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Colorado Hikes: Gem Lake

October 5, 2016 by Jenna

Gem Lake is a beautiful Colorado hike. This 3.5-mile roundtrip hike in Rocky Mountain National Park is worth every bit of that 1000 foot elevation gain.

Oohhhh hiiiiii.

I’ve been away. And by “away” I mean, in Denver, but away from this space. Instead of being here I’ve been spending the bulk of my free time forming relationships – with Denver, with new friends, and with the mountains.

And you know what? It was a nice little break from blogging/writing/baking. However, lately I’ve found myself wanting to return. I think part of it is the change in the weather (there’s just something about fall, you know?!). No matter the reason, I’m happy to be here.

As I mentioned I’ve spent quite a bit of time forming a strong bond with the mountains and doing a lot of hiking. I don’t want to say I’m obsessed, but I am in love. So I decided I would share some of my hikes on here.

To log the experiences so that I can remember them for personal reasons.
To share them with you in case you are ever in Colorado with the urge to hike.

With all that said, let’s jump right in.

This first one isn’t a super intense hike, but it is a beaut: Gem Lake.

The Gem Lake hike is located in Rocky Mountain National Park just outside of Estes Park. It’s a small, beautiful lake (pond??) nestled right in the mountains.

I did this hike on the 4th of July with friends that were visiting from Minneapolis. A few of my Denver friends had hiked it the previous day and after seeing their pictures I decided that I needed to go see Gem Lake for myself.

Because seriously, look:

We got to the Lumpy Ridge Trailhead at about 8:30am. Luckily it was still early enough to grab a spot in the parking lot. Parking is always a little bit of a gamble, but we got one and then we were off hiking.

The first 1/2ish mile goes through a sparsely wooded area with a slow and steady incline. The incline isn’t too intense, but it will get your heart pumping! Especially if you aren’t acclimated to the altitude. The trail continues and opens up to some beautiful views of Estes Park, Long’s Peak, and other mountains.

From here the trees are a little bit more dense and the switchbacks begin, most of which are created with stone stairs, like a rustic spiral staircase through the wilderness. That’s fun, right?

After about 1.7 miles from the trailhead you’ll get your first view of the glorious Gem Lake!

What a gem! Am I right?!

Baahhhahahaa.

After exploring the area for a bit (and taking 3 gazillion pictures) we climbed up some of the rocks on the far side of the lake to hang out and eat some snacks. We were equipped with pb&j, apples, bananas, Clif bars, trail mix and (of course) Bud Light. It was the 4th of July, after all.

If that isn’t an All-American picnic I don’t know what is!

When we got our fill, we packed up our things, took a few more pictures, and hiked back down to the trailhead.

Overall, I would highly suggest this hike to anyone and everyone!

The views are ridiculously gorgeous.
It’s not too intense, but you still have to work a little bit.
It’s not an all day commitment. The total hike should take 2-3 hours, depending on how long you hang out at the lake.
You can hang out in Estes Park afterwards.

Oh and did I mention how beautiful it is?

I went in the summer, but I bet it’s absolutely stunning in fall with all the aspens changing colors. Let me know if you check it out!!

The stats:

Length: 3.5 miles
Type: Out and back
Beginning elevation: 7860 feet
Ending elevation: 8900 feet
Elevation gain: 1040 feet
Location: Estes Park, CO
Trailhead: Lumpy Ridge Trailhead

New Job + Mountain Things

March 7, 2016 by Jenna

I took all of last week off of blogging and now have a fun update about my new job and some mountain things!

First: NEW JOB.

After 5 months of personal training I decided that it wasn’t a suitable long-term career for me. I loved helping people and working with all my awesome clients, but I am too Type A to handle the fluctuating schedule. Having a routine is very important to me (along with stability, salary, and benefits), so I decided to take a look at what other opportunities were out there… and I found one!

I switched back to my Supply Chain roots and am now the Demand Planner at Noosa Yoghurt. I am really excited about it! I just started last week and I already know that I’m going to love it. Noosa is a small, growing company and I am their first official Demand Planner. It will be a challenging role, but I’ll learn a ton and will be surrounded by fun, successful, talented people.

It was hard to leave my co-workers and clients at 24 Hour Fitness, but they were all very supportive of my decision and excited for me and this opportunity.

Second: MOUNTAIN THINGS.

My last day at 24 Hour Fitness was February 19, so I had the week of February 22 off and spent as much time in the mountains as I could. Since the weather was so beautiful I went skiing and hiking.

Skiing in Breckenridge

I went skiing at Breckenridge (for the first time) with my friends Elizabeth and Christina on the Saturday after my last day at the gym. We hit the road at 6:00 am, which put us in Breckenridge early enough to grab breakfast at The Crown, a cute little cafe downtown. We were up on the mountain to hit our first run around 9:45 am and worked our way over to Peak 6, where it was a little bit less crowded. It was a gorgeous 45-degree bluebird day, so we had such incredible views. The whole day was such a blast! I can’t wait to go back to Breckenridge again.

Skiing in Keystone

After such an awesome day at Breckenridge I wanted to hit the slopes again as soon as possible, so I went up to Keystone by myself on that Wednesday. Going during a weekday is a lot different from going during a weekend. At times I felt like I had the whole mountain to myself! I think the longest I had to wait in line for a chair lift was approximately 50 seconds, which was awesome.

I wasn’t sure if I would like going skiing by myself, but I’m so glad I went. It was nice to go up and down the mountain, explore different runs, and not have to keep track of anyone but myself. However, I think it is still more fun to go with friends.

Hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park

I’ve done minimal hiking in Colorado so far, which is such a shame. Since we’ve had some gorgeous weather here my boyfriend and I decided to take a day trip to Estes Park to go on a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park that Thursday. We went on a hike to Lake Helene, which was a 6.5-mile out-and-back trail. However, since it had recently snowed we lost part of the trail about 1.5 miles in. Obviously we weren’t going to turn back, so we followed someone else’s footsteps for a while and blazed our own trail through shin-deep (sometimes knee-deep) snow for the remainder. It was definitely an adventure and the views were totally worth it!

On the way back to the trailhead we found the actual trail. This was super exciting because our feet were frozen and we were super hungry. It’s amazing how much trudging through snow on a mountain will drain you! Plus, we didn’t bring any snacks and weren’t equipped with the proper foot gear (boots and snow shoes would have been ideal). Lessons learned. By finding the trail we shaved about an hour off of our time on the way back.

In total I think we walked closer to 8 miles rather than 6.5 miles, which was fine by me – more time in the mountains and more of a workout! Afterwards we got a well-deserved burger and beer at a local place (Grubsteak) in Estes Park. It was a great day!

Hiking in Eldorado Canyon Park

Since I had such a great time on Thursday I decided to on another hike on Friday. This time, I went solo. One of my clients had told me about the Eldorado Canyon Trail in Eldorado Springs, CO, so I went there. This trail was another 7-mile out-and-back, but was much different from the Lake Helene hike. There was less snow (thank goodness), more climbs and declines, and a different type of scenery. Since both hikes were during the week and it is not really hiking season quite yet, there were very few people out on the trails. It was so peaceful.

The trail ended at the bottom of the canyon where there was a little stream. I stopped there to eat a quick snack (apple & beef jerky) and soak everything in before turning around to head back.

Similar to skiing, I’m so glad I went on a hike by myself and had a wonderful time! But man, after two days in a row of hiking, my legs were feeling it (in all the best ways).

Needless to say

the last two weeks have been quite the experience: leaving a job, exploring the mountains, and starting a new job. So crazy! I feel like I can finally settle into a routine here in Denver and I am so, so, sooooo excited about it.

My blog posts may be a bit sporadic over the next few weeks while I adjust to the new schedule and figure when/where/how to fit everything in, but I’m sure I’ll find my balance soon.

PS – Have you tried Noosa?? It is SO GOOD and I’m not just saying that because I work there!

Hiking the Inca Trail: Part 1

July 21, 2015 by Jenna

I went on the most amazing trip to Peru and I want to tell you all about it!!

But I won’t tell you alllll about it in one sitting. It would just be too much (for me to write and you to read). Instead I’ll break it down to a few digestible pieces.

Here we goooooo…………………

BACKGROUND:

I traveled to Peru with my friends Natalie, Danielle, and Elizabeth. This is us the first day of the hike looking so clean and energized.

We booked a 4 day/3 night Inca Trail hike to Machu Picchu through Quechuas Expeditions, which was recommended to us by a co-worker of mine and Danielle’s.

It was the best experience ever and I really think you need to go.

PACKING LIST:

I researched Inca Trail packing lists like I’ve never researched before. No joke. I read and Googled and asked everyone I know who did the hike about what they packed. I didn’t want to bring too many things and I didn’t want to bring the wrong things. It’s a tricky balance of hot/cold, clean/dirty, too much/too little out there on the Inca Trail!

Because of all my struggles I wanted to share my packing list in case you do decide to go (you should).

Clothes: 1 pair hiking pants, 1 pair of running leggings, 3 tank tops, 1 t-shirt, 2 long-sleeves, 1 fleece jacket, 1 rain coat, 1 sports bra, 4 pairs underwear, 4 pairs of good socks
Shoes: Running shoes, flip flops
Accessories: backpack, buff/bandana, hat, sunglasses, poncho, head lamp, gloves, winter headband
Toiletries: face wipes, body wipes, moisturizer, toothpaste, toothbrush, sunscreen, lip balm with SPF, bug spray, first aid, hand sanitizer, toilet paper
Other things: camera, iPhone, quick drying towel, Lara bars/snacks, altitude medication, passport, money, playing cards, plastic bags, 2 1-liter water bottles, a book (that I didn’t read)
Rented from Quechuas: trekking poles, sleeping bag, sleeping mat

My strategy was to wear the hiking pants for the first three days with one of the long-sleeves and a clean t-shirt/tank. Then wear the leggings and the other long-sleeve as pajamas each night and as my outfit for the last day. Clean socks and underwear were a daily occurence, but wore the same sports bra the entire time. Looking back, I probably would have packed an extra clean one, but since I was dirty and gross basically the entire time it wasn’t a major issue.

I debated back and forth about what type of shoes to bring: running shoes vs. trail shoes vs. hiking shoes. In the end I landed on running shoes, because I have strong ankles (some may call them cankles), didn’t want to buy a new pair of shoes, and hiked in the dry season. If any of those points were untrue, hiking boots/shoes probably would have been the better option.

The four of us decided to pay an extra $75 each so that we could hire two porters, or “chaskis”, to carry our duffles. I know that makes us sound spoiled, but I really don’t think I would have enjoyed the hike nearly as much if I would have been carrying everyone on my own. We were each allowed to fill up a duffle with 6 kg. The sleeping bag and sleeping mat weighed about 2 kg, so that left us with 4 kg for our things. They weighed all of the bags before we left to make sure we didn’t surpass the limit. It was just enough.

Everything else went into my day bag. This included water, snacks, sunscreen, bug spray, toilet paper, hat, buff, sunglasses, and a long-sleeve shirt. It was manageable.

There was a lot of strategy involved with packing, but overall I’m happy with the amount and the items that I packed.

PRIOR TO DEPARTURE:

We arrived in Cusco two days before leaving for the hike so that we could adjust (at least a little bit) to the altitude. We spent these two days exploring Cusco.

I’ll talk more about that later.

On our first day we stopped by the Quechuas Expeditions office to pay the remaining balance of our bill, which could be paid in either Soles or Dollars, and to schedule a pre-departure briefing with our guide.

Edgar, our guide, met us at our hotel the next evening (the night before the hike). He seemed fun and silly and told us our itinerary for each day of the hike so we knew what to expect.

To sum it up: day 1 = easy; day 2 = really hard; day 3 = long; day 4 = short.

He also told us that a family of four would also be joining us on the hike. We groaned and crossed our fingers that they wouldn’t be annoying. Our wish came true – they were awesome. It was Brian and Karen and their two sons, Adam and Liam.

Also a team of 11 chaskis would be there too. These guys would be the ones who carried everything, cooked food, set up and took down tents, woke us up, etc.

After Edgar left it was time to go to bed. We had a big couple of days ahead of us!

DAY 1. THE EASY DAY:

The plan:

Get picked up from the hotel at 6:00am and drive to the starting point (with a breakfast stop along the way).
Start hiking at Piscacucho (9,000 ft. elevation).
Take a lunch break at Tarayoq (9,070 ft. elevation).
End the day at Wayllabamba. (9,840 ft. elevation).

This day was the “easy day”. I’m not going to say that it wasn’t easy, but I wouldn’t call it a walk in the park either. We were still adjusting to being in such high altitude and walking all day, but we were also super fresh. Here we are in front of the Veronica Glacier.

We took the hike at a comfortable pace, stopping frequently to take pictures and re-apply sunscreen. Edgar would also stop us every so often to tell us stories about the Incas and teach us about things we encountered along the trail, like trumpet flowers (don’t eat them!!).

We were also able to see three Inca ruins this day: Qhanabamba, Patallaqta, and Patawasi. They are all super easy to say. (jokes)

In total we walked about 12k/7.5 miles and took some fun pictures.

To keep our energy up the chaskis made tons of ridiculously delicious food each day. The chef, Aurelio, worked magic in that little kitchen tent. Seriously. I was blown away every time they gave us food.

Our day 1 eats:

Breakfast: eggs, pancakes, cereal, quinoa porridge, fruit, and coffee
Snack: chocolate-filled cookie sandwiches and a banana
Lunch: asparagus soup, rice, salad, chicken legs, yucca fries, ceviche, and celery tea
Snack: popcorn, crackers, coffee, and tea
Dinner: vegetable soup, rice, beet and bean salad, cauliflower pizza, fried trout, and GUINEA PIG (yeah, I tried it)
Dessert: mulled banana and tea

During dinner Edgar was telling us stories from some of his previous hikes. One particularly hilarious one involved four Irish men, a monkey, a lot of alcohol, and jail. I won’t get into the details, but it sounded like the potential plot to Hangover 4.

Then it was off to our tents! I shared one with Natalie. It wasn’t huge, but we still had plenty of space for our sleeping bags and duffles. It quickly became our quaint little home for the next four days.

DAY 2. THE REALLY HARD DAY:

The plan:

Wake up at 5:00am, get ready, and eat breakfast.
Hike up to Warmiwañusca, AKA Dead Woman’s Pass (13,776 ft. elevation).
Hike down to Pacaymayu (11,700 ft. elevation) and take the rest of the afternoon easy.

The chaskis woke us up at the early hour of 5:00am with a knock on the tent and a “Buenos Dias! Coca tea!” If we had to get up that early, at least it was by cheery men that gave us delicious, hot tea.

At breakfast we found out that it was Domingo’s (our waiter) birthday the night before. Aurelio baked a cake (in a tent. How?!) and served it with breakfast. Cake for breakfast before hiking uphill for a few hours? Why not. Every time we saw Domingo after this we sang him “Happy Birthday”. He could have loved or hated this, I’m still not quite sure.

Edgar made sure we all had enough water and encouraged us to go our own pace and take all the breaks we needed. We left Wayllabamba at about 6:00 and had “La Bamba” in our head for the next 10 days.

Para bailar la bamba…

After a few sets of uphill climbs and breaks we decided that it was easier to do the whole “slow and steady” thing, because starting up again after stopping is really hard!

Walking up stairs for three hours is one thing. Walking up stairs made of uneven rocks in high altitude for three hours is an entirely different story. It was basically all about endurance. Luckily, my body was somewhat prepared since I had just run Grandma’s Marathon less than a week before. I focused on climbing and getting up to Warmiwañusca. My endorphins were in full blast when I made it. Natalie, Danielle, and Elizabeth didn’t share my level of enthusiasm at the time.

They did eventually, because seriously, that view.

After we celebrated and recovered, it was time to start hiking again. It was about two hours down to Pacaymayu, which is where we would set up camp for the day, so it was the final push. Walking down was difficult in a completely different way – more strategic. I think my legs were shaking about 15 minutes in. We cruised along fairly quickly (as in, no rest stops), because we all just wanted to be done. I think this two-hour span was the quietest we were on the entire trip.

After arriving to the camp site we decided a little yoga session was necessary. Natalie led us through a Vinyasa. I think Edgar and the chaskis were both highly confused and amused. The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing…. And eating.

This is what we feasted on:

Breakfast: fresh fruit, apple cinnamon maca porridge, eggs, toast, cake (!!), coffee, and tea
Snack: chocolate-mint cookie sandwiches and an orange
Lunch: cheese wontons, vegetable noodle soup, quinoa, cucumber tomato salad, guacamole with plantain chips, pasta salad, and lomo saltado
Snack: popcorn, corn nuts, pastry chips with caramel drizzle, coffee, and tea
Dinner: vegetable noodle soup, spaghetti, baked alfredo, and steamed vegetables
Dessert: mulled mango and tea

After dinner we had a little gathering with the chaskis to introduce ourselves. They only spoke either Spanish or Quechuas (or a little of both), so there was definitely a language barrier. Edgar had to translate for both parties and could have easily made everything up. We will never know. It was fun to finally know everyone’s name and learn a little bit about them. They were all so nice and helpful!

It was scorching hot when we initially arrived, but was freezing when the sun went down. I can’t remember the last time I slept in so many clothes – two pairs of wool socks, leggings, hiking pants, a t-shirt, a long sleeve, a fleece, a rain jacket, a winter headband, and gloves. That’s the thing about hiking though, you’re just stylish 24/7. Socks and sandles, anyone?

Our total distance for the day was only about 9k, but we climbed up about 3,950 feet and then went back down another 2,000 feet. I get exhausted just thinking about it, but at the same time I want to do it all over again! I think it’s the marathoner in me.