• John Muir Trail
  • High Sierra Trail
  • About
  • Flickr
Thoughtfully Awesome logoThoughtfully Awesome logo
  • John Muir Trail
  • High Sierra Trail
  • About
  • Flickr

  • Santa Rosa Island,
    Channel Islands National Park, CA

  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 6

  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 5

  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 4

▾ scroll down for more ▾

Wanderings and things

Santa Rosa Island,
Channel Islands National Park, CA

The High Sierra Trail:
Day 6

The High Sierra Trail:
Day 5

The High Sierra Trail:
Day 4

The High Sierra Trail:
Day 3

The High Sierra Trail:
Day 2

The High Sierra Trail:
Day 1

Ice Lake Basin,
San Juan Mountains, CO

16 days on the John Muir Trail
Video

Bison Peak
Lost Creek Wilderness, CO

Grass Mountain,
Los Padres National Forest, CA

Picket Wire Canyon,
Comanche National Grassland, CO

Winter on the Abyss Trail,
Mount Evans Wilderness, CO

White Rock Loop,
Red Rock Canyon, NV

Load More
Search

Categories

  • Backpacking
  • Day Hikes
  • Hiking
  • The High Sierra Trail
  • The John Muir Trail
  • Travel

The Latest

  • Santa Rosa Island,
    Channel Islands National Park, CA     March 13, 2017
  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 6     July 23, 2016
  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 5     July 22, 2016
  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 4     July 21, 2016
  • The High Sierra Trail:
    Day 3     July 20, 2016

Instagram

Life changed a year ago for everyone that lives in Life changed a year ago for everyone that lives in and loves Grand Lake as the #easttroublesomefire became the fastest moving fire in US history and plowed through our community - running 20 miles in 2 hours. Today was a tough one to process and get through. Life was marked a year ago. As a friend @jules.zane said so well - there is now life before the fire, and life after the fire. What I feel today, beyond the sadness, is immense gratitude to the firefighters on the ground during that nightmare of a night, watching their community and the homes of friends and family…even their own homes go up in flames. The firefighters that took the time to remove our American flag from its post by our front door to keep it from burning and put it safely in a neighbors backyard, the firefighters that put out the fire on our roof and within a foot of 3 sides of our home, that put out the fire on our home as it consumed every home across the street from us. What a tragic decision that must have been. Neighbors listening to the scanner heard them say “we can’t save the houses on the right, save the houses on the left”. That was us. The left. What a horrible decision to leave them to burn. Immense gratitude to all of the first responders. Immense gratitude to the community. It’s true that disaster brings people together, and I’m so grateful for the new friendships that rose out of these ashes, and everyone we connected with - even just through Instagram - because of the fire. I love this community. I love these mountains and lakes. This place digs into your soul and takes root. Tonight I feel gratitude to those that fought, and heartfelt condolences to those that lost everything. 💞
Squad goals. These ladies can outrun any living th Squad goals. These ladies can outrun any living thing on planet earth…except for cheetahs. Don’t mind the creepy dude in the background, ladies. Keep strutting. #pronghorn
Fondly remembering our 5 minutes of fall 😉 #far Fondly remembering our 5 minutes of fall 😉 #farleythefox
Chased winter this weekend with @ohamylynnn ❄️ Chased winter this weekend with @ohamylynnn ❄️❄️❄️ #coloRADo #rmnp
Last week I made it up to the high country in the Last week I made it up to the high country in the Spanish Peaks of Montana one last time before the snow flew the next day. It was a letdown of a season to say the least - but my 2nd neck surgery is finally happening in 3 weeks, so I’m hoping that next year I’ll be back to normal and will be chasing big days and long trails all summer. Until then, I’m thankful for this perfect day as a sign-off to the summer of false hopes. ☀️ #madisonrange #leemetcalfwilderness #montana
Rainy encounter with this big boi 🤎 He was mov Rainy encounter with this big boi 🤎 He was moving fast along the Snake River, nose to the air, looking for his next meal. #grizzlybear
Wolf from the Junction Butte Pack running the ridg Wolf from the Junction Butte Pack running the ridge after sunset. Shortly after this, as darkness really settled in, the entire pack began a long, drawn out serenade - echoing down into the Lamar Valley for nearly 20 minutes as the moon rose. These are the moments in life you can never forget. The are the moments that make life worth living. 💫 As you read this, wolves in Montana, Idaho, and Wisconsin are being massacred in shocking numbers since @potus and @secdebhaaland sided with the Trump administration and removed gray wolves from the endangered species list. 3 members of this wolves family have already been killed. Hundreds have been murdered. Please take action at RelistWolves.org and give a voice to the voiceless. 🐺 #relistwolves #wolf
Another fall Yelllowstone/Montana photo trip in th Another fall Yelllowstone/Montana photo trip in the books. 32 wolves, 4 bears, an absurd number of foxes (enough that I’m pretty sure someone was trying to tell me something), plenty of other critters, snow, rain, shorts weather, fall colors, steamy thermal mornings, frigid nights, hot beverages, one last hike to the high country before the snow flew, 1 failed hard drive (let’s hope I can recover the photos from the first half of the trip), 1 lost cell phone while photographing bears (thanks to my Apple Watch I went back and tracked it down in the soaking rain later). As much as I love heading north, nothing beats coming back home to coloRADo… if they only brought grizzlies back to CO I’d never have to leave! #homesweethome
Load More... Follow on Instagram
All content and images © Erica Ruch 1993-Infinity | Site by Erica Ruch Studios