Colorado Trail Slideshow Premiere
Thank you to Kurtis, Stan, and the Estes Park Library for putting together a great summer adventure series, “Our Wide World” and for letting us share our experiences! Thank you to Bill Manning from the Colorado Trail Foundation for the great handouts, video, and support at our slideshow tonight – hope it was worth the drive! And, of course we hope you all had a great night!
Thanks to everyone who attended – if you have any additional questions, feel free to email us at philandapryle@elevatedattitude.com.
Play hard!
~Apryle and Phil
Kayaking at Okmulgee Lake
Oklahoma was blessed with some relief from the Summer heat this week. Kayaking conditions are still too dry on the area rivers to enjoy much floating. Because the prospect of a cool morning was too inviting to pass up, I decided to enjoy some flatwater paddling at Okmulgee Lake. I hit the water at about 7am, but I really should have gotten there an earlier. The morning light was golden and lovely reflecting off the mists and water.Okmulgee Lake is within Okmulgee State Park, so there are no additonal city fees to kayak on Okmulgee Lake. Paddling from the base of the Dripping Springs Lake dam down Salt Creek and taking out at the Boat Ramp at Hickory Point campground on Okmulgee Lake is a safe and shady flatwater trip.
I only stayed out paddling for a couple of hours this Saturday, but it was quite pleasant crossing the glassy waters while the early light came pouring through the trees. I was glad to see that I was not paddling the only kayak on Okmulgee Lake Saturday morning. When I returned to the Hickory Point boat ramp, I saw two more kayaks had just landed.
Hopefully, the Fall rains will come along soon and raise our rivers back up again.
In other Oklahoma paddling news...
Oklahoma City's ban on water skiing on Lake Hefner and the Oklahoma River was expanded to include banning tubing after the OKC city council members approved the change on Tuesday.
Kayak paddle upgrade choices.
Colorado Trail Photos
Phil and Apryle’s Next Adventure
We’ve been getting a lot of questions lately, “So what’s next?!” Here’s what we’ve been up to and what we’ve got up our sleeves…
Upon getting back from our Colorado Trail trip, I’ve been busy leading guided hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park for Kirk’s Flyshop and Mountain Adventures. I’ve had an awesome time – hiking almost every day – and helping people meet challenges and see the awesome scenery in Rocky Mountain National Park. 
This fall, I was fortunate enough to be offered an internship with the National Park as an interpretive intern. Through my internship, I’ll be helping park visitors at the visitor center, trailheads, and on the trails throughout the park to understand the geology, flora, fauna, and interconnectedness of the ecosystem in Rocky. My internship begins on Monday, August 23 and runs through November 6 – come visit the park during elk rut and take one of my interpretive hikes! Next summer, I hope to work as a seasonal ranger in the National Park. I’ll still be doing some graphic design and web development, but not as regularly.
Phil is back at it at REI in Boulder. You can catch him in the footwear or camping department, helping people buy shoes that aren’t too small and shave pounds off their pack weight. No career changes planned for the foreseen future. Phil has also done some guiding this month, and during August we were both lucky enough to assist folks on their first summit of Longs Peak.
Our current project is backyard chicken keeping. We’re enjoying spending time together assembling materials for our coop, building, and choosing our chickens.
Much anticipated by Phil’s grandmother, this winter will hopefully see us planning our first book – a personal narrative of the Colorado Trail, interlaced with local natural history, mining and industry, current environmental issues, and flashback stories from the Inside Passage, Tetons, South America, and more. Look for it on bookshelves who-knows-when!
So you want to know what adventure is up next??
We’re not sure yet, ourselves, but we’re open to suggestions. Leave a comment or shoot us an email at philandapryle@elevatedattitude.com – we’d love to hear your ideas!
Mothership Kayaking Deep Fork River Style
Dianne has had some elbow pain lately, so she decided to run this weekend's catfishing limblines via motorboat. I figured it would be a good time to try and expand my summertime paddling range by doing some 'Mothership Kayaking' - where you move your kayak on a motorboat to cover more distance. I've read about kayaking vacations in Alaska and Canada that use bigger boats to take paddlers deep into some of the most scenic waters in the world. We were only going a few miles up the Deep Fork River, but it would give me chance to try moving my kayak upriver, launching my recreational kayak from the motorboat and re-boarding the motorboat from my kayak.It takes a shallow running, but very stable boat to chase catfish in the Deep Fork River during the late Summer. Dianne's Generation III Pro Shadow is a 15 foot flatbottom and it works well on these narrow, curvy and shallow Oklahoma rivers. There is room onboard to haul my Swifty 9.5 Sit-Inside kayak, but we found it works best to just tow the kayak on a rope tied to the stern of the motorboat. I tried towing the kayak both empty and while inside the kayak and towing it empty works the best by far. Tow the kayak empty and it follows along behind you like a little puppy. We drive our little fishing boat quite slow, so it was not a thrill ride to get towed in the kayak, but it is still difficult to keep the kayak traveling on a safe course.
Once we got upriver, much farther than I would have paddled on this hot day, it was easy to slip into my kayak off the back of the flat-bottomed boat. While Dianne set out some fishing lines, I paddled around taking pictures as usual. After the day got hot, I eased back into the motor boat and we started towing the kayak back to the boat ramp. Dianne even caught catfish, what a perfect first attempt at Mothership Kayaking...almost.
Did I mention that neither of us have much experience piloting motorboats?
About two thirds of the way back to the boat ramp...we ran out of gas. That is when I got to try my hand at 'Fathership Kayaking'- where you tow your motorboat using your kayak. I predict that Fathership Kayaking will not take off with the popularity of Mothership Kayaking. Mostly, this will be because of the backbreaking labor involved... and the slow progress... even going downstream.
Eventually, we decided it would be easier for her to park the Shadow Pro and fish while I paddle back to the boat ramp and go buy some more fuel. Yes, my old Perception Swifty Kayak saved the day proving once and for all...that simpler boats are better for fool's like me!
Kayak Fishing Gear
Kayak Nevada: Bet You’ll Love to Paddle Reno’s Downtown Whitewater Park
Kayak Nevada: Bet You'll Love to Paddle Reno's Downtown Whitewater Park. A whitewater kayak park in the middle of downtown Reno, NV? Well why not, that's what the Reno / Lake Tahoe area is all about - endless ways to have fun in the wild, wild west!Colorado Trail Trip Report & Thank You’s!
After a tough journey hiking the Colorado Trail, we arrived at the Junction Creek Trailhead in Durango around 11 a.m. on July 29. A brief trip report and some much-deserved thank-yous follow below:
Thank everyone who contributed to our making it to Durango, including but not limited to:
John and Megan
Matt and Emily
Gina and our friends at the Windspirit Cafe, Twin Lakes, CO
“Apple” the model Trail Angel
Joyce and our friends at the Princeton Hot Springs Resort, Mt. Princeton, CO
Melody and David “Grasshopper”
Melanie, Marsha, Laurie, and the team at Lake City Medical Center
Jim and Kathleen
CTF and their dedicated group of volunteer trail crews
& all of you unnamed trail angels who planted unexpected coolers full of soda, snacks, water, and inspiration along the way.
Colorado Trail Trip Report
Despite a good bit of training, the first 2 weeks were plagued with foot swelling and blisters for me. I bought my shoes too small (like many others on the trail also had) and on the third day as Phil was cleaning the pine needles out of his shoes, he inspired me to take out my insoles. Removing the insoles bought me a tad bit of extra room and I ended up throwing them out in Twin Lakes. Unfortunately, removing my insoles did not make the next hill any less steep and as we entered Long Gulch at then end of day 3, I was devastated to be feeling so exhausted.
Kenosha Pass and Georgia Pass, our first days above treeline and our first big hurdles, felt easy thanks to all the hill-workouts we had done; however, unseasonably cold weather that night had us questioning our choice of 32 degree down sleeping bags. As we headed through the beetle-kill “zombie” forests approaching Breckenridge, we met and tag-teamed with a few other trail-walkers and looked forward nachos and beer. On our first scheduled rest day, we hiked 10.5 miles, hustling over the Ten-mile range through a storm. We descended switchbacks through a lodgepole pine forest and camped in the rain next to a construction project which would serve to expand a Copper Mountain parking lot.
Another storm plagued our trip across the tundra from Searle Pass to Kokomo Pass and gave way to the longest 4.5 miles of my life down to Camp Hale. Camping at the old army bunkers led to an interesting night complete with spookily-timed gunshots, nightmares, and restlessness. This one being no exception, our camps in valley bottoms and fields left us foggy, dew-covered, frost-covered or otherwise damp, so we decided to make a habit of looking for forested campsites going forward.
We staggered in to the Lakeview Campground and were greeted by father-and-son team, Joe and Jacob, who invited us to the Colorado Trail Foundation’s camp dinner that night. We gladly accepted and about an hour later, we were eating burritos with the trail maintenance crew. They seemed surprised by our pace and we all exchanged stories over cheesecake for desert. The following day, we soaked in our rest day, sleeping in til 8 a.m., rinsing out our clothes and washing my hair before hitching in to town to pick up our resupply box. The general store had our box as well as about 25 others. We got a pizza and massive cinnamon roll next door at the Windspirit Cafe, where they let us use their phone for about 30 minutes.
We felt rejuvenated as we headed out the next day around the lakes and over the dam, but were quickly brought back to reality after completing our only “bonus” miles of the trip. We realized we missed the turn after walking about 1/2 mile on a logging road and reversed our steps to find the trail. Another pretty devastating blow to our morale. Each day seemed to balance on a knife edge – were we going to make it or was it just too hard?
The Mount Massive area and Collegiate Peaks Wilderness offered many potential diversions also known in the databook as side trips. These little jaunts would add mileage and elevation for those who weren’t quite tired enough after hiking 15-25 miles over high mountain passes for about 8-10 days straight. None of the through-hikers we met even mentioned doing any of these trips. The general gist of the Massive and Collegiate areas was: switchbacks up a nice forested mountainside, wrap around the side of the mountain, hike in and out of seasonal creek drainages, cross the trail to the summit, begin descending to the mountain’s trailhead through more pines and aspen, switchbacks down a sagebrush dessert hillside.
The road into Princeton Hot Springs was smoldering hot and indirect. We picked up our box as-planned and loaded our biggest rations into our tiny little packs. Grabbed some showers and a meal, and hiked an additional 2.5 miles by headlamp to bootleg camp, making this our longest day yet at ~22.5 miles. The next day, we pushed hard with our heavy, freshly reloaded packs to meet Matt and Emily. Around mile 15, I broke down. With 5 more miles to go that day, I just didn’t think I could make it and maybe more importantly, I really just didn’t want to. My feet hurt, my back hurt, my shoulders hurt.
That night, we camped about 1.4 miles north of Hwy 50, where we were supposed to be meeting Matt and Emily the next morning. Around 5:30am, we woke to the melodious sound of bike tires and Matt’s voice – they had found us! We hiked to Hwy 50 and threw our packs into their car for some slack-packing enjoyment. Hiked the road to the trailhead and enjoyed cold fruit tarts in honor of Emily’s birthday. We were able to leave half our ration in the car, which we would then pick up after the end of the segment Matt and Emily were to join us on. RELIEF, at last!!
Matt mountain biked and Emily and Abbey (drama-queen dog) hiked with us up over Marshall’s Pass. Beautiful weather and so great to have friends along. This truly was a turning point in the trip for me. I finally believed I could make it to Durango. Matt biked back to the car the next morning and Emily and the dog embarked with us, heading towards Sargent’s Mesa. Matt met us at Sargent’s Mesa with water and snacks. Mosquito camp that night for me and Phil. At the junction with Hwy 114, the Relief Squad met us yet again with pizza and beer, snacks, and good will. We shared dinner with fellow thru-hiker, “Eli,” and picked up our 2nd half of the split ration. What great friends we have!
The next few days brought flatter terrain, cow pastures, more rain, and tummy problems for Phil. In April, Phil was having troubles, but ignored it. Now it was back with a vengeance and Phil finally accepted that he had giardia. It poured on us for hours and the mud mixed with the cow pies and stuck to our shoes in big clumps. Phil ducked into the bushes every 20 minutes to an hour and I relieved him of some of the weight in his pack. We were hoping for a 28-30 mile day and we ended up doing about 24.
Hitched into Lake City with a lady on holiday from Holland. There was a mix-up/confusion about the hostel situation in town, so we ended up in a hotel room and went to the Med Center the next day. They were super kind there and got Phil fixed up. Another kind Lake City resident saw that we were thru-hiking and offered to take us back to the trailhead. Resupply went great at the local grocery market. Though small, they had everything a thru-hiker would need/want. Melody’s husband, David “Grasshopper”, had hiked the AT and they were always looking to payback the kindness he had received during his thru-hike.
The views kept getting better and the weather wetter as we headed towards Molas Pass, where were to pick up our next resupply. Our box was meager, especially in the snack category; we knew we had some hungry days ahead of us. The clouds loomed ominously over Hermosa Peak and Blackhawk Pass was a slap in the face as we approached what looked like the towering black gates of Mordor.
Into the San Juans, we had our best scenery of the trip. After interpreting the “Worst Sign Ever”, we skipped merrily down 26 switchbacks through an impressively steep wildflower field overlooking the spectacular Elk Creek Drainage. Camp in the trees kept us dry that night. Phil couldn’t talk about anything but donuts as we beautiful section was descending to the Kennebec Trailhead.
The last day was 11 miles to the Junction Creek Trailhead where we got a ride to Durango with a mountain biker. We spent the evening doing trail work with Jim and his friends at Trails 2000; felt good to have hiked 11 miles that morning and still have energy to swing a pulaski. Got showers and spent the night at Jim’s place. Enjoyed a delicious breakfast and picked up our rental car in the morning.
For more details, feel free to email us at philandapryle@elevatedattitude.com, or join us for one of our upcoming Colorado Trail slideshows.
Kayak Virginia: Chesapeake Bay, Mathews Blueways Water Trail Paddle
Kayak and Canoe 90 miles of saltwater trails through tidal rivers, creeks and wetlands fronting Chesapeake Bay.Colorado Trail Hiking Update from Lake City
We’re here in Lake City for a rest day/resupply day. Everyone has been hugely helpful!
A great thanks to the crew at the Lake City Med Center for fixing up Phil’s tummy problem! Also, Hara (spelling?), for the ride from the trailhead to town, and Melody for the help in town and getting back to the trailhead tonight.
3 days to Molas Campground. Then 3-4 days to Durango. See you soon!!
