In which I share some photos and vids from the recent adventuring

On the trail at Elbe Challenge

After tail-ending the Elbe Hills Challenge Endurance Ride, normally Sky and I would pack up our gear and go home like the rest of the crowd.  This time, however, we planned to stay some extra days and explore the trails that were not part of the ride. 

Sky and I like to head into the high country for a week or so in August; however, this year the snow level stayed so low that the places we want to go are completely inaccessible.  Some of the trailheads are under snow, which means no high mountain adventure for us this year.

Undaunted, we planned a different kind of trip:  stay after an endurance ride and mess around on the local trails.

So that's what we did. 

Fee stands at a hitching post on Buck's Crossing

Permanent trail markers!

A lot of the trails had permanent trail markers, which are an unaccustomed luxury. 

Still, Sky used her maps to keep us on course.

An important part of any Girls Adventure is food, and this adventure was no exception.  We ate royally in camp...and also on the trail!

Trailing (native) blackberries -- very sweet!

Thimbleberries

Black Gooseberries, which the guidebook says are "insipid in flavor"! 

We also saw some interesting NON-edible stuff:

Devil's Club berries--don't eat these!

Thistle and thistledown

Fairynesting material

Fireweed

The trails were steep everywhere we went.  Many of the trails are built on fall-lines that are too steep to be sustainable, so they need constant work to repair the erosion.  The local riders tell us that they like steep trails, but I'll bet they would enjoy their trails more if they were built along better grades and wouldn't need so much maintenance every year.  As much as I like working on trails, I prefer to ride them.

We walked a lot of the steep downhills, but we rode the uphills.


Pretty, pretty, everywhere.

And when we got back to camp, Pickles Marie Tinydog was glad to see us.

Life is good!