Snowshoeing...It'll take your breath away!

Snowshoeing... It'll take your breath away!

Breckenridge Nordic Center

Robin's Nest Trail

Breckenridge, CO

12/9/12

5 miles, 5 hours

27 Days to Africa

 

 

A good night's rest and a frustrating evening of watching the Wisconsin Badger basketball team get waxed by Marquette University left us ready for another day of training above 10,000 feet.  On 12/8/12, Breckenridge saw its first snow since October.  Therefore, our options for the day's activity were limited to cross country skiing, snowshoeing, or both.  We made our way to the Breckenridge Nordic Center and looked into our options.  There was only a kilometer of groomed cross country ski trails available in the morning so we decided to go snow shoeing first with the idea that we could ski later in the day if time and energy level permitted it.

The biggest challenge of the day would turn out to be the fresh snow from the night before.  The Nordic Center had several trails marked throughout the property, but the lack of snow meant that it was up to Deb and Greg to choose and create their own path along the trail. This proved to be quite the adventure and a workout that we will not soon forget.

Our trail of choice was the Robin's Nest trail.  The trail was a 3.5 mile loop trail that required a 1.5 mile hike from the Nordic Center, around the Beaver Meadows, and up the mountainside to the trail head.  We accessed the Robin's Nest trail by hiking along the Peaks Trail that we had taken the day before.  From the Peaks Trail, we hiked a steep incline for about 75 yards.  Our hearts were pumping by that point, and we were officially warmed up for the 3.5 mile trek.

The Robin's Nest trail presumably is named either for the bird itself or for the shape the trail and its placement amongst the trees.  Whatever the origin of the name, it could appropriately be changed to the Baby's Diaper Trail or the Goose on a Golf Course Trail because we were thoroughly pooped by the time we finished.  The trail climbed approximately 1,000 feet in elevation and, combined with the weight of the snow shoes and the depth of the snow, it was a challenge to hike more than 25 or 50 yards at a time during portions of the trek.

The solitude of the space was unearthly as the blanket of snow muffled the sounds that might be common amongst the trees and rocks of a mountainside.  We had the sound of our breathing to keep us company, and the physical exertion left little energy for conversation.  Greg had several four letter word conversations with himself as he bent over to take a rest after a particularly strenuous stretch of trail, while Deb faced the adversity of difficult conditions with quiet fortitude in the face of mounting agony.

The scenery was fantastic and a new camera gave Deb and Greg the opportunity to snap some exciting panoramic photos of the area (sadly they do not post very well on the blog site).  The scale of the space eluded capture.  For that reason alone, there will always be a reason to travel to a place for oneself if possible rather than enjoying it through another's perspective and photos.  The contrast in colors between the evergreens and the fresh snow was crisp, and to know that we were establishing the route (within the guidelines of the general trail's path) that others would follow for the remainder of the season was a unique experience. 

In the end, our second and final trip to Colorado prior to our trip across the sea was time and energy well spent.  It was good to get the feel of adjusting to a new altitude, and then putting oneself through the physical rigors of hiking at that new elevation.  Whether or not those efforts will pay dividends as we scale Mt. Kilimanjaro remains to be seen, but if the challenge and rewards of our experiences in Colorado give even a hint of what we can expect from Kilimanjaro, we are both looking forward to the experience.