“We got to plan another trip” we often say to each other, my husband Craig and I. Its easy to get caught up in the monotony of day to day life spending time on things that are necessary but not of value to fuel our hearts and souls. Something that’s always strengthened our love for life and each other, and kept the fire alive in our relationship has been adventures, big and small. In this series I’d like to share with you some of my favorite adventures I’ve had with my husband over the past 10 years we’ve been together. I encourage you to light the fire with your own relationships and make time for a new adventure whatever that might be and see where life takes you!
Capitol Peak
Capitol Peak was one of my favorite adventures. Funny, just looking at these images makes me feel excited! My husband and I went on this trip with about 10 other people. It was a fun group and although it rained on us for part of the trip it was well worth it. The total distance out and back is about 17 miles.
To get to the trailhead we definitely needed a vehicle with clearance and 4wd. Luckily our friend Chelsea owned a jeep at the time and we were able to creep over the bumpy road up to the trailhead. As we started out on this trail I couldn’t help but smile looking out at the mountains off in the distance and the lush green valley all around.
We set up camp at Lake Capitol which sits just under the peak and prepped things for the attempt at an ascent in the morning. From Lake Capitol to the top of Capitol Peak its only about 2 miles, so 4 miles round trip. I thought it would go pretty fast, but it took all day because the route is technical. There’s a lot of scrambling over rocks and being conscious of watching your foot placement, and because of that it lends itself to moving slow.
We set out for the summit with small packs on our backs and helmets just in case of rockfall. About half way up, part of our group decided to turn back because of the weather. My husband, myself and two other friends, Chelse & Dave, felt a little different about going forward. There were a lot of clouds in the sky but they looked pretty far off and it didn’t seem like it was going to rain near us for a while. The four of us made a calculated risk and agreed that the clouds didn’t look too bad and we kept moving forward.
When we got to the knife edge, I paused for a while. The rock comes to a low angled point and drops off in either direction. Chelsea was in front of me with a leg on either side of the knife edge, butt scooting along. If I was going to move forward I had to make it past this point. Its not difficult, its just scary because its so exposed. I decided to move forward and continued to butt scoot along like Chelsea. I laughed as I moved through that section slowly because it was amazing and terrifying!
The weather ended up holding for us and everyone made it out and back safely. On the way back I took in the view and deep breaths enjoying immensely the stark and beautiful scenery in front of me. Craig was an excellent husband and kept tabs on me along the way, making sure I was ok. In a couple weeks it will be Craig and I’s wedding anniversary. We’re planning a backpacking trip to celebrate our time together. Although I don’t think it will be as technical as this trip, I’m excited to get out, explore and celebrate our time with each other!
leave some love: