Above ten thousand feet, April showers don't bring May flowers. They bring more snow, making hikes especially surreal. On this day, it was nearly fifty degrees as I was hiking above Nymph Lake to Dream Lake. I never made it, though, as I'd forgotten to pack my actual hiking boots and had to turn back.
Sometimes, the fastest way down is also the most fun... This ledge, just above Nymph Lake, provides a natural sliding surface. People climb up a nearby, shallower path, then slide down, making for a fun way to get back down the mountains.
Growing out of the prairies of Kansas, these flowers stand like sentries, waiting for a future time when they are accepted everywhere.