Colorado Trip - Day 5

Day 5 got off to a rather exciting start. Shortly after getting out of the shower, I heard my sister yell, "I saw a bear! I saw a bear! I saw a bear!" After throwing on some clothes and wrapping a towel around my wet hair I stepped out of the bathroom to see what all the commotion was about. Through her quick spoken gibberish I made out the following. She and dad were driving home from their morning jog when they came across a bear. They actually had to stop the car to let it cross the road. Once they returned to the cabin, there was evidence that the bear had been in our driveway! It had moseyed down the mountains to eat trash. Before I go any further, it is very important to my dad that you know that we were not dumb enough to leave garbage out in bear country. We just failed to notice that the previous occupants had. After Natalie explained to me what she had seen she actually went back outside to see if the bear was still there. When she saw that it was at the end of our driveway, she backed up, came inside to grab her camera, and headed back outside. Mom & I went with her this time. We piled up into the car and drove around slowly looking for the bear. Evidence of its presence was every where. Trash cans had been knocked over left and right. Just when we thought we would not find the bear, we heard a gun shot. We followed the sound of it and just down the road was the town Marshall holding a rifle. We looked up towards the direction of the rifle and saw that the bear had climbed up into the mountains. The Marshall had successfully scared it away. I was able to see it well enough to take the following picture.
Bear in mind (no pun intended) we were pretty far away at this point. The fact that I could even see it meant that it was a big bear! Something else I should mention is that Dad had dropped Natalie off after first seeing the bear, then he continued on a longer jog (after grabbing some bear spray). So, after getting a picture of the bear I followed mom's orders and went looking for my dad. We found him and brought him home.

Once the excitement of seeing a bear subsided, we prepared for a hike. My dad researched trails and found one that was supposed to be family friendly and easy. After a scenic drive to the trail head, we started hiking and quickly realized it wasn't as easy as we had thought. Between the gravel on the trail and steep climb, you had to really watch your step. The way down was especially tricky and there was a lot of slipping and sliding. Seeing how we had just seen a bear, I had my eyes fixed on the trees (and beyond) looking for one. I guess you could say that I was slightly uneasy on this hike.

Audrey proved to be a great hiker (much like her Aunt Natalie and Papa)

You can get an idea of how steep the climb was from this picture.

Madeleine didn't like the hike as much as her sister. She did fairly well on the way up, but after slipping on the way down she lost her confidence. I don't think I am exaggerating when I say that she had panic attacks causing Papa to carry her a good part of the way down. That was nerve wracking to watch, because it was steep. But my dad is sure footed and a good hiker.

The tree-lined trail

A view from the trail

The girls stopped to take a much needed break.

A view up

The whole gang (minus Steve who was behind the camera).

The presence of water meant we were getting close to the end. The reward for making it to the top was a beautiful waterfall!

Colorado's state flower, the Columbine.

Another view from the trail

A view of the sun through the trees.

We finally made it to the top. In this picture the girls are posing at the top of the waterfall. The sun's reflection off the water makes it hard to see.

Audrey insisted on wearing her hat sideways.

Now, this is the way to do it! We saw them on our way down the hill.

Steven and Audrey at the end of the trail.  Audrey was such a trooper!

Sadly, Day 5 was our last day in Colorado. We left early the next morning. However, I will wrap up my vacation posts tomorrow and post a few pictures of the cabin we stayed in.

To be continued . . .