Slack packin'!

We stayed in a cabin near Twin Lakes, amazingly, packed like sardines quite comfortably. Mishaps mom was amazing for putting up with this! We had a great dinner in Leadville first. We were all cold from our big day coming over Hope Pass, so we fully utilized the blankets at the restaurant!

Leftovers, Gargoyle, me and Mishap.

Our plan for the next day was to hike the section north from Twin Lakes, which includes an optional climb of Mount Elbert, the second highest peak in the continental US. Nice! 

Sawatch Range mountains from the summit of Elbert.

looking across at the southeast ridge of Elbert.

There was a good trail all the way, and a different, steeper, but still good trail down the northeast ridge. It was really nice to carry almost nothing, too. It rained heavily for a while and I wished for my umbrella.

After a descent to a charming fish hatchery, we went to an odd little Chinese food restaurant in Leadville, then went to our lodging there. Mishaps mom had a really tough time finding places that would allow a dog. Still, we had a pretty cool place tonight... Here was my room:

In the morning, we were back at the fish hatchery to walk up and over a forested pass to reach Turquoise Lake. Once there, we climbed again into a zone of alpine lakes, remnant snow and forest, with the true crest on our left side. Gargoyle was walking on that in some fashion. I could see some dramatic cornices up there. I was happy with a gorgeous granite slab to practice some rock climbing. This time, I had my umbrella for the afternoon rain showers.

the country around Moser Lake.

Mishap and her mom near Tennessee Pass.

After the lake and granite climbing, the trail meanders through open forest for many miles. Near the end, there was a little rocking bench for a nice rest.

We left the pass in heavy rain, happy to go down to Leadville for pizza and beer.

For the last day of slack packing, we'd walk from Tennessee Pass to the Copper Mountain ski resort. Leftovers and I followed the road to shave off about a mile of walking, while Mishap and Gargoyle stuck to the red line. After some miles, Blue the dog joined them. In on and off again rain, I climbed to Kokyo Pass, then walked the high country for a few hours to Searle Pass. Leftovers and I occasionally met up and joked about one thing or another. Somewhat tiredly, I descended to the resort, where Leftovers found the brew pub. We ate a great dinner there. I was very happy because finally we'd earned a rest day, after seven days and 140 miles of tough mountains!

the country around kokymo Pass

Leftovers and his kiddie day pack. 

The next day we slept in. I worked on the blog and nursed a sore shoulder. The cause seemed a mix of too many mosquitoe bites... Maybe even a spider bite? But also an overuse injury from leaning on my poles too hard. I hope it gets better...!

In the evening we had a grill feast, inviting Google, Pecarino, Lush and Shredder over for dinner. We had a big plan for the next two days, and I tried to sleep early, though shoulder pain made it hard...

Preparing the feast.

I manned the grill quite handsomely.