Atalaya Trail

Last weekend we went hiking. This 7 mile trail took us 4 hours - 2 up and 2 down. I think we would've gone a lot faster but up toward the top of the mountain the trail was iced over, so we really had to take our time. Thankfully, neither one of us completely wiped out. :)

The start of the trail!Just after the trailhead was a beautiful view of St. John's College. St. John's is the 3rd oldest college in the US. After a while we came to a decision on the trail. Should we take the steeper route or the easier route? What do you think we picked? The steeper route, of course! :)There were a few places along the trail that had great views!So we had to stop for a photo op! :)We made it to the top, and the views were gorgeous! Just look at that sky & mountain range!Like any other mountain top, it was cold and windy at the top. Brent hunkered down to eat his lunch...with a spectacular view.A view from the top!This picture of Brent makes me laugh! It looks like he should be hunting, not hiking! :)On the way back down the mountain Brent wrote this in the snow. So blessed by this wonderful man! Awwwww, ain't he sweet?!When we were almost back to the car, we turned around, and lo and behold, there's the top that we just came from! So we had to take a picture! We just love seeing the top from the bottom and vice versa! :)I think this is one of my favorite pictures. The moon was out and the sky was perfect. It was a very Western sky, too. (No clouds.)We were on our way home around sunset, so I tried (unsuccessfully, again) to get a picture of the beautiful Sangre de Cristo ("Blood of Christ") Mountains. Pictures just don't do it justice, but here's my go at it. And we can't end the post until I put up another of Brent's amazing sunset pictures. :)