Don’t tell my scoutmaster, but I got lost, even with a map. I had gotten up early to scout out a place that I want to go Backpacking at some point, but in my haste, I turned onto the wrong trail. The day was ruined!
Clearly ruined. Only joking of course! I had been planning to hike up to the Willow Lakes, an area that my boss had recommended and that looks splendid! However, I had other plans, and took the path to Willow Falls, between Red Peak and Buffalo Mountain, just north of I-70 at Silverthorne.
I had recently gotten a new lens, so I used it almost exclusively on this hike! It’s a Samayang 85mm f1.4, meaning it is a bit longer of a lens than I normally used, with a very shallow depth of field, meaning I can get some great bokeh (blurry foreground/background) with it!
It was a peaceful hike, following South willow creek up the valley it carved to the saddle between the peaks around it. The waterfall itself was long and cascading, meaning I couldn’t figure out how to take a good picture of it.
I only saw one other group on my way up, and they were on their way down after spending the night in the saddle. I saw a group of deer too, I assume they had camped the night as well, and these guys:
I hike about 4-5 miles up, then turned around to get back to town for lunch.
Someday I’ll make it back to Willow Lakes, but I’m glad I made a wrong turn so I could explore somewhere unexpected!
Thanks for reading, let me know your favorite pictures!
–Legs
cameronfedde 