AndyChristine: Mount Evans

It was a drive we had discussed taking for awhile. A journey up the highest paved road in North America was preempted last August after a big snow storm closed the road. Yesterday after church we made the decision to try again to drive down valley to Mount Evans. We had about 6 hours to complete our trip and we used every last minute. The long drive was definitely worth it! The views were stunning and our encounter with the wildlife was definitely memorable. Not surprisingly, it was quite cold and windy at the summit where we parked our car at an elevation of 14,127 ft (give or take a couple of feet). Needless to say, my decision to wear a skirt and flip flops to church that morning was not one of my best ideas. People looked at me a bit funny as I walked around a bit hunched over in order to hold my skirt down while we toured the remains of a famous building at the summit and hiked up the rocky trail to the overlook another hundred or so feet up. Definitely a good case for keeping snow pants in your car no matter what the weather may be...hindsight is 20/20 I guess! Anyway, like I said, the drive up the mountain was spectacular! I took so many pictures!! Here is a selection of my favorites from the day:

We thought the clouds looked like a rainbow over the mountain.

The colors were so vivid! Green grass, blue sky, and a beautiful rocky countryside.

Yes, there is still snow on some of the mountains in the middle of July!

Summit Lake at 12,830 ft. The lake was about 5 miles (as the road curves) from the summit of the mountain.

The drive up the mountain requires a lot of focus. The road is curvy, has no guardrails, and is paved right to the edge of the drop off!

Our car parked along the road at the summit. It drops off pretty quickly here too.

Andy and I on the hiking trail near the top of the mountain. We could see for 100+ miles!

The Crest House (aka The Castle in the Sky) was built between 1931 and 1941. At the time it was the highest structure in the world at 14,260 ft. In 1979 a propane explosion occurred leaving only a few walls and twisted beams intact.

The view from the top!

The hiking trail to the summit and the winding road/parking lot.

A mountain goat just hanging out at the top of the mountain.

Apparently the mountain goat was not intimidated by our presence. He was only a few yards from the driver's side of the car! We stayed in the car just in case...