Alpine Meadows baby, my favorite of all the biomes.

To me there is no more beautiful scene in the world than a pristine “untouched” mountain meadow. To have my family there in the foreground made it the most gorgeous view I’ve ever laid my eyes on. Do people climb mountains just to reach the top and see the view? Sometimes. But the beauty is also matched by the feeling of accomplishment injected as you reach the top. Diamond Lake sits at 11,000 feet and is cradled between the giants of the Rockies. The enormous bowl is surrounded by waterfalls and wildflowers. Home for tonight. 

Unfortunately, I fear many people may never get the chance to see an Alpine Meadow ecosystem in person. I often wish they were easier to visit and I could sleep there all the time. They exist only in areas with tall mountains and extreme weather so there aren’t many you can drive to in America, and none this undisturbed with this level of solitude. Pictures, of course, can’t capture the enormity of the landscape, the feeling of being in a natural stadium surrounded by roaring water falling down the sides.  Come to think of it, I’m glad they are so hard to visit, you know that anyone else you see up there, was also really really determined to be there. 

We found a flat campsite between several streams tucked under some weather stunted pine trees. I’m trained on autopilot to look for dangerous trees, rocks, and plants before setting up a tent, I however, missed the fresh Moose poop and footprints completely covering the area. I scanned the surrounding meadows and lakeshore constantly hoping to see our room mate but alas, we would have the entire lake to ourselves all night. At night I got up and was rewarded with the reflection that earned Diamond Lake its name. A perfect place to turn four. 

Is this really the same state as the Great Sand Dunes? Did these really help create those? Nature is amazing. 

Of course after all my selfish reasons for hiking, I really do it because I feel it makes our family closer and stronger. The real reward is seeing their growth in resilience and grit with each challenge. I’m not asking them to do easy things. Our next wilderness outing, later in the summer, will be a much more trying experience and Indian Peaks was the qualifying exam. Everyone passed with flying colors.