Respect the trail. That's what everyone says. Well, when you look at the topo map, and the thing looks pretty short (3 mi.) and pretty flat, what happens? You don't bring enough water, and you end up landing hard on both ankles and turning your thigh muscles into a trauma zone, that's what.
This then, is the trail to Lake Constantine in Colorado's Holy Cross Wilderness, a helluva a place for a nicejewishboy, and the lake itself a still-unattained goal.
Nice view, huh? That rock you see off to the left flattens out into a little shelf, and at one point, I mean little. There's a scene in Serenity where the pilot talks himself into confidence during a, ah, challenging landing, by repeating over and over, "I am a leaf on the wind." "I am an ant on a superhighway," works well here.
Just some of the view available to those not suffering from heat stroke.
Kids, Don't drink this! Even on an empty stomach, giardia is a very, very bad idea.
This actually is the trail at this point. The dog, of course, wants to get wet, since it's hot, and he's thirsty, and he's wearing a fur coat. Naturally, in a cruel irony, the point of crossing for people wearing shoes is to stay dry.
"Well if you had a pack mule along, why didn't you just ride him?" Very funny.
And here we are, down at the bottom. There's a "No Trespassing" sign on the house next to this viaduct. I assume they have a problem with people climbing on it or hiking to where it hits the side of the mountain to get cool perspective photos. They needn't have worried. All I wanted was to get back to Minturn and buy water, Gatorade, water, cranberry juice, water, and iced tea. And a power bar.