Finally...

The snow has melted, I wasn't on call for work, and we didn't have any plans already made. Finally, we were able to hike a 14er. If you would've told me last year that it was going to take me until the first week of August to hike a 14er I would've said you're crazy. But between an insanely high snowpack, traveling, and Drew's new addiction to climbing, it did take that long.

Today we hiked Mt Huron in the Sawatch range. Not only was it a great hike with awesome views and beautiful weather, we were lucky enough to hike it with some old friends. My friends from college, Steve and Caroline, just moved to Denver from Gainesville. When Drew and I arrived in CO last year the first thing our friends did was haul our butts up a 14er and it was an incredible introduction into what this state has to offer. We figured it was only fair to do the same to Steve and Caroline. They did awesome, especially given their lack of time to acclimatize (they only got to CO four days ago). We also hiked with another friend from college, Josh, who is staying in Colorado Springs for a few weeks doing some training before he moves to Uganda in the fall. Josh is always fun to have around, especially because he freely gives back rubs. Rounding out the group was Brett, my friend since preschool, who is the closest thing I know to a Colorado native because she's lived here for two years. Here's a picture of Brett experiencing Josh's generosity on the summit:

And let's not forget Bogey, the best hiker of them all. He probably hiked the equivalent of three 14ers today for all the running up and down the trail he does. I couldn't even get a good picture of him because he wouldn't stop moving long enough.

Here are a couple pictures of the view from the summit at 14,003 ft, and a group shot at the end of the hike.

Mt Huron was definitely my favorite 14er that I've done so far. It was #4 for me and #6 for Drew and Bogey. I hope to fit in at least a couple more before the summer is over...

Drew's fun fact: Hippo milk is pink.