Brown's Creek-Day 1

Brown's Creek, San Isabell National Forest (approximately 10 miles southwest of Buena Vista, Colorado):

We woke up this morning at 7, tired and groggy from a pretty sleepless night (raw nerves make for bad sleep), but we overcame our lethargy, setting off in our 2 person caravan on our way to beautiful Buena Vista. The drive down was a bit rough; my Subaru was packed to the very brim with literally all of my worldly possessions, adorned with a road bike strapped onto the rear! Brianna's Saturn SUV was just as packed but with a litte more space to see her rearview mirror, so she followed close behind as we roared south down I25 and 285.

Despite the modest danger, we arrived safely in the small town of Buena Vista where we stocked up on groceries at the local City Market (a Kroger subsidiary for all you East coasters). After the store, a 15 mile drive southwest along a few county roads (280-> 270-> 272) brought us to the trailhead of Brown's Creek Trail, where we set up camp a half mile away.

Before setting up camp, we walked down a sparse deer trail that meandered away from the already established fire ring of the site, when seemingly out of nowhere the forest opened up and a pristine, golden meadow appeared.  With stunning views of Mt Princeton and Mt Antero and yellow and purple wildflowers spattered across the field, it was obvious that was where we'd put the tent.

After setting up our shelter and unloading the cars (which is no small task), we played in Brown's Creek, then hiked the trail a few miles to where it intersected the Colorado Trail. From what I can gather, the Brown's Creek Trail is mostly used to access the Colorado Trail and the massive 14ers that lie behind it (Mt Antero and Mt Princeton).

For dinner we had egg noodles with Alfredo sauce and Italian sausage (we are not skimping on food just because we're in the forest!), then built a big fire and sipped on Jack Daniel's. Not a bad way to end a very long day! I can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring!

-Mickey