Roxborough

There are many times, particularly when I am feeling like a contrarian, that I make stupid proclamations about wanting to live in Manhattan, or at least getting a loft in LoDo within walking distance of some of my favorite restaurants. But when I remember that Roxborough Park is only fifteen minutes away, I realize how miserable I would be in a new location.

About twice a week in the summertime we fill our small Camelpaks with water, gather our hiking sticks, and head out to hike Carpenter Peak. Part of our ritual is to stop at Chick-fil-a on the way for sandwiches to eat at the top of the hike and then it is down Wadsworth as we drive by Chatfield, Martin Marietta, and the housing developments growing with alarming speed along the approach to the park.

We always park in the top lot by the visitor center and make a final, hopeful stop at the public restrooms therein. On good days (Read: days without coffee) that's the only stop we need. Then we put on our packs, set our hiking sticks at the appropriate numbers, and head on down the trail, blithely ignoring the warnings for rattlesnakes, bears, mountain lions, and various forms of poisonous oaks and ivies.

One of the things you should know is that my wife has a self-described case of Wild Flower Tourette's, so most of our hikes are punctuated by her randomly blurting out the names of wild flowers she spots along the path. We might be strolling through the first wooded section of the hike and she will call out "BLUEBELL!" That is my cue to look around to spot the flower growing next to some rock on the side of the trail. "Yep," is my most common rejoinder. It is a good arrangement. I learn a lot about flowers and Kathie gets frequent validation.

The first part of the hike climbs gradually away from the visitor center - "YARROW" -through a beautiful grove of aspens, pines, spruce, and lot of other stuff - "DELPHINIUM (called larkspur in these parts)" - that I don't know the names of. At approximately the half mile mark another trail to the South Rim heads off to the left, but the Carpenter Peak trail keeps plugging straight ahead.

After another tenth of a mile the trail crosses a gravel access road and continues by yet another sign warning hikers of all the perils awaiting them on the trail - "WILD DAISY" -but ignore that. Other than the day when Katherine almost stepped on a coiled rattler, we have never seen so much as a decent sized pile of bear stool to give us pause.

After the road, the trail gets a little steeper as it begins to switchback up the ascent to the top. There are plenty of natural breaks in the trail where devoted spouses have paid to have redwood benches erected to commemorate a loved one's passing. We use these benches as milestones to assure us - "SCARLET GILIA (the first one of the season)" - we are making progress.

As we get closer to the top, we have to carry our sticks because the scrub oak - "SCRUB OAK" - is basically taking over the trail. There is a final fork in the road at the top. Go to the left and you will hook into the Colorado Trail. Go to the right for a tenth of a mile scramble to the top of the peak where you will find a wonderful view stretching from Boulder all the way to Sedalia with the skyline of Denver in between. You will also find a bunch of other hikers resting up for the easy descent back to the visitor center. When we whip out our Chick-fil-a's the envy is palpable.

After a twenty minute respite, it is back down the - "COLUMBINE" - hill.

Another fifteen minutes from the visitor center and we are pulling into our driveway. Whenever this happens we always comment on how lucky we are to live where we do. Tomorrow we might take the kayak over to Chatfield. I mean - "PHLOX" - what else are we doing?