away from the park:

Fall was in full-force here and I LOVED it!

• Backpacking- super easy to find a spot and you can grab a wilderness permit once you arrive to the park. Unless the weather is bad, I think this is a great idea (we didn’t do this since we had Stella with us)

• Running- sooo many trailheads close to the Fruita Campground and even the scenic drive is a great place to run. I fit my run in on both the trail that runs parallel to the scenic drive and on the road early Sunday morning (so traffic was minimal). It was so beautiful and peaceful.

• Hiking- same thing goes for hiking as it did for running. So many easily accessible trails right from the campground OR you can drive to so many great hikes. Always remember to be prepared for your hike with adequate water, sunscreen, a hat, and know the weather.

• Driving- We did the scenic drive and also the Washburn side drive (it’s a dirt road with a few rocky sections), both of which were spectacular. We also drove into the park from the west and left the park from the east, so we did get to see A LOT of the park. There are plenty of side trips that we could have done (had we had more time).

• Food/Gas/Lodging- There really isn’t much inside the park, but I definitely recommend stopping at the Gifford House for some fresh pie! It’s directly next to the Fruita Campground so easy 5 minute walk. We got there around 8:15 Sunday morning and the pies were still warm (and there was a relatively long line). They’re a bit pricey ($6 per pie), but totally worth it. Hot, fresh pie for breakfast? Yes, please! The town of Torrey is to the west of the visitors center and gas/ food/ some lodging is maybe a 10 minute drive? It’s super close and convenient if you forget something.

• Orchards- I saw over FIVE orchards in the valley of the park (by the visitors center/ campground/ museum). We had just missed the apple picking season (by 2.5 weeks), but it really makes me want to come back and take advantage of the harvesting season. They have walnut, apple, pear, almond, and peach trees.

OVERALL takeaway - We will definitely be back. The history is amazing here (we came across the arch where Butch Cassidy hid!) and the overall accessibility is amazing. Pretty easy to bring your furry friends too (if you don’t want to go hiking), since the trail to/from the visitors center is dog-friendly. It may be the least popular of Utah’s Big Five National Parks too, so that’s more incentive to visit!

Fruita Campground!

Nice walking trails to the Visitors Center and green space to enjoy a picnic!

One of the orchards along the Scenic Drive

Views from my run!

Driving on Washburn drive towards the canyon

Butch Cassidy’s hideout arch- located in the top middle canyon!

Petroglyphs!

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Have you carved your pumpkin yet?! Gimme some ideas!

What are you up to this weekend?!?

Pumpkin Flavored things - yay or nay? —> no, thank you.

Ever been to Capitol Reef National Park? —> if yes, what was your favorite?

Trail Thursday: Lake Winnipesaukee & Castle In The Clouds

Happy Friday-eve! It’s finally warmer out in the mornings so dressing for my run isn’t as much of a production as it was at the beginning of this week (i.e. wear a billion layers and compression gear that is so skin-clinging that you almost knock yourself out putting it on). Also this:

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We’re planning to leave early tomorrow morning (~6am) to drive to Lake Powell (it’s around a 9 hour drive) with Stella. Hoping to get there by 4pm (which will really be 3pm since AZ —> Pacific time, yay!) and check out the expo before setting up our campsite/ exploring Powell a bit. I put tomorrow as a rest day (and have 8 easy miles on-tap this morning) since we’ll be traveling a lot and hope to get in some miles in Capitol Reef Nat’l Park on Sunday.

Now let’s go back to a great vacation that we had a few years ago visiting Lake Winnipesaukee (we did the M/S Mount Washington boat tour around the lake starting in Wolfeboro). The cruise was so great and they provide all sorts of fun trivia (like who owns which home and the famous celebrities that are often seen visiting). We did it during the Fall mid-week, so it was a quiet time and perfect to really soak it all in! It was a bit rainy and windy, so we spent most of the time inside the boat but that didn’t damper the mood at all.

The views seen throughout the cruise (I think it last around 45 minutes?) were spectacular.

We also visited Castle In The Clouds, which I had always wanted to see! I loved the drive up to the top (although it was a bit pricey, $17 per person) and there were several lookout spots (overlooking the lake) along the way for us to stop at.

The history of the castle was incredible and the structure still looked great (both inside and out).

Hi! Younger-looking Alex!

It was a great way to spend the day and we also ate lunch at the Carriage House Restaurant. It was SO tasty and so cool to be actually dining in the original stables.

We also hiked to the Falls of Song, which was a really easy (and short) hike to the 40 foot Falls.

Despite the pricey admission fee, it was a great day-trip to visit the rich history of the mansion and the hiking trails (along with the scenic overlooks). I certainly wouldn’t pay to visit there again (one time I think was enough), but it is worthwhile if you haven’t visited yet or are in the area looking for more indoor sites to see.

Ever been to Lake Winnipesaukee? What’s your favorite location?

What’s your take on admission fees? What do you think is too much to charge?

Long drives- give me some podcast recommendations to download!

Trail Thursday: Tips For Staying Warm Backpacking In The Fall & Wednesday Recap!

Happy Friday-eve! I’ve been brainstorming what to write about today since I’ve kinda run out of trails to recap (or at least I THINK I have for the moment…), but then I got to thinking on my run this morning how fun backpacking in the Fall is (but staying warm is always a HUGE factor in whether or not you enjoy the experience)! So that’s what I’m sharing today- some things that I’ve learned to stay warm out there and still enjoy the crisp air.

Speaking of crisp air….it was COLD this morning 28* to start my run and unfortunately it’s going to get COLDER before it gets warmer (i.e. 9* is the LOW for Sunday night?!?). 7.25 miles plus some strides for a total of 7.65 to kick off Thursday. I’m getting more and more excited for our trip to Lake Powell NEXT weekend - the high there right now is looking to be around 60 and low in the upper 40s…amazing.

Yesterday I tried out a new look at the salon…kidding. I just got some highlights since we’re planning on getting our engagement photos done tomorrow!

Also Brady is continually fascinated by the Fridge. I am slightly concerned that one morning we’re going to shut him in there and forget (and he’ll be stuck in the fridge the entire day). Hopefully this will NEVER happen.

So I’m pretty much always cold (my fingers and toes are just freezing at all times…sometimes even on the warmest Summer days!), so staying warm (especially when backpacking) is kinda my speciality.

One thing that I always bring with me whether camping, backpacking, or anytime of the year really (sometimes I wish I could snuggle up in it at home too…) - I love my Big Agnes Ethel 0*

A warm cup of coffee. I love to carry along a mason jar (normally fill it with water, but ya know…sometimes it’s wine instead) with a koozie for those warmer drinks. Also hot cocoa for dessert (especially when you can’t have a campfire) - Ah-maz-ing.

Warmer socks x 2. I have a tendency to somehow always get my feet wet when hiking in, so 2 pairs of socks (regardless of weather) is always necessary. When it’s expected to be really cold out, I wear 2 pairs of socks to sleep and also tuck in a pair of the Hand (or toe) warmers in between my sock layers. Also a water bottle filled with hot water also feels amazing.

A warm tent. We have the Big Agnes Copper Spur HV Ultra Light Mtn Glow (which isn’t the best for super chilly temperatures, but we made due with extra layers).

Leggings. I love leggings and probably would wear them everyday if I could. Skirts + leggings = a cute, comfy look that I rock way too often in the winter/ late Fall. I sleep in them and then pop them on with my skort in the morning hours before we leave our campsite (super easy to take them off too when it warms up later in the morning).

A warm coat that can fold up into itself. My Big Agnes Shovelhead jacket folds into its interior pocket and feels like I’m wearing a sleeping bag every time I slip it on. If it’s really cold out, I also will keep it inside my sleeping for extra warmth.

I will definitely disclose that my boyfriend, Alex, works at Big Agnes so we did get killer deals on all of their products (which is why we literally have so many coats/ tents/ sleeping bags etc.), BUT all of the items are my absolute favorites to use when backpacking regardless.

How do you stay warm when camping outdoors in the Fall?

What’s the weather like where you are?

Sleeping bags- love ‘em or hate ‘em?

Trail Thursday: Timber Lake Backpacking In Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park!

Happy Friday eve! I’m so excited to share with you some of the photos from our backpacking trip last weekend in Rocky Mountain National Park. We booked our overnight camping permit about a month ago on their website here. Alex or I had never done any sort of Wilderness camping where you needed a permit, so we were both a bit excited and nervous! It was so easy to book the site and navigate through their website to find the best location for us on the date that we were looking for (plus it was inexpensive too! $26 to book online). I ended up booking Snowbird site at Timber Lake because it was a relatively do-able distance for us (4.6 miles 2,000’ gain), close to the lake, and close to the Grand Lake entrance of the park (closer to our home!). It ended up being National Parks Day on Saturday so the park and trailhead was busier than we expected, but it wasn’t anything unmanageable. We picked up our permit at the Kawanachee Visitors Center around 11:15am and got to trailhead before noon! We ate the sandwiches that we had picked up at Natural Grocers earlier in the morning and headed out. The Ranger that gave us our permit said to be on the lookout for Moose (they were rumored to be active in this area) and that the hike would take us 4-5 hours. We were hopeful we could get to the site around 3pm!

Ready to go!

The trail to Snowbird site was so beautiful and well-maintained. I honestly think it was one of the best trails I’ve been on since moving to Colorado 5 years ago!

We crossed over several streams, but there were great man-made footbridges which made it easy.

It was also a pretty gradual ascent (hard, but still do-able if you’re used to the elevation) for most of the hike which was nice since we had our heavy backpacks on!

At mile 2.6, we made it to the Active Landslide area. I had read reviews where most people went around the landslide, but that it was very steep and difficult. We looked at the landslide area (it was short - maybe 1/10 mile long (if that))- gravel and a few downed trees to go over and under, but we decided to give it a try! It was definitely trickier with our backpacks on and I think that if the trail was wet at all or if we were just beginning our hiking/backpacking season then it would have been much more difficult/near impossible. We made it to the other side (thankfully) and soon arrived at the Long Meadows trailhead.

At this point, the trail climbs up a bit steeper (with several switchbacks) and you never really get a great view of the Never Summer Wilderness region. Another mile or so past the trail crossing, we came to the Jackstraw site (it was unavailable this year) and to the open meadow (SO BEAUTIFUL).

We knew that once we hit this site that we were getting close (our mileage said we were around 4.5 miles and ~2,800’ in gain)!

We crossed by the privy and at this point the trail subsides a bit and rolls in-and-out of the forest and meadow area, until we arrived at Snowbird site! Our mileage said that we were at 5.0 miles and gained 3,000’ in elevation (a bit off from the designated site details). We arrived at our site at 2:55pm and I think we really made excellent time. We didn’t stop too much coming out, but I was definitely TIRED once we got there!

Rockslide area right by our campsite!

We set up our tent, sleeping bags & pads, and gathered our chairs/books/cameras to head to Timber Lake around 4pm. Once we got there, we were the only ones! It was so beautiful- the photos absolutely do not do it justice. The lake was about a 5 minute hike from Snowbird campsite.

We turned in relatively early (both had a mild case of (what we think) Altitude sickness, a bit of nausea) and had all of the winter layers since it was anticipated to get down to around 30* that night!

Thankfully we packed all the layers (plus hand warmers which I put on my toes!), so we weren’t too chilled when we woke up the next morning. We retrieved our bear box (necessary for the wilderness camping) that we set out 70 steps from our campsite the night before and made coffee (always tastes so much better outdoors!)/ a Mountain House for breakfast.

We both wanted to get back home, so we packed up pretty quickly and were out hiking back by 7:45am! It was still chilly for the first 2-3 miles so I kept my mittens and down jacket on for a bit.

Good Morning!

We made it out of the trailhead by 10am and only met a handful of hikers heading out onto the trails. The other snowbird site was never filled and overall it was so peaceful! We got a bunch of reading done and the beauty of the Fall Foliage during the hike was spectacular. It is definitely longer than the NPS suggests, but I think you should be able to make it to the Lake within 3.5-4 hours even if moving at a gentle pace. The biggest factor in this trail is making sure to be prepared (you have zero cell service) for all weather conditions (including First Aid/ food/ layers) and going through the landslide area (it is pretty dicey for anyone who is not experienced or if the trail conditions are even a bit damp/ frosty).

Navigating the Landslide area with all.the.layers

Overall- I’d highly recommend backpacking out in Rocky Mountain! The trails were so well-maintained. We didn’t see any wildlife (slightly disappointed), but I know it’s out there so please remember to leave no trace when hiking and respect the animals who call these places home.

Some of the many Fall colors we came across!

Trail Thursday: Stagecoach State Park

Happy Thursday! I was brainstorming last night what I should write about today and realized that I’ve yet to do a review of the Colorado State Park that’s in our backyard- Stagecoach! Also I’ve had to re-type this same thing four different times because Maple is extra lovey right now and continues to delete my typing! Ha. Good thing she’s so cute. I’ve got 7 miles on the schedule this morning with 8 x 30 second strides at the end. Then it’s all about carbo-loading and getting a lot of sleep to prep for my Run Rabbit Run pacing tomorrow night!

I may be a bit biased, but Stagecoach is definitely one of my favorite State Parks. It has 10 MILES of runnable (and bikeable!) trails around the entire lake, ample spots to fish, a beach to relax, and three different campgrounds!

I’m not entirely sure when exactly the campgrounds close, but it will be relatively soon (thinking October?). The park still remains open in the winter and they do a GREAT job of grooming a bunch of trails around the lake for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

We’ve lived within 5 minutes of the park for the past year and a half and I still haven’t gotten tired of all that it offers. You can boat on the lake and ice fish in the winter - so there really is something for everyone!

Visiting the Dam is also another fun activity to do if you are visiting from out of town and you can access the trail around the lake very easily from that parking lot.

Ever been to Stagecoach State Park?

What is YOUR favorite State Park? What’s so special about it?

What do you have on the workout front today?