Emerald Lake

We finally got a sense of normalcy by going on a real hike since Katie's accident. The past couple of hikes haven't been "hikes" because they didn't have much distance or elevation gain and felt more like long walks. But this weekend we went up to the Bear Lake corridor and hiked to Emerald Lake (stopping at Nymph and Dream along the way). The views were gorgeous and it was a refreshing hike. The trail conditions were great with only needing microspikes. The last time we hiked this in 2021, the wind was so strong that snowshoes were necessary to cross Dream Lake, but luckily for us that wasn't required this time. We still brought our snowshoes but left them in the car after talking to one of the rangers at the trailhead about the trail conditions.

The weather was spectacular, and the weather forecast kept people away. We couldn't see the mountains when we woke up, there was a thick cloud between us and the mountains. But Rocky itself wasn't bad. When we got to the parking lot just before 9 am, it was lightly snowing with it forecasted to clear up shortly and be sunny for a few hours before starting to snow again mid-afternoon. That mid-afternoon forecast must have kept the people away because the trail wasn't packed as normally. Instead, it was busy, but a manageable amount. With the temperatures in the upper 30s and little wind, it was a gorgeous day for hiking.

At the trailhead once we finished the hike there was an avalanche information truck from the Friends of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. We stopped in to see what it was about. We got to ask a few avalanche questions about types of shovels and probes, as well as some things for snowshoers to specifically look out for since a lot of avalanche information is geared towards skiers (and we don't ski). I don't think we'll be in avalanche danger zones anytime this season as Katie heals up, but maybe next season.