departed Moab via 128 and met up with some Denver friends in Palisade for a long weekend in an airbnb. There are like 20 wineries in Palisade, and you can rent a bike for like $35 all day and just cruise around and get wine drunk. 10/10 huge recommend. no photos of that since it's not really VQ.
Floated the Colorado (again) but this time the water was high and fast and muddy from a recent mudslide upriver, and inflatable kayaks instead of sups. scenery is better in Moab but a more fun floating experience in Palisade.
once the wine hangos cleared up we took Kebler Pass to Crested Butte, and drove up Slate River road to Paradise Divide. this has to be one of the most elite dispersed camping sites in CO. it's at 11k feet, with a valley to the south, Paradise Basin to the north, and views of the Ruby range to the west. stayed here for 4 nights. beautiful sunrises every morning, perfect hiking weather all day, and a light (sometimes heavy) rain shower around dinner time before clearing up for sunset. gorgeous hikes in every direction.
our friends' dog Kona is the fluffy one with Capo. they got along great and more importantly tired each other out every day.
slate river valley
paradise basin
emerald lake
one night it started sprinkling while the sun was still out, which resulted in the sky being two entirely different colors at the same time. is this why it's called Paradise Divide? who's to say. real VQ type stuff here
my good friend and longtime CB resident convinced me to hike Purple Mountain at sunrise with him and some other CB buds. i had never summitted a mountain before but i'm in decent shape so i was like yes absolutely. the trailhead was like right near our campsite so it worked out great, and i got an extra hour of sleep compared to everyone else, who was driving from CB.
you can see Mt Crested Butte in the background, just to the left of center. it's the butte with the crest (lmao)
this one was taken just after Yule Pass, and you can see Yule Lake way off to the left. i backpacked there a couple years ago.
after the first sharp incline we were a bit winded
the summit of Purple Mountain visible here
at the summit. almost 13k ft
there are two sections that are apparently Class 4, which is about as steep & exposed as you get before you need ropes. this is on the way down.
VQ!
