Hiking off-trail in the Snowies

After a couple weather postponements we were finally able to do our planned hike at the base of the Snowy Range this week. The area is not a good place to be when the clouds build up and the lightning starts.  During the recent monsoon weather pattern the early mornings are sunny but then the heat brings on the clouds by midday. Wednesday was the first day that was forecast to be drier.

We started our hike about 10:30 am and it was beautiful and clear and just a little cool. Our hiking companions were a couple we know through our church and our youngest associate pastor who had not been to this part of Wyoming before.

The destination was the debris area from a plane crash in 1955. A plane carrying 66 passengers veered off course somehow at night and flew straight into the face of the mountain range and of course all passengers perished instantly. After all the remains and personal effects were recovered the site was also blasted. Today all that is left is the twisted metal parts of the fuselage and bits of the wings strewn over a boulder field below the immense rock face.Rick had grown up hearing the tale and had always wanted to visit the site for himself. The rest of us went along out of curiosity. 

We started out on the Lakes Trail and then almost immediately veered off that trail to skirt around the end of one alpine lake then over a ridge to face a daunting boulder field that had to be crossed to get to the crash site.The boulders were especially challenging for me as some of them wobble and there are deep gaps between them that seem to go into the depths of the earth. The best strategy is to just plot a course and keep going, if you stop you don’t want to move at all it is too scary.

We did make it over to the debris field near a beautiful mountain meadow full of flowers. Most of the debris is hidden in the boulders though. There is a mangled engine and lots of aluminum parts with rivets strewn over a large area. Rick hiked up higher and found some landing gear.

I found an old Pepsi can but not from the wreck as it had a pop top so it was too modern to be from 1955.

After finishing that hike we drove down the road to Lake Marie and I took the classic Snowy Range picture with the lake in the foreground and some pictures from the area where the water spills out from the lake and cascades on down creating a waterfall. The flowers there were vibrant.

Another beautiful day in God’s sanctuary.  

Tie City Trailhead

We hiked from a new to us trailhead recently. Driving up to the Lincoln head monument at the summit of I-80 between Cheyenne and Laramie and exiting there and taking the Happy Jack Road, it is the first trailhead parking area that one comes to. We were there on a weekday so there were only a couple other cars there. We passed (or rather they passed us) a few mountain bikers on the trails and one trail runner. 

It was great to get up hiking again close to home. The different kinds of yellow daisies were in bloom as were the purple asters. The grasses were tall and lush from plentiful moisture.  We kept to the higher trails and avoided the low lands not wanting mud or insects to be a factor. There were long stretches through open sage and also through the fragrant pine and aspen forests.

There were bright orange arrows spray painted on several trail junctions and orange streamers tied on trail markers for some kind of event that was apparently coming up to mark the route. I got a kick out of a trail called “Phil’s Pholly” and took a picture of it.

It was quite warm in the high 80’s so we all drank a lot of water including Penelope. If we don’t give her water she will seek out whatever nasty pool of standing water that she can find!

It was a lovely day. We hiked for a few hours with plenty of up and down to get some good exercise. One trail is called "Roller Coaster."Penelope tried out her new footstool that S. made for her to climb back into the car when she is worn out. She needs to get used to it still, isn’t sure she can step on it officially yet.