This may be my only significant day hike of this leg of my trip: I start a 5-day backpacking trip on Friday, and the poor weather (cold, snow, rain) is now forecast to take up all of Tue, Wed, and Thur. So, I'll have plenty of work time!
The hike to Comanche Lake is about 4.5 miles and 2,600 ft of elevation gain. It's a very popular trail, and it being labor day, several backpacking parties were camped at the lake when I arrived there this morning. I saw two blacktail fawns near the trailhead, plus the usual assortment of small friends: rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, marmots, and a stellers jay (one of my favorite birds).
If my upcoming backpacking trip goes as planned, I'll pass by this area again, on the ridge above the lake. After my hike today, I went into Westcliffe to eat lunch and pick up a few things, since I'll likely be snowed in the next couple days.
While I was hiking, the whole Wet Mountain Valley was filling with smoke from fires to the north. Here's the view from my deck:
Looks like I won't be seeing the Sangres for a few days, between today's smoke and the storm coming tomorrow.
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