Steamboat Camping Continued

More hiking followed the rest of the week while we were in Steamboat, there were plenty of trails to choose from, and we wanted to do a longer hike mid-week. We decided on the hike to Long Lake, about 5 miles UP! We packed up a lunch and swimming suits to go for a CHILLY dip at the top. Here we are getting started...

There were lots of bridges and waterfalls up to the lake, so it was very scenic! About half-way was a larger waterfall with a nice area to sit and relax, so we took a quick break and had a snack. This is my tired, but still smiling face.

The trail was finally flattening out and we were in the homestretch, I am cruising along and Jason is right in front of me... we were both ready for some PB&J. We turn a corner and there is a big boulder in front of us to the left of the trail and the path curves around the boulder, I am in the zone just walking along. Jason stops, and I look up and see a BIG, fuzzy black head and ears poking up from behind the boulder, only about 20ft. in front of us! I was just about to high-tail it running, and then Jason grabs my walking stick and tells me to walk back slowly (instead of SPRINTING). He was much more calm then I was, I went into panic mode and probably would have frightened the bear making a ruckus running the other direction. Anyway, unfortunately we did not make it to the lake, there was a minor "road block." But, it was really cool to see a BEAR!


We also made some trips into town just to explore the area. Steamboat has a really great botanical garden, and while we were there a string trio was playing music. It was really nice and relaxing to just walk around and admire the beautiful flowers, listening to beautiful music.