I stopped at the ranger station to pay and the ranger warned me of the high winds that day and told me where the Mountain Goats and Bighorns have been hanging out. I didn't see a single one! On the drive up it got cloudier and cloudier and wind was really blowing. Howling would be a better term for it. Once while getting out of the car to photograph the view the door was ripped from my hand. I stopped for a break at the Mount Goliath Natural Area and photographed a Bristlecone Pine. They are estimated to be between 800 and 2,000 years old. I was shocked to see a saw mark on the tree I photographed.
When I arrived at Summit Lake I was quite happy to have my wool hat and gloves. It was a brisk 36 degrees out and there were little ponds of ice frozen. The wind was still howling and there was a guy on a bike coming downhill towards the lake that was having to pedal to make forward progress against the wind. 
The parking lot at the lake was full and I circled a bit until i could find a parking spot. I did a short hike to the Chicago Lakes Overlook before heading back down. 
coming back down it was quite a bit warmer and I stopped to photograph some aspen and the motorcycles that just love driving the twisty roads up here. 
I drove down into Idaho springs for lunch and then I headed west again on I-70. I went through the Eisenhower Tunnel. On a sidenote I left Colorado as a youngster the year before it was complete. When I used to ski at Loveland Basin we used to watch the big Euc off road trucks carrying rock out from the construction site from the chairlift. I drove to Silverthorne and purchased a couple of SD Cards for my camera.By then I was pretty tired and I pushed the drivers seat back and had a long nap in the sun. After I woke up I headed east on Highway 6 to Loveland Pass. I stopped to photograph the Aspens and the A-Basin Ski area. I was shocked to see that the lodge was finally undergoing renovations. For years and years now it has looked like a time capsule from 1970. 
At the top of the pass I stopped and took some customary tourist pictures and I went for a short hike uphill looking for some Pikas. I got one really nice image of one!. In winter the top of the pass is the drop off point for backcountry skiers and snow boarders. There is a huge bowl here that can be skied down to one of the last turns at the bottom of the pass. It's a great way to get some serious skiing in by either hitch hiking or trading off with a car and driver.
After coming off the pass i went into Idaho Springs for an early dinner. I had a great sandwich from a local market and then I headed back up the byway. I stopped and dropped off most of my stuff at the Air BnB where I was staying.Nice place by the way. Then I headed up to see if i could catch a little of the sunset. 
my last image of the day was of my little rent a car which did a pretty good job of taking me out for a long, long day. God's love and blessings to all, chris All images were created with a Canon 7DmkII and a variety of lenses.
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