We had a great Fourth of July weekend… one of the best in memory.

Our weekend started with a return to McCullough Gulch. A month and a half has made a huge difference. For one, we drove to the trail head, instead of hiking the 2+ miles in snowshoes.

Here’s Kate entering the gate, that in mid-May was nearly covered in snow.

And we got a chance to see the old cabin uncovered.

In May we were the only ones, but on this busy holiday weekend, we saw several fellow hikers on the trail. The trail leads to a great set of waterfalls, still partially covered in snow.

You can see one of the snow “bridges” at the top.

This is Kate’s favorite spot… she could lay on that rock ALL day long.

And just a bit further up the trail you can see where all this water is coming from… a small, pristine high alpine lake.

Kate by the lake. I ended up hiking to the peak just behind the lake.

Part of the lake is still lined with snow.

Now most people stop here and then head back down, but we were in the adventurous spirit and decided to head further into the gulch. The trail was very faint, mostly hidden under snow, and required a few river crossings along with a touch of bouldering. So even though we got “lost” a few times, we’d usually find a cairn and rejoin the trail.

Here’s a few from as far as I got… facing towards the Mosquito Ridge at the back of the gulch.

And here’s a view down the valley that we hiked up.

Over all it was a great hike… although we overheard a few hikers complaining that it wasn’t the “easy” hike that the trail book suggested it was. It was certainly easier than Quandary, but if you’re not used to the altitude, I can see it being a “moderate” hike… but the views at the top make it well worth it.

That night we went downtown, had some pizza and had a front row seat to the fireworks show. It was the first time I can remember the explosions happening right over our heads… the pictures don’t do it justice (I wasn’t really paying attention to picture taking, just staring up).

Hope your holiday weekend was fun!