First Hike on Mt. Sanitas

My parents flew in a few weekends ago--yes, this post is much overdue--to keep me company while Ed was out of town. It can be hard to entertain guests in a place one doesn't know well, but the weather was predicted to be gorgeous and so I decided a hike was certainly in order. I settled on the Mt. Sanitas Trail because I'd heard some fabulous view of Boulder could be had from the top. It was only about three miles, but with more than 1300 feet in elevation gain, it was rated as a difficult hike. A short, difficult hike is almost always do-able if one has ample time, though, so I figured we'd make a day of it.

We got a later start than I'd hoped to after a leisurely lunch on Pearl Street, then had trouble finding the trailhead which is unhelpfully labeled "Centennial." But finally, after much ado, we set off at somewhere between 3:00 and 3:30. Sanitas is tough because it is so steep, something I'd read and was able to confirm within the first few minutes.

 However, almost we were rewarded with pretty views from the get-go, too. I'm sure it's a scenic hike any time of year, but it's hard to imagine the scenery being lovelier than it was for us in early fall on this perfect day.

Mt. Sanitas is one of the most popular trails in the Boulder area and it's well maintained for the most part. But as we gained elevation, things got a little more rugged.

This is MUCH steeper than it appears in the picture.

 We soldiered on, stopping frequently to pant and admire the view. I'd been in Boulder for about ten days and was still struggling in the thinner air, so I can only imagine what my sea-level-dwelling parents must have been feeling. Still, they were upbeat and said they were enjoying themselves.

Enjoying the first aerial view of Boulder

Enjoying her cell phone

 We made it to the top of the ridge, then followed it as it continued to climb. Multiple false summits kept us guessing, but at long last we couldn't go any higher and realized we'd done it. Boulder lay out before us, a verdant quilt dotted with bright flames of yellow and orange. In the distance, things grew hazy, and we guessed that Denver lay below the smoggy layer. (I was glad we'd chosen to live a little higher.) A fellow hiker lent me his binoculars. I could see the community garden in my neighborhood, but there were still too many trees to spot the house itself. I resolved to come back nearer the end of fall to try again.

I've always found hiking downhill to be harder, and this hike was no exception. Things were steep, and gravel and dust in places forced us to take our time. Luckily, we'd planned our route wisely. We were hiking a loop, and we'd done the rocky part first. Starting on the Mt. Sanitas Trail meant that we'd finish on the Sanitas Valley Trail, a relatively gently sloping dirt road. After losing the trail in some rocks and getting increasingly nervous about the gathering dark, we finally made it to the switchbacks that heralded the beginning of the Valley Trail.

Dad, alas, didn't make it. But he had a good run.

 We made short work of what was left of the trail and arrived back at the car in semi-darkness. It had gotten much colder, and, not thinking we'd be out as long as we were, I hadn't packed warmer layers or headlamps. Luckily, though, there were no mishaps, though even if there had been the trail is popular enough that other hikers would have been able to get help for us. Dinner at Salt is always good, but it tasted even better than usual after our big afternoon.

The following day called for a mellower excursion, so we drove to the Bobolink Trailhead in south Boulder. I'd run on it a few times and it's flat and beautiful.

I'm still getting used to the idea that all this beauty is just minutes away from my house! Central Park was pretty and all, but it's pretty awesome to have the Flatirons in my extended backyard.