Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock makes a nice little hike when the winter's moved into the high country.

Blue Monday

Our World Tuesday

Electricity Pylon

Here's a random photo I took for Skywatch Friday, of an electricity pylon in Pulpit Rock Park. These blue skies are very common here year-round - we get over 3,000 hours of sunshine a year, more than anywhere in Europe.

Top of Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock is a fun winter hike; it stays snow-free most of the year because it's low in elevation. And it's got some great views from the top - this is looking towards Pikes Peak.

Don't look down if you're afraid of heights.

It's got some great columns at the top.

I think these ones look like stone mushrooms.

Coming back down you can see the steep cliffs that form two sides of the peak. Luckily you don't have to climb these to get to the top.

Our World Tuesday

Peak Skies

This photo was taken for Skywatch Friday on a short Saturday hike, with fresh snow on the Peak and those beautiful Colorado blue skies.

Pulpit Rock (3)

Following up from my last Skywatch Friday post, here are some views of Pulpit Rock in its entirety. First, a photo from before I entered the trees.

Here's a shot from the side - do you see the people at the top, on the left high point? They don't look very big. I'll show you views from up there in another post.

And finally a complete shot from the trail.

Our World Tuesday

Pulpit Rock (2)

For Skywatch Friday, here's another view of Pulpit Rock from a little further back.

Soon I'll show you a photo of the whole thing...

Pulpit Rock (1)

This is a small part of Pulpit Rock, in Colorado Springs.

Skywatch Friday

Sun, Snow, & Pulpit Rock

For my weekly Skywatch Friday post, here's a post from a hike near Pulpit Rock looking right into the sun.

I always find it a challenge getting something worthwhile shooting directly into the sun, but it can make for some fun.

Winter in Pulpit Rock Park

As winter moves in, I still like to go for hikes, although closer to town rather than in the mountains since the lower elevation means higher temperatures and less snow. Here are some photos from a hike in Pulpit Rock Park last winter, a few miles north of downtown Colorado Springs.

As you can see water freezes in the winter. But we still get our common blue skies!

In the summer this would be a small stream.

It's not really as cold as it looks, it's usually well above freezing in the day, so I chose areas that don't get much sunlight for these photos. They're a frozen entry for the great Our World Tuesday meme, as well as having lots of shadows for Shadow Shot Sunday.

And since I won't likely be posting again for a couple of days, I want to wish all my readers a Happy New Year!

Simple Blue Skies

Here's a set of simple blue skies for this week's Skywatch Friday entry. These were all taken over the last couple of weeks on short hikes with Socks, the first in Pulpit Rock park, and the last two in the nearby Black Forest Regional Park this past Saturday. These are the skies we see most of the winter - we're lucky as the mountains shield us from most bad weather.

Pulpit Rock Plants

I enjoyed seeing a variety of plant life at Pulpit Rock. In places it was dry enough for wild cacti.

Other places it was wet enough for beautiful, overarching trees.

While at times scraggly pine trees were struggling to hold on wherever they could.

All this on a trail that's maybe a mile in length - variety is the word here. To see lots more variety, visit My World Tuesday.

Hoodoos and Views

Just a few miles down the interstate in northern Colorado Springs is the Pulpit Rock park - the main rock formation is clearly visible as you drive by. At the top are various spires which probably qualify as hoodoos.

Even the non-hoodoo rocks are interesting and varied.

And the views are great! The interstate is visible in this picture, starting in the middle-right of the photo and leading left and slightly up.

This makes a nice off-season hike - it's not very long, and because it's lower altitude it's often free of snow. And it's my Scenic Sunday post for the week.

Pulpit Socks

From my recent climb up Pulpit Rock, here's a photo of my hiking buddy Socks near the top (hence the bad pun in the title). He'll hike for miles, and handles steep terrain better than I do.

This little critter is an important part of my world, and that's why he's my entry for the My World Tuesday meme again. Visit it today!

Pulpit Rock From Below

This week's Skywatch Friday posts contains some photos from a hike I took on Sunday up Pulpit Rock, which is one of many parks in the city of Colorado Springs. These photographs show the rock from below - Socks and I made it to the top, and I'll have other assorted photos later. The weather was beautiful - a few clouds, warm but not too hot. This first shot is looking south towards Pulpit Rock.

The next one was taken part way up, looking at the very top.

And finally, after descending on the other side, here's a photo looking back towards it (looking north).

For more upward-looking photos, visit the Skywatch Friday meme.

Pulpit Rock

A couple of weeks ago, before the big snows, I hiked up Pulpit Rock, which sits right off I-25 in Colorado Springs; it's a convenient hike when time is limited. As the name implies, It's basically a big rock, as seen in this photo.

The trail becomes quite steep towards the top. Socks loves to come with me on hikes and for such a small dog, he's amazing at bounding up and down these rocks.

From the top there is a panoramic view of the Front Range. Pikes Peak is in the center-right of this picture.

There are some interesting rock formations at the top.