Our early start this morning means that we have the lake to ourselves. But notice that we need to wear jackets on this chilly morning!
We inflated the kayak, and we were on the water with the reflections of the mountains all around us.
We were surrounded by mountains, and a panorama shot can only get half of our view.
We took a lap around the lake, and then we paddled through some narrow grassy inlets, trying to find the river that was the source of Cottonwood Lake. But our journey to the source was cut short when we came to this beaver dam.
The water was so clear that we could see the under-water construction used in making the dam. The river level was a good foot taller behind the dam, so those beavers use some amazing engineering skills to make it water-tight.
We are sometimes amazed at how little water it takes to float our kayak. We can see the bottom of this narrow grassy inlet, and the sticks and grass that are only a few inches below the top of the water surface.
Kayaking a beautiful mountain lake on a calm 4th of July morning is a great way to start our holiday on Cottonwood Pass.
By the time we were off the lake and put our kayak away, there were 30-40 kayaks and stand-up paddleboards on the water. We were glad we beat the rush on this weekend holiday! Now we are back on the highway, and Denisa had to take this picture through the windshield to show what a good road Cottonwood Pass now is. It was closed for many months to finish paving it, and only re-opened in September 2019. So this is the first summer to be fully paved.
We're not sure how difficult it was to make this drive when parts of the pass was a dirt road, but we can highly recommend this drive now. We had some beautiful mountain views out our car windows!
The sun was still shining when we made our first stop at the Lost Lake trail head. This trail head isn't marked well, but we assumed with all the cars stopped along the road, it must be good.
This trail is only 2.6 miles long, so we didn't take our backpacks. For such a short hike we only took a bottle of water. But the storm clouds were gathering above us when we started our ascent and began to see mountain peaks.
That's about the time we also began meeting people with dirty shoes, warning us of the muddy part of the trail ahead. The warnings were well-founded--it was slippery and slimy!
When we saw a middle-aged woman fall in the mud, Mark offered to help her. She was so glad to have a stabilizing arm to help get her through the mess!
With the mud in the middle, the trail seemed longer to us. But we finally found Lost Lake and got our patriotic picture of the day. Between the blue sky and water, white clouds, and our red and blue clothes, we got the red/white/and blue picture for the 4th of July.
As we hiked around the lake for a different view, those blue and white skies turned to gray and we started feeling sprinkles of rain.
That's also when we started jogging back down the trail. What a rookie mistake to not bring our rain coats! That big muddy section was becoming a bigger muddy section. The woman that Mark had helped earlier was waiting for his arm for her return trip. He was planning to help an old woman across the mud, but he thought that old woman was going to be Denisa. The rain finally stopped just before we reached the car. We were soaked!
We don't remember ever running the car heater on the 4th of July, but we needed it today to help dry us out. We continued in the car to the high point of the pass at well over 12,000 feet. From a viewpoint there, we could look down to see that Taylor Reservoir far below is still getting rain.
By the time we drove down to Taylor Reservoir, the storms had cleared and it was a nice day out on the lake.
We saw both the front view . . .
and the back view of the earthen dam that keeps the water at the proper level.
We turned around at the dam, pointing the car back for the 34-mile trip back to Buena Vista. But we had to stop for Denisa to take a picture of the bumper crop of lupines growing under the trees.
They look like a sea of purple growing under the pines. The light and dark purple details on each petal are another wonder that we have found on Cottonwood Pass.
On the way back up to Cottonwood Pass, we stopped in for a bathroom break. But that faint trail leaving the bathroom parking lot draws us to hike up over that ridge just to see what was on the other side.
For just that short hike, we found one of the best views of our Independence Day!
We are looking down on more of God's wonders this afternoon.
Sitting on top of a rocky mountain ridge wearing a jacket seems a great way to celebrate the 4th of July.
Just down the road, we return to the summit of Cottonwood Pass. It was raining when we passed by this sign earlier today, but now we have sunshine for our picture of this 12,126-feet elevation pass this afternoon. This sign also marks the continental divide. At this point, water to the east will flow to the Atlantic Ocean, and rivers to the west will flow to the Pacific Ocean.
That also means that the Engelmans will head straight up that zig-zagging Continental Divide trail that will take them even higher than 12,126 feet. We can look down to see the zig-zagging highway that brought us to the top of the pass.
We are up on the ridge of the mountain where the snow doesn't melt--even on the Fourth of July!
Walking through snow on the Fourth of July is always a fun and slippery challenge.
We finally made it to the peak, for 360-degree views all around us.
Because high points are usually windy, a rock wind break had been built. We had the 12,574 feet summit all to ourselves.
That's a nice place for a snack with a great view!
Once on that ridgeline, we could follow the Continental Divide trail for many miles.
We are just foolish enough to head down the ridge-line, just to see where this continental divide might take us.
After another half-mile Mark continues down the trail, while Denisa decides to stay to try to get pictures of the bright yellow alpine buttercups beside the snow.
It's a beautiful place to spend the 4th of July!
As we hike back down the Continental Divide trail, we spot more purple flowers next to the trail.
These bright red sedum flowers are blooming up here where the oxygen levels are quite thin. Denisa is glad that we are finally heading down towards the car.
She has to pause, however, to take this picture. In honor of our country's Independence Day, we wish to celebrate the red sedum, the white rocks, and the blue mountain bells.
It's been a great 4th of July, and we're both tired from all our hiking. As we make the drive back to Buena Vista, we can reflect on what an honor it is to be a citizen of the great United States of America. Wandering God's wonders in this beautiful country is a special blessing to us!
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