The unseasonal cool and wet weather of May paid off in July with one of the most spectacular riots of color we have seen in Colorado. We were a little early with our trip to Missouri Lakes near Vail. It was nice to be camping again and the hike up to the lake was pretty. But as we neared 12,000 feet the ground was still covered in snow.
Our luck was much better in Crested Butte. They held their annual "Wildflower Festival" over the weekend so we waited until Tuesday for the crowds to leave. We camped at the Cement Creek campground just south of town with John and Marie and their dogs, Maggie and Zack.
Our first day of hiking, to Beckwith Pass, was breathtaking - both for the beauty and the lack of oxygen. Crested Butte is surrounded by snow-covered mountains and the valleys are lush with flowers. I somehow managed to delete about 100 photos, many of which I would like to believe were National Geographic quality - but I know better. I did make up for it on Thursday, however. The flowers along the Brush Creek trail were in prime condition and it is possibly the most scenic in the area. Penstemoms, mules ears, wild geraniums, flax, mariposa lillies, cow parsnip, forget-me-nots, and dozens of other species blanketed the hillsides and John and I photographed them while Connie and Marie used the plant guides to name them.
If we were of a mind to move to the country like John and Marie and Jim and Cathy have (which we are not) we would choose Crested Butte over Westcliffe or Buena Vista. It is probably twenty degrees colder in the winter and a long way from anywhere but the scenery is sublime. But we would miss the culture in the Denver area so we will stay put. For now
