Oh, how I wish I had had a camera last night. My "Don't Hike Alone" group drove to the Colorado State Moose Visitor's Center for the Moonlight x/c Ski and Snowshoe Night last night. We arrived before sundown around 5:15 and had a glorious view of the surrounding mountains tipped by the setting sun. Everyone bemoaned not having a camera to capture it. I guess we will all have to rely on our mental pictures of the sight.
We collected glow in the dark bracelets and headed down the trail as the sunlight slowly faded. The moon was visible with only a few clouds in the sky. One of our number commented that it was a 9/10s full moon, not completely full. However full it was it was gorgeous and lit the trail with the help of various glow sticks to mark the trail.
Conditions couldn't have been better. There was plenty of snow, moonlight and no wind. The temperature was warm enough that many of us had to remove extra layers. There was the silence of the night broken only by the occasional skiers and people on snowshoes. Not only were the two footed critters out but we met our fair share of four footed companions. At least 4 skiers with their huskies pulling them up and down the trail. Some dogs had blinking lights to alert the trail users that they were there.
I had a great time and only the one fall on the last leg. I lost my balance and twisted my ankle on a basically flat part of the trail, how lame is that?
