Colorado Part 2

We came to quite a surprise heading up to the campground by Mt Bierstadt. After going through Georgetown, the road was completely closed for the night due to construction. With no better options, we set up our tent near the road block. At 5:30am the crew came up the mountain in their diesel trucks and construction equipment. We made our way up to Gnuella Pass and hit the trail at 8. The first half mile was through marshland then we gradually climbed. It steadily increased to a steep rocky trail with the last half mile as a boulder field. It was windy as heck but at the very top we were able to get to the other side for a rest. We had a great view of Mt Evans and debated about trying to head there. Looking down Sawtooth trail that connect the two, we decided we would definitely need to be roped up. Heading down, we chatted with our new friend Jenny and felt our knees crumble as we descended. We drove back to Denver to check out Great Divide Brewery which was closed Sunday. The environment we pretty sweet offering is a free sample of four of their beers. They were all pretty good, but their Oak Aged Jeti Imperial Stout was better than the rest. I had high expectations for the Wild Raspberry Ale, but it just didn't have much taste. We had our big planning session for which hikes to hit then headed back to the mountains.
First time ever, James got to throw his Jeep into 4wheel drive. Heading on up to Gray's Peak trailhead in the dark, we almost ran into some panicked elderly hikers heading down the road. Their car couldn't make it up so they caught a ride, hiked for the day, then came back way too late at night. There was no one left to ride down with, and with no flashlights, they were in pretty poor shape. Of course, we gave them a ride down. After reaching the end of the road, we set up our tent right beside the river. It got down to the thirties and my summer bag just wasn't cutting it. At about 6am all the other hikers showed up with their slamming doors echoing through the valley. After a hot breakfast, we hit the trail. It wasn't all that bad, but we were taking it pretty slow. We went straight for the saddle in between the two 14ers and chose the harder of the two to hit first. From Torrys Peak we had amazing views then headed back down to the saddle. The climb to Grays took a while with the altitude headaches. We were very fortunate with the gorgeous weather as it was sunny all the way down. We were pretty dang tired so we set up tent there by the river for a second night. This time we got far from the parking lot and bundled up as warm as we could. We slept right until the sun hit the tent. With the pitch of the valley sides, this wasn't until 9:30. A few minutes drive down the road we look back to see the tire completely flat. With no flat slots to change it, we had a wonderful time with the Jeep falling off the jack no mater how many blocks we pit in front of the tires. An hour later we're rolling down and head to the gas station with wifi. Giving James his internet fix, we got ourselves some greasy burgers. We went to Dillon Lake to check out the highest sail club in the states. After searching a owner seeking a crew with no success we headed to Dillon Dam Brewery. The Brown was amazing, kinda like a lighter chocolate stout. Asking the bartender, we found another brewery only a few blocks away, Pug Ryan's. James walked up to the bar and ordered the Kiltlifter. "Oh Jaka, you flatah meh" bartender. Oh and, "when I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race" HG Wells. Moving on, we walked off the alcohol with a wade in the alpine lake. Continuing the Tour de Brassiere, we arrived in Fresco for Backcountry Brewery. The Switchback Amber was a great marzen. The bar physics debate ensued; Jake +1. We found another sailboat marina here at the other end of the lake and are wondering how the other claims the highest when it obviously shares the title. We drove to Kite Lake saving the Breckenridge Brewery as a reward for the next hike.