Colorado Blue Skies

Boulder is a beautiful little town that packs a lot of punch. It has green spaces galore and the hikes around the town are not only fun but full of surprises. We left Emily's house for a hike downtown on one of our last days. Along the way we paused to watch House Finches collect nesting material and magpies hopping about the ground.

The first crocus of the season were blooming. I especially enjoyed the purple ones that seemed to dot the golden landscape. These flowers are a sign of spring but sometimes they come too early and hit a patch of snow. They must be hardy plants to survive these conditions. These were my first life crocus and ones I will never forget.

Once outside of the housing community our hike began to ascend upwards. I thought that the blue skies were made only more beautiful by the golds and browns of the land. The day was sunny but the little wind gusts kept us bundled up.

Aptly named Boulder, we saw many interesting rock formations. Also in the backdrop of the town are the Flat Irons which loom ominously to the west. I really loved the drastic differences of Colorado compared to my current state of Florida. It was hard to imagine that I left 80 degrees and balmy humidity for the beautiful, crisp Colorado air.

We hiked up the Goat Trail and let me tell you, this one has a perfect name. It wasn't too serious of a climb but it was definitly steep at times and rocky. Being a flatlander, it wasn't the easiest transition for breathing at these altitudes so we took it slow. It was well worth the view of Boulder and surrounding countryside once at the top.

The trail down was much easier and we stopped to watch Western Bluebirds flit around some small trees. We also had the whole jay trifecta: Black-billed Magpie, Stellar's Jay, & Western Scrub-jay all at one viewing.

One of the best parts of traveling is even the famaliar becomes exotic. I enjoyed the mountains, the birds, and even the large squirrels that Colorado had to offer. I promise this may have been my first visit but certainly not my last!