Well we’re past the midpoint of our time in Palisade (not happy about that) and while we’ve certainly been making the most of it there are some things we absolutely need to get done; climbing Mt. Garfield was absolutely one of them.

This is one of the shorter hikes we’ve taken on recently at 2 miles, piece of cake right?

No!

This is a 2000 ft ascent and at first glance this looks impossible – how are you supposed to get up there?

Then you have signs like this at the trailhead – not very motivating

Since this trail is only a few minutes from home we decided to knock it out on a week day.  It’s still super hot in Palisade and the ideal time was early morning to beat the heat.  Wake up call 6am.

And we’re off…

About half way up the trail and we know it’s going to be a hot one

No hero’s here, we all needed a break!

We don’t have all day guys.  Need to get moving and be happy about it; how could you not be with that view!?!

And…we’re making our way back up

We finally got through the hard part and hit a plateau.  We were super tired, not going to lie, but being up there was awesome; a hidden valley of HUGE boulders and insane looking formations.

We finally hit the top and took some time to enjoy the stunning views of Palisade (right below) and the Colorado National Monument in the distance (west).

We relaxed for awhile and had our morning call for work while enjoying the view.  This right here is what a mobile work environment is all about!

That said, Chica reminded us that we won’t be productive pounding calls on top of the mountain and it was time to head back.  Ok Bear Cub, lead the way.

Coming up the mountain, we were literally crawling at the steepest points and coming back down was very much top of mind.

Well it’s the moment of truth.  Amy is scoping out the journey down.

Once we reached the bottom and turned around to see the mountain we conquered fulfilled is the word that comes to mind.  It was a challenge, physical and mental, but we got it done.

Now we have a full day of work ahead of us – gonna need some coffee to push through!