Big Hike and Virginian Party

It was a tossup yesterday whether to do our big hike of the week yesterday, or wait until today when the weather is suppose to be the best. We decided to do the long hike yesterday so that we would have extra time to get ready to leave and extra time to recover, if necessary.

It was 9:30 AM by the time we reached the trailhead at the Taggart and Bradley Lake. It was about a 7 mile hike, moderate in scale. There was some fog when we started out into the Park and Josie caught this shot of the low clouds against the mountains before we reached the trailhead:

We packed our snacks and water into the backpack and headed out:

It wasn't very far into the hike before we reached this nice waterfall:

The trail to the first lake - Taggart  - was very different terrain all the way from the beginning to the lakeside. Aside from the creek and waterfall, there was open terrain:

Woods:

and lots of hills with all kinds of flowers, below of which are just a couple that Josie caught on camera:

We finally reached Taggart Lake at about 11:30 and we only stopped for a short time to get some pictures before moving on to Bradley Lake. This one is of Taggart Lake:

The trail leading to Bradley Lake from Taggart was very hilly and through some pretty thick forest. We eventually came out at the lake, but there was no easy path down to the water, so this shot is taken from our vantage point about 25 feet above the waterline:

Our return was also through some rugged and, in some places fairly steep terrain, but we made it back to the car by 1:30 PM. We saw lots of people along the trail - more than we have ever seen on a hiking trail - and several of the folks said they saw a small black bear along the trail - we never saw it. The hike served to make us aware of just how much out of shape we are. Also, it was difficult for us adjusting to the elevation change which also tended to tire us out faster. All in all, we are happy we did the hike and, believe me, we miss the activity.

We returned to our room and freshened up for the Virginian Lodge 50th Anniversary Party being held in the courtyard. It was a very nice affair and we saw most of our friends from the staff and enjoyed a couple hours of food and cheer. Also there, of course, was Virginia who made the trip from San Diego to celebrate the occasion. She is as spry and chipper as ever and you would never know that she is 91 years old:

It was wonderful to see her and we were happy that this occasion was timed to pretty much end our week's vacation here. We only have today left, and we would stay if we possibly could...