Welcome to the Colorado backcountry

The vast acreage of wilderness and backcountry beauty in Colorado make it one of the more popular locations for camping, backpacking, and day-hiking.

In addition to a eight National Parks and Monuments, Colorado boasts an equal number of Wilderness Areas, millions of acres of National Forest and BLM land, and over three dozen state parks.

From mountains to deserts, and grasslands to canyons, one could spend a lifetime hiking the trails of Colorado and not cover all of them.

Thankful for Hanging Lake

Hanging Lake, glenwood springs, glenwood canyon, colorado

When we rode our bikes to Hanging Lake this summer, the parking area was so full that traffic was backed up all the way to the interstate.  It's easily one of the state's most popular attractions.  But on Thanksgiving day, there were only a half dozen vehicles in the parking area when we arrived, and when we reached the lake, there was only one other couple there.  Another two groups arrived while we were there, and we saw some others on the way up and down, but nothing like the summer crowds.

This photo is a composite of thirty separate images, as it's a rare lens that's wide enough to capture the entire scene in one photograph.

I hope to return again in another month, as the hike up and the scene when you're there is so much better when there's more snow and ice.