Impromptu hike and garden news

Fred, Al, me, and Diane at Gold Run Pass

Al just couldn't waste this beautiful weather, so he sent around an email to see who might take him up on a hike this past weekend. Four of us did yesterday, and I got to see Fred for the first time in over a year! He went back to work and can only hike on weekends or holidays. I set up my self timer and got this picture; I look a bit wonky as I wasn't sure whether the timer was going off or not, but otherwise it was pretty good. Lots of snow behind us.

The trail to Gold Run Pass is steep but short (Diane's picture)

Al wanted to see what kind of shape the Yellow Aster Butte trail is in right now. We ran into snow at about 4600 feet, and it was very slow going from there until we got to the junction where you can either go up to Gold Run Pass or across to the Butte. We met a couple of strong young guys who were heading back from an attempt at the Butte, and they said they were not able to make it, so we opted for the shorter trip to Gold Run. Being a Sunday and a holiday weekend, there were lots of people out enjoying the weather and the snow. (You can see some of them behind us.)

C'mon, Diane, you can push it out of the way!

This fallen tree in the trail wasn't easy to get around. After trying several different ways, we took off our packs and crawled under. It looks like Diane is trying to move it, doesn't it? It was an incredibly beautiful day, with some high clouds to keep us from getting too warm, even though we were trudging through snow much of the day. It will be gone in a few weeks, considering how warm the temperatures were.

I was supposed to be going to dinner and the movies with Judy this afternoon, but she called and canceled due to catching a cold. I decided I could write this post, even though it's a Monday instead of a Tuesday, and show you how my garden is coming along. I just created this collage from pictures taken a few minutes ago.

Top: sugar snap peas, nasturtiums, my plot
Bottom: beets, budding zucchini, HUGE zucchini plant

My sugar snap peas are so good, and I am snacking on them now whenever I go out to water. The nasturtiums are growing like crazy, and you can see most of my plot in the top right picture. I am watching my beets grow, although I planted them too close together they seem to be doing fine. I picked one and steamed it, greens and all; it was fabulous. A volunteer plant grew up in our community garden plot (you can see it in its full size in the last picture) and we just discovered that it is indeed zucchini (see the little guy behind the blossom?). That means we will have enough for everyone in the entire apartment building! There must be three dozen of them ripening right now.

Well, that's what's going on in my little corner of the universe. I've been enjoying a laid-back afternoon after a workout and a massage, plus a very busy few days behind me. Hope you're having a fine day, now that the holiday weekend is behind us!
:-)