Huffing and puffing

I wanted to get an early start on my day so I skipped the breakfast omelet bar at my hotel this morning.  As I passed by the dining room, I saw the chef flipping someone's omelet into the air.  I didn't much feel like eggs anyway.  Leaving Lakewood...a suburb of Denver...I drove about an hour west to hike St. Mary's Glacier, located just north of Idaho Springs.  This 3/4 mile trail takes you to the base of the glacier, which is really just a large snowfield.

 

With my trekking pole in one hand and my camera in the other, I headed up the steep rocky trail...and soon realized something wasn't quite right.  I found myself getting quickly and overly tired and out of breath.  I knew immediately I must be at a pretty high elevation to get winded so easily.  

At first, I took things a bit slower, then changed my walking technique.  A long time ago, I was watching a documentary on TV which featured noted photographer Art Wolfe.  I love his wildlife photos!  I remember him sharing this technique for traversing steep trails.  He would step forward with one foot, then bring the other foot up and in line with the first.  Done repetitively, it saves energy and doesn't tire you out so much.  I've used this technique before, and believe me, it works!  And, it worked today, too.  In no time, I reached St. Mary's Lake and was greeted by the glacier and some pretty gorgeous scenery.

I had the place to myself going up, but passed several people as I was going down.  It's always nice to beat the crowds!  As for animals, I saw squirrels and chipmunks running around, but they didn't stay still long enough to get a photo.  Finally, I managed to snap a quick one of a cute chipmunk.

I had lunch in Silverthorne... Chipotle Mexican Grill.  This restaurant is the favorite meal spot of the Seattle band Barcelona...one of my favorite musical artists.  I had never eaten at Chipotle before, and I was curious as to why they like it so much.  I got the burrito bowl with carnitas (pork) and black beans.

Verdict?  Delicious!  I really enjoyed it, and wouldn't mind eating Chipotle again before my road trip is over.  Right outside the restaurant, I admired the view of Red Peak in the distance.

You can see a little of the fall colors in that shot.  I got the opportunity to get a few more photos of the pretty foliage when I was caught in construction traffic on the interstate.  At a standstill, I snapped this pic.

In the afternoon, I visited Rifle Falls State Park near Rifle, CO.  Just a short walk from the parking lot was a trio of water falls.  Nice!

  

The park also had some limestone caves that were not that deep, but interesting.  I walked the Coyote loop trail that gave me a different perspective of the falls from above.  

 

Well, it looks like there might be some rain in the forecast tomorrow.  I'm hoping to visit another park and get some views and a hike or two if the weather cooperates.  Oh, I found out that the elevation at the St. Mary's Glacier trailhead is about 10,400 feet.  Well, that explains my difficulties!  Whew!