Hiking, day 19: John Hamm Nature Area

I ended up with a surprise day off after my boss closed the shop because he woke up with the flu; so, clearly, after I ran out to get MY flu shot, I headed over to the closest trail to the pharmacy.

Hiking, day 18: Sandstone Ranch

I decided to give the mountain trails a break for the mud to dry, so I'm back out at my favorite Longmont trail today.

Tumbleweed!

Hiking, day 17: Nighthawk Trail

I was hoping I had waited long enough after the last snow fall to melt to go out on the trails, but after spending an extra 20 minutes and visiting two trail heads that were closed, I finally found myself at Hall Ranch for a quick hike.  Since the trails there were pretty muddy, too, I tried one of the easier, dedicated walking / horseback riding trails instead of the usual, more intense trail I normally take which is also used by bicyclists.  I was able to get a little bit of hike in before having to turn back a little sooner than usual due to the mud.

Hiking, day 16: Heil Valley Ranch

Unfortunately, this time after the snow, the trails didn't recover as quickly, but I still managed to get a short hike up and back.

Hiking, day 15: Sandstone Ranch

I took a quick hike through one of my local go-to's in town.

Hiking, day 14: Hall Ranch

The trails in the mountains were in surprisingly good shape after the snow! Below is a panorama from Hall Ranch in Lyons, followed by a panorama overlooking north Boulder from a work gathering.  Finally, a very cute puppy!

Hiking, day 13: Spring Gulch Trail

I'm trying to have a better go of it, numbers-wise, on my hiking days this year, but due to the weather and my work schedule, I can't always get out to the more adventurous spots that are 20-30 minutes away from where I live.  Today, I actually tried the walking path just a few blocks from my house for the first time.

I had to wait for a minute on the walk back for the BNSF train to pass into the fading sunset...

Hiking, day 12: Pella Crossing

I'm using a new tracking app for my hikes, and found a new-to-me short hike in Hygiene, CO.  While the view is beautiful, I can't tell you how much I miss Hawaii after coming back to snow and ice in Colorado.

Hiking, day 11: Last Day in Hawaii

After checking out of our hotel, we had a lot of time to kill before our evening flight home. We hopped into our rental car, and went to the north peninsula of the island. We drove through some quirky towns, and stopped at a few hiking spots and parks.

(This might be my favorite shot from our entire trip.)

Hiking, day 10: Two Step

We were up early because we planned on going on a surfing / snorkeling trip with some of our friends. A little after 8am, we got an emergency text informing us that a ballistic missile was incoming, and for us to seek shelter.  It was a tense few minutes in the hotel lobby, while we waited for news, and eventually got the all clear.

After the scare in the morning, it was nice to spend some time on a black sand beach and relax.

After spending a few hours at the surf spot, we headed over to Two Step for more snorkeling.  Unfortunately, my underwater camera batteries had died at this point.

Crab!

Two Step is right next to Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park, so we spent a few minutes exploring the park after we were done snorkeling.

An ancient Hawaiian board game.

These are shots from the sanctuary village - when someone had committed a crime that would result in the death penalty, if that person could reach a sanctuary safely, they could spend time there as a period of atonement, and then return home.

Another sea turtle.

We headed back towards Kona, but made a stop at "The End of the World" to watch the sunset.

The cliff side at End of the World is about 60' high, but the waves were crashing even higher. It was truly spectacular.

After sunset we headed over to Kona Brewing for dinner, and I had to snap a picture of this incredible mural on a nearby building.