Chasm Lake

My first hike ever in Rocky Mountain National Park took me partway up Longs Peak to jaw-dropping Chasm Lake. The trail begins below the tree line then steadily gains elevation, switchbacking above it. Pleated granite formations rise above snowfields on the approach to the icy lake, which was still mostly frozen over. Distant mountain peaks of the continental divide are all that puncture the isolation.

Before leaving the park, a ranger led a short tour to see a small patch of Calypso Orchids growing wild in the alpine forest. Tiny, delicate, and colorful, the flowers' beauty on a microscopic scale nearly matched the grandness of the mountains.