We rallied ourselves and drove south west to a trailhead in a different part of the park. We took the back way through Rocky Mountain National Park, where the views were stunning.

Our goal was a short string of lakes created by the Tyndall glacier. Even though it was only 3.2 miles, we took our time because the hike begins at 9,500 ft elevation and rises to slightly over 10,000 ft.

I noticed one steep portion above us on the way in. On our return, a National Park volunteer, like us!, pointed out a small avalanche caused by a skier earlier in the morning.

The lakes, Bear, Nymph, Dream, and Emerald, were still frozen and Flattop Mountain set our course.

We’re smiling now because we’ve eaten our lunch and our return trip is almost all downhill.

The sky over the Park is always lined by contrails.

When we returned home, I baked a very tall loaf of whole wheat bread. I tried the bread machine but didn’t set it correctly. I have since downloaded the manual rather than randomly pushing buttons. I had to take it out of the machine when it risked popping the lid open. I put it in the only bread pan I could find and salvaged a delicious loaf.

Tim is a very lucky man!