Hiking and Backpacking Trips Archives - Page 4 of 37

Colleyville Nature Center

The Colleyville Nature Center is owned and operated by the City of Colleyville Parks and Recreation. This 46-acre refuge which features nine ponds and 3.5 miles of trails is a nature lovers paradise located right in the middle of a neighborhood!

I learned of this pocket of paradise, just 20 minutes from my house, through a group called Hiker Babes. The group is global, and it has both a North Texas Chapter and a DFW Chapter which posts events on Facebook regularly. It was my first time joining them for an activity, and me and my friend Laura had a nice time. And Laura even walked away with a backpack giveaway! Lucky winner!!

GET NEXT TO NATURE!

How to Visit the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuaries in Mexico

For those who don’t know, 25 to 50 million monarch butterflies migrate from the USA and Canada to the monarch butterfly sanctuaries in Mexico every year. This is a far cry from the billions that made the journey until a rare freeze in Mexico obliterated 80% of the population creating piles 13 inches high of dead monarchs on the ground. Regardless, it is still an amazing phenomenon that could go extinct…not the butterflies, but the migration. So go check it out before it is too late!

The monarchs arrive in the high-altitude Mexico mountains around November 1^st and migrate back to the USA and Canada in mid-March. They concentrate in 12 known areas over three hectares in the biosphere reserve. Four of these areas are sanctuaries that are open to the public.

FLY AWAY!

The Monarch Butterfly Migration

I’m not sure how I originally heard of the Monarch butterfly migration. All I knew was that a bunch of monarchs cluster on trees in Mexico during the winter, and I thought it would be cool to photograph. Well, I got so much more than I bargained for and learned a ton. What a special experience!

Before I delve into the details, I have two major tips for seeing the monarch butterfly migration in Mexico.

Unless you are fluent in Spanish, read the book Bicycling with Butterflies by Sara Dykman, as the guides don’t speak English. While she pushes her agenda on occasion, she provides a wealth of knowledge about the monarchs I wish I had known prior to visiting. I ended up listening to the entire book on my extended travels home from Mexico. It made what we watched that much more fascinating. I have a renewed appreciation of the monarch butterfly.
If you only have time to visit one Sanctuary, make sure it is El Rosario and go on a weekday. DO NOT go to any sanctuary on a weekend. They get way too crowded.

FLY WITH THE BUTTERFLIES!

Things to Do in Spearfish

There is so much to do in the Black Hills of South Dakota! Most visitors to the area likely go to see Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial. Along with visiting these iconic places near Custer and Hill City, don’t forget about towns farther north, including Spearfish, Deadwood and Sturgis.

We took a five-day girls trip to South Dakota which only gave us a taste of the Black Hills. If I had to do it over again, I would have gone for longer and split my time between the southern and northern parts, basing in Hill City and Spearfish.

EXPLORE MORE!

Happy Hiking: Basin Lakes Trail

After spending a few weeks in the Flathead Valley, I moved farther south to Red Lodge, Montana. Though you can still see many effects from the flood early this summer, the roads and businesses are open, so go support them.

Unfortunately, some of the hikes on the top of my list were not accessible unless I added an additional 8+ miles along a road. Since those trails were already 10 miles, 18 miles wasn’t in the cards for me. Fortunately, the Basin Lakes Trail was open, and it was spectacular!

HAPPY HIKING!

Happy Hiking: Emerald Lake and Heather Lake

After visiting Butte, I made a short stop in Bozeman to visit a Denver friend, Diana, who moved away a few years ago. It was so great to see her and laugh about how in Colorado we had to be at the trailhead no later than 7am, and in Montana you’re hard pressed to see anyone before noon!

I also got to enjoy a shower and a home cooked meal. That is always nice while being on the road. At David and Diana’s, we had homemade pizza. The pizza was a perfect carb load for my long hike to Emerald Lake and Heather Lake the following day.

HAPPY HIKING!

Glacier Lake and Heart Lake

Having spent the evening in Polson and realizing I had to drive all the way back to Bigfork and then drive back down east of Polson near Condon on a different road, I almost skipped the hike to Glacier Lake and Heart Lake. That would have been a HUGE mistake!

Getting to Glacier and Heart Lake

The Jewel Basin Hiking Area is an absolute gem, and Glacier Lake and Heart Lake did not disappoint. The drive to the trailhead is 12 miles down a dirt road. At the beginning, the road is well graded, but as it climbs, the road narrows and gets rougher. That said, it is in good condition.

HAPPY HIKING!

Hike to Crater Lake

As I mentioned in a previous post, I ditched VANgo and retreated to a dog friendly hotel for air conditioning. So much for fleeing the Texas heat. I ended up in 100 degrees in Montana!?! As many say, at least it was dry heat. But when the sun doesn’t set until 10 pm, and it is over 90 degrees in the van in the shade with the windows and doors open for hours on end, dry heat is pretty hot!

Upon showering and enjoying the A/C, I’m reminded no to take such simple pleasures for granted. Some people still don’t have these modern conveniences.

Anyway, after a few nights in a hotel, I headed toward Bigfork, Montana to tackle Crater Lake. The 10.8 mile Crater Lake Trail is located 15 miles northeast of Bigfork in the Jewel Basin Hiking Area in Flathead National Forest. While only 15 miles away, it takes 45 minutes to get there as much of the drive is on a washboard, dirt road.

HAPPY HIKING!

Hike to Lupine Lake

On my recent hike to Stahl Peak in Eureka, I met some ladies from Kalispell who recommended Lupine Lake Trail. It so happened that I marked it as one of the hikes I wanted to take, so I made sure to check it out.

The 4.9 mile moderate trail to Lupine Lake is located in the Flathead National Forest, about 36 miles west of Kalispell. The drive to the trail was easy, and road should be called Bunny Hop. I’ve never seen so many rabbits dart across the road.

Despite getting a mid-morning start, I was the first to arrive and parked in the small roadside pullout, with enough room for five cars or so.

HAPPY HIKING!

Herron Park

After visiting Whitefish, I made my way to Kalispell and Herron Park, still in the heat wave. I’m sure 97 degrees doesn’t sound hot to my friends and relatives in Texas. But Texans have air conditioning. VANgo only has air conditioning if plugged in, and I hadn’t made any reservations at campgrounds, which were full.

As a result, from about 3pm to 9pm every day, I couldn’t get the temperature down below 90 degrees despite opening all the doors and windows and running the fan!

HAPPY HIKING!