creation

Cirque of the Towers

moremarsh1 Comment

The fourth year of summer backpacking trips, and this was maybe the best one yet! The Cirque of the Towers is a 23 mile loop in Wyoming, with two passes and endless lakes. This trail was a really beautiful place to spend a few days out of the heat and poor air quality that Colorado was experiencing this summer. It was definitely a trek to get there, but well worth it!

  • Packs on! Ready to rock and roll!

We drove to the trailhead on a Wednesday morning starting around 6am and made it to the trailhead before noon. We made sure to stop at the last gas station to get snacks and gas before we would be out of service for several days. (And we were glad we stopped for gas because we likely wouldn’t have made it back if we didn’t go with a full tank of gas.)

The first day was a fairly chill day of hiking, though it was a long day with a 6 hour drive. Once we made it to the trailhead, we hiked for about 7.5 miles. It was an elevation gain of 1,200 feet but it felt mostly gradual and flat. This took us about 4 hours to complete and then we went to work setting up tents, unpacking food, and making dinner for the night. The first night is always the hardest because you have to fit the most food back into your bear can and you are just not into the rhythm of setting up camp yet. So the set up of our tents and getting settled took a little longer than normal, but it was nice to be back on the trail and at a beautiful lake!

Campsite at Marm’s Lake the first night.

BUT THE STARS that first night were incredible! We have been lucky to have some really awesome sky views on several of our backpacking trips, and this was another great night! I highly recommend bringing a friend who has to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom so that they will wake you up and tell you to come look at the stars. It will be 1000% worth it. Promise. The pictures below are good but still don’t capture the magnificence of the stars in the middle of nowhere!

The second day was our easy day with a short 4 mile hike and a 500 foot elevation gain. So we took an easy and slow morning, and then spent the day chilling by our new home near Shadow Lake. We absolutely loved this lake! It was so peaceful! Plus, there weren’t a ton of people camping around that area, so we had plenty of space. We enjoyed the afternoon and evening, as we prepared for our big day next.

Day 3 was our hard day – 2 passes, 7 miles, and over 2,000 feet of elevation gain. …except that it ended up being closer to 9.5 miles and 2,500 feet of elevation gain. You see, the day started out well. We got all packed up and ready fairly quickly (for a crew of 7) and headed to the passes. We knew we needed to pack enough water to get over both passes because the water at the lake in the middle of the passes (Lonesome Lake) was not drinkable even with a filter. We also knew that we were likely going to have all sun and no clouds again, so we wanted to get up and over those passes sooner rather than later.

We made it to the base of the first pass at a decent time, but took a short break where we learned that there was a missing mom and 2 daughters somewhere. We thought we saw them with our binoculars but it turned out to not be them. (Long story short… it all turned out ok and everyone was found and reunited, but it did take some of our precious cool-air morning time. But we are so glad they are okay!) The first pass, Texas Pass, was definitely the hardest one. We spent a lot of time getting up and over this pass. There was a little bit of a snow field still left on the other side that we had to cross but it wasn’t terrible.

We made it to the bottom of Texas Pass and to the lake we couldn’t drink from. We decided it was time for lunch. We found a few shady trees and took a little bit of a break. It was getting really hot at this point so we really enjoyed the shade. Most of us put on more sunscreen and long sleeves after lunch so that we wouldn’t get too burned.

The second pass, Jackass Pass, was not as hard to get over though it was hot. Once we got over this pass, we headed down to Arrowhead Lake… and this is where things got tricky. There were two directions we could have taken: (1) up, around, and over the lake or (2) in the shade through the boulder field. We obviously chose the boulder field because we were so done with the sun at this point in the day. It didn’t look too terrible, but once we got into it, we realized there was not a way over the boulders with our packs on. This was devastating. We had spent so much time already over on this side of the lake and now we needed to filter more water and go the long way, adding another 2.5 miles to our journey. We were not excited.

At the top of Jackass Pass.

Once we regrouped and decided to go around, the only thing we could do is to just keep going. There was not another option and we needed to make it past this lake and the next lake before arriving at our destination for the night. It was long, and hot, and honestly really not enjoyable at all. But we made it… eventually. The only bummer was that by the time we made it to Big Sandy Lake, it was about 7pm and all the good camping spots were taken. So it took us a while to find a spot where we could all fit and ended up hiking to the far side of the lake.

Overall, day 3 was beautiful but also really long and tiring. I don’t know how we could have split it up any more than we did, but I am glad we made it. We were all so glad to finally be at the campsite. Plus it was finally a warm night (maybe even too warm). It was nice not to have to shiver all night in the cold though!

Our final day was a quick 5.5 mile hike out and all downhill. It was a very easy hike out which was nice. And then we headed straight to Big Sandy Lodge to get burgers! We loved that they had a lodge right by the trailhead because the next place for food would be several hours away. They were so kind and it was some really great food!

As a whole, I would recommend the Cirque of the Towers and I would do it again some day too! Some people do this trip in less time than we did, but I enjoyed getting time at each lake and time to slow down a little. Backpacking trips always make me so thankful to God, who created all of these beautiful places for us to explore!

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the expanse proclaims the work of his hands. Day after day they pour out speech; night after night they communicate knowledge. — Psalms 19:1-2 (CSB)

The Mountains Are Calling.

moremarsh6 Comments

I grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado and loved my childhood. It included building snow-forts, sledding down our neighborhood hill, playing baseball in our backyard, running cross country at my high school, and countless friends enjoying our basement, which was full of games and adventure!

I don’t think I really realized the joy of living in Colorado until I left for college. I went to school at Oklahoma Baptist University to run on their track and cross country team. I loved my team and have some great memories from that place. But the question I got every time I met someone new was, “Why did you leave Colorado?”

My mom always said the same thing. Both of my parents grew up in Texas and much of our family still lives there. We moved from Texas to Colorado when I was four, so I don’t really remember much of Texas.

I ended up back in Texas after college to work at The Village Church in the middle school ministry. It was a dream job! I have felt called to student ministry since my senior year of college. That’s when I began to look for internships at churches so I could learn more about life in ministry and gain some hands on experience. Joining the staff at The Village was an incredible opportunity to grow, learn, and get the experience I needed.

I intended to only be in Dallas for the one year internship and then move again. But God had different plans. He allowed me to stay, grow, and be planted there for five years, almost exactly to the day.

During those five years I grew in my understanding of God and in my experience as a Bible teacher, and I grew to deeply love the Church, Christ’s Bride. I also went through trials during these years, like anxiety and depression, loss of friendships, and difficult health issues. Yet, God also allowed me to get to know some incredible people I would call family for the rest of my life.

Towards the end of last year (around October) I started to feel the Lord calling me into something new but I wasn’t sure what it was. I thought it was a new season at TVC, but once Covid hit, I thought maybe it was simply a different pace in student ministry and a time to rest. I continued to feel like the Lord was asking me to transition, but I was unsure what door He would open.

As summer began (and all of our events were canceled for students) I had some time in Colorado planned. My first trip was a backpacking trip with some friends. During this trip, I was able to spend some time asking God what He was doing in my life and where He wanted me to walk. Was it something new at TVC? Was it something new with students? Was it in a new place? I returned from that trip with a lot of questions and very few answers.

“Go to the place I will send you.”

I began to pray and fast, seeking more specific answers from God. And slowly, the Lord opened up doors. I was still really confused on what to do specifically and what he was doing, mostly because there seemed to be two really great doors opened to me.

When you come to a crossroad in life, what do you do? Well, if you are like me, you are first grateful for the options but also terrified of choosing the wrong one. Because of this, I needed some time and space to process and pray. I didn’t want to stay or go or move at all unless the Lord was in it.

So I prayed.

And prayed.

And prayed.

I asked some close friends to pray with and for me.

And then I prayed some more.

Slowly, He began to remind me of my childhood, of a people I love, of the place I go every time I get a free weekend and friend willing to join an adventure. He began to open up doors for a move back to my home state, just one hour from home.

This is a sweet gift. One I did not accept lightly. It was the most difficult decision I have had to make to this day. And yet, God was in it all. He guided me through conversations with others and by His word. He led me beside quiet waters to restore me and remind me that I belong to Him. He led me as a good shepherd does, reminding me that no matter where I go, He is the same God.

It was hard to say goodbye to friends in Texas, and even harder to say goodbye to those friends I call family. But I know that we still worship the same God. I know that God is still with them even when I can’t be there with them physically. I trust that God will watch over them just as He is watching over me.

Overall, I am grateful even amidst the sad and hard goodbyes. I’m grateful because God led me back to a place my heart has desired to go, to minister to a people a long to see redeemed, and to a place I feel the closest to God. He has called me to this place and given me a confidence that this is where I am to be planted right now.

My prayer for Colorado (and Arvada) is that they would know the God who molded the mountains, formed the forests, and spoke the stars into being. My prayer is that the people of Colorado would not just enjoy His creation but would recognize that there is a Creator, who also made them.

Would you join me in praying for this people (my neighbors) to know, love, and worship the one true God?! He is more than able! I am confident that He has called me and others to this place to be ministers of the gospel here, and to bring hope to a dark and dying world. I am eager to see God work and excited to join all that He is doing!

‘Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.

Jeremiah 32:17 (ESV)

Belford and Oxford.

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This post is a continuation of our backpacking experience, but it also stands alone as a play-by-play of our double 14er day hike up Mt Belford and Mt Oxford.

We woke up pretty early after a shorter night of sleep due to our lack of planning and a strenuous night hike into our camping location the night before. Because of this, our group split up and two of us went on the adventure for the day while the others spent the day resting and enjoying the fresh mountain air.

We began at 7:28am from our campsite, which was right below the treeline at about 11,000 feet elevation. This is the latest I’ve ever started a 14er, but we also were technically almost halfway up it already! It was an additional bonus to be able to hike during the daylight for the entire trek!

We made it to the first summit (Mt. Belford) by 9:45am, which is a 2 hour 17 minute time. It was faster than I was expecting us to go, but it felt nice to have one mountain down before 10am…and before the wind picked up.

Mt. Belford – 14,197ft. My 11th Colorado 14er.

We enjoyed some PB&J uncrustables at the top (which always taste the best on top of a mountain for whatever reason), and then started down the saddle towards our second mountain for the day, Mt. Oxford. The saddle took us just over an hour to complete (summiting at 11:30am), and it was extremely windy. The wind was the hardest and worst part of the day since it never really let up and we were completely exposed on the tops of the mountains and on the saddle.

Mt. Oxford – 14,153ft. My 12th Colorado 14er.

At the top of Mt. Oxford there is a small hole that you can sit in to be protected from the wind. This gave us a chance to catch our breath and consider how incredible the views are from the top of the world… as well as consider the goodness of the Lord knowing that every peak we could see belongs to Him!

For the Lord is the great God,
    the great King above all gods.
 In his hand are the depths of the earth,
    and the mountain peaks belong to him.

Psalm 95:3-4 (NIV)
One of my favorite pictures from our hike!

The only bummer about the Belford/Oxford combo is that you have to hike back up Belford in order to get down. There is no other way. So technically, we hiked three 14ers in one day. 😉

(The saddle. The trail is on the ridge on the left side of the picture. This is a picture taken from Oxford looking across to Belford. The Belford summit is the tallest point in the picture, which is the circular rock area at the center of the photo.)

We began the hike down the saddle and back over to Belford at 12pm and made it just under an hour, faster than our way over which we were impressed with! The backside of Belford is a beast! It is one of the steepest hikes I’ve done, making it difficult for both the way up and the way down.

Once we arrived at the summit of Belford for the second time, we took a nice, long break, enjoyed some food, talked with others who had just made it to the summit, took in the incredible views, and let the sun warm up our faces. The sun felt so nice after being in the wind for so long. We took our sweet time up there knowing that we only had a few hours left and it would likely be in the wind…again.

We began our descent at 1:46pm and made it to the campsite by 3:38pm, just under 2 hours. Our total time on the mountain was 8 hours and 10 minutes, though our actual hiking time was 6 hours and 23 minutes.

Overall, this was a great day of hiking and we kept an awesome pace all day. We also saw a TON of marmots and the tiniest chipmunks you have ever seen! This was a really fun addition to our day! The marmots seemed to be continually following us up the mountain and we were totally okay with that!

At the end of the day, here are some words we used to describe our hike: Difficult. Majestic. Hard. Content. Achieving. Perspective. Thankful.

Everytime I make it to the top of another 14er, I am filled with feelings of gratitude and awe. Gratitude for those who make the journey with me. Gratitude for God to give us mountains to climb, legs to walk, and lungs to breath (even if it’s very minimal amounts of oxygen). Gratitude for surviving at least half of the hike. Gratitude for being able to experience a view that very few people ever get the opportunity to see with their own eyes. And awe that God allows us to experience His creation at this level.

Mountains make me feel small and remind me that God is big! They show me that God is majestic. I was reading in J.I. Packer’s book Knowing God this week and he says, “The word majesty, when applied to God, is always a declaration of his greatness and an invitation to worship.” This is what the mountains do. They declare the greatness of God and invite us to worship Him because of this greatness!

Today, I’m thankful for friends who hike mountains with me for over 8 hours, and a God who is gracious and kind towards us in allowing us to experience His creation at new levels!

How to Hike a 14er

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I love hiking and going on outdoor adventures! One of my favorite adventures has been learning to hike 14ers. 14ers are mountains that are over 14,000 ft in elevation and Colorado has 54 of them (give or take depending on how you classify them, but that’s not a necessary conversation here). Anyways, I have hiked, as of 2019, 10 of these 14ers in Colorado and my goal is to hike them all!

I love bringing people with me when I hike. Yes, that is mostly because it is dangerous to hike alone, but it also allows others to experience something great too! Many times these friends are ones who have never hiked a 14er before, and they have all made it to the top! So in this post, I wanted to give some tips for hiking and preparing to hike a 14er for all the friends that will go with me on an adventure one day!

  1. Find someone to hike with. Obviously you want to find a buddy to go hiking with you, but it is even more helpful if you can find someone who has hiked, climbed, or backpacked before …especially if you have never done those things! This friend will be a major help along the way, both with tips and encouragement.
  2. Get in shape! You don’t have to be in the best shape of your life to hike a 14er. Mountains have a variety of types (or “classes”) of routes. These routes all vary in difficulty meaning that there are easily mountains that are much shorter than a 14,000 ft but are classified at a much higher rank in difficulty. Just because you are hiking a 14er doesn’t mean you are hiking the biggest, baddest mountain out there….just the one with the best view (in my opinion). So prepare for this adventure by getting in shape. Go on a walk every day for a few miles at a steady, quick pace. Going for a run a few times a week is even better! Do some lunges, run some stairs, swim a few laps, hit the bleechers. Anything that is going to get you working at a level with less oxygen than normal is the key. Be consistent with your training and remember the joy you will have at the top of the mountain! That is your motivation!
  3. Drink water! At least one week before you hike, you need to start drinking more water than normal. This is essential for anyone just going to visit a high altitude location, and so it is life saving for those going to an even higher altitude (aka: 14,000 ft above sea level)! Drink lots of water, and then drink more. My coach in college used to tell us, “Drink water like it’s your job.” So do that.
  4. Know the mountain. Before you head out to the trailhead, you need to do some research! Every mountain has multiple routes. Study the route you want to take and know where the trailhead begins. Check out 14ers.com or alltrails.com to see recent reports from people who have hiked. Learn from their mistakes and take their advice!
  5. Gather your gear. Each 14er is different and the length of the trails and difficulties are also different. So for longer hikes you will need to bring more food and a wider variety of clothing. But here’s a general list that should get you through most one-day 14er hikes: camelback backpack (if you have this, it’s a life saver!), 1-2 extra water bottles in your pack, easy access snacks (granola bars, fruit snacks, apple, trail mix, PB sandwich, etc. …things you can eat while you walk), sunscreen, first aid kit, toilet paper, ziplock bags (for trash…pack it and keep it with you please!), LAYERS (tshirt, long sleeve shirt, jacket, rain jacket, etc.), hat/sunglasses, hiking boots (or good running shoes will work if it’s an easier 14er), hiking poles (optional), headlamp, good socks, gloves (if you are like me and have Elsa hands that are always cold) and of course, a sign that has the name of the 14er along with the height so you can take a picture at the top!
  6. HIKE! Now you are ready to hike! Before you head out for the day, make sure to check the weather! Storms tend to roll in around 2pm in Colorado most afternoons. Therefore, you need to summit before the storm arrives. My personal rule is to summit every mountain before noon. So if you are doing a double or triple, you must leave early. The most common call for a rescue from the top of 14ers is due to lightening, so please, please, stay safe and forget about the summit if a storm rolls in unexpectedly early. Now, when I say start early, I mean early. I typically want to be at the trailhead by at least 5am, but that changes depending on the difficulty of the mountain, the number of peaks, and the weather. So just be smart and start as early as you can. (Which is why you need a headlamp because it will be cold and dark.)

So friends, those are my tips for having a great 14er hike! It really is worth it! Our God created these tall mountains, and I pray that as you stand on the top, you would realize how vast and unsearchable our God is! He is bigger than the mountains and yet He knows every detail of our lives! We will never understand all that He is and yet we can know Him personally. And I praise God, that He has given us mountains to enjoy and incredible views to see His creation! May the Lord bless you and keep you on your journey!

Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;
    let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before him with thanksgiving
    and extol him with music and song.
For the Lord is the great God,
    the great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth,
    and the mountain peaks belong to him.
The sea is his, for he made it,
    and his hands formed the dry land.

Psalm 95:1-5