Day four of our trip started out early for Jo and I. We had decided the night before to get up nice and early to see what wildlife we could spot. We got up around 5:30ish, and set off in the chilly morning to see if we could get lucky and see some critters.
Our first CS (confirmed sighting, don't know why we call it this but we just do) was this mama elk and her little baby, who were traveling along the water's edge along the other side of the lake. This was a good start, especially since the elk up in the alpine were very wild, and didn't want to get anywhere near Jo and I. Even if they spotted us a mile off, they would take off running as if we were much closer. Jo and I had spooked a huge herd the day before when we were walking from Little Goose Lake, and we really weren't that close. Not all elk behave this way. In Estes Park, close to where we live, the elk are quite used to admiring tourists pulling off to look at them, and will graze contentedly on the side of the road, sometimes yards away.
Jo and I hiked a little ways away from our campground in order to get a good view of the valley below us. We were hoping to spot a bear, but no luck. We did spot a large herd of elk, which we had heard bugling as soon as we had gotten up that morning. And we saw a trio of male moose in the willows below.
After looking around, we headed back towards the lake and sat on a large rock next to the water, just enjoying the morning. That's when this big fella came out of the brush and walked right next to us. He had been grazing in the willow near where we were camping.
After considering us for a minute, he trotted off, slobering the whole way. He was only mildly concerned with us; I think he knew just how big he was.
After he left our line of sight, we could hear the moose splashing around in the water. Apparently, he wanted to take an early morning dip in the lake.
We spotted this rogue elk at the very top of the mountain ahead of us. There couldn't have been much vegetation, so Jo and I are not sure what he was doing up there. Perhaps just enjoying the view?
Both of us were sad to leave Goose Lake. We had had it all to ourselves, and it really was a lovely alpine getaway. To say goodbye, we took one more dip. Yup, it was just as cold as it had been the night before. Then, we packed up and headed off.
We knew that the day would not be a strenuous one because 1.) both our packs were lighter with the food we had been eating and 2.) it was almost entirely flat or downhill. Actually, that's not true. It was flat or downhill for the first half of the day; we would gain some elevation later on in the hike. So, off we went. This was one last vista before we headed down towards the forest.
We passed a lot of alpiney meadows along the way, rich with columbine, the Colorado state flower.
Apparently Jo and I decided that today would not be a picture day, since we don't have any pictures from the middle of the day. It's a realy shame, too, since we had quite an interesting middle of the day, and pictures would help to illustrate my point nicely. So, what's my point?, you might ask.
My point is that there was no trail for a good portion of the day. Really. No trail. For a couple of miles, we we (read: Jo) had to scour the ground for any trace of a trail, and follow sporadically placed tree markers. Apparently the trail Jo and I had picked wasn't used much. Or, you know, not at all. Oh well, it made it that much more interesting when we finally made it to what we figured would be a good camping spot.
We quickly figured out that we were getting close to civilization when our rest was interrupted by a strange sound that sounded like...sheep? Yes, sheep. A whole lotta sheep. Let me tell you, after days of seeing nobody, and no animals except native ones, it was quite a shock to see a herd of sheep coming up over the hill.
A strange way to spend our last night in the "wilderness," I must say.
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