52 Hike Challenge

Summer time for me is time for being outdoors and hiking, and taking photos. In the winter I spend most of the time inside, crocheting. So in summer I like to get outside as much as possible. And given my state of mental health while raising 3 kids, it is a necessity for us in the summer time! This year I implemented our usual "Weekly Schedule" of a theme everyday. Monday is "MOPS Monday" Then we have Take a Hike Tuesday, Watch it Wednesday, Thoughtful Thursday and Fun Friday. It's been great at keeping us on a rough schedule. Nothing is really concrete, but we have some guidance as to what we are going to do that day.

This year I took on the task of helping out a friend with her boys during the summer. She works part time and needed a place for her boys just a couple days a week. I figured, easy enough! We did it last year 1 day a week when we went to the movies, so this year it was an easy transition. Also, because our friend Jan is helping out on the other day, Tuesday. Which I named Take a Hike Tuesday because Jan and I both like hiking and being outdoors, but it has really just turned into take a trip to the pool with Jan Tuesday!  lol. Which of course I'm totally Ok with!  Thoughtful Thursday we usually spend at home. We just hang out and relax. This is basically the one day a week we don't plan anything. It's nice to have this day.

I also wanted us to get outside everyday if we could. I love taking pictures and in the summer I try to follow some daily photo prompts to keep me taking pictures. One Instagram account I came across this summer is named @52hikechallenge and it challenges folks to do one hike a week for a full year. I thought, I can do that!  I mean after all I used to be a park ranger. Plus we live in Colorado where there are about a million hikes available to us in just a short drive. So I figured why not!  I added up the hikes we had already done this summer, and it equaled out to about a hike every week. So this is my official line up thus far. And I'll try to use this to keep track of all the hikes we do this year. I'm really shooting for 1 a week, but it may get harder once school is in session and the days get cooler. But then again I will only have to take 1 or 2 kids instead of all three!  Here we Go!

Hike #1: Horsetooth Falls, 5/27/15

Hike #2: Horsetooth Reservoir. 5/28/15

Hike #3: Devil's Backbone Guided Hike 6/2/15

Hike #4: Landscape Arch, Arches NP 6/6/15

Hike #5: Sapphire Point, Frisco 6/13/15

Hike #6: Dillon Reservoir, Frisco 6/14/15

Hike #7: Rocky Mountain National Park: Sprague Lake and Alpine Trail 6/21/15

Hike #8: Horsetooth Rock, 7/11/15

I missed a few weeks in there while we were in Indiana, but we had done a few hikes on back-to-back days earlier in the summer to make up for it. From here on out I'm shooting for 1 a week. Let's see how I do!