Lookout Mountain lies west of Fort Collins, high up along Buckthorn Road
        near Pingree Park.  From its summit, you can see Estes Park to the south, the
        Never Summer Range to the west, the Medicine Bow Mountains to the North,
        and Greyrock and Ft Collins to the west.  For all of these reasons it is aptly named.
        I have made five trips to the area, and made it to the summit three times.  The
        first trip was with Chuck in June of 1997.  We had very little trouble getting up
        there, and the weather was very nice.  The second trip was with Mark Ellsaesser
        in July of 1997.  We had planned on camping out near the trailhead in an aspen
        grove.  Before setting up camp, we rode our bike sup two miles of rocky logging
        road to the trailhead, then cruised back down at breakneck speeds.  Mark hit a
        bump, went airborn, and came down on his side, rolling.  Blood welled up on
        his body in profusion, and his bike was prety mangled.  His helmet cracked into
        two pieces and part of it was found several yards away.  The trip ended abruptly
        with me driving Mark back to Poudre Valley hospital.  The third trip was made
        by Dave Burns and I in April of 1999.  The weather had been warm and snowless
        in Ft. Collins for weeks, so were caught unprepared for the feet of snow which
        lay up near the moutnain.  Without proper attire, we abandoned the trail after less
        than half an hour. The fourth trip was with Andra and Frank in July of 1999.
        We ran into very bad weather.  It got cold and wet and we spent almost no time
        at the summit because of it.  The fifth trip was with Dave Burns in October 1999,
        and was the last hike we took together before he moved to NY.  Frank went along.
        Once again, the weather wasn't too nice, but although it was cloudy, it did not
        precipitate.

The only good weather ever encountered at the summit, June 1997.
Continental Divide in the background. Sam in the foreground.
 
 

The view from my napping rock into Estes Park to the south.
 
 

Lots of dead pines on the mountain top. Lightning? Old age?
 
 

On the trail with Chuck Hostetler, June 1997. Look at those aspen!
 
 

Mark's bike accident on July 4th, 1997.
 
 
 
 
 

The trail to the summit is heavily wooded with aspen.
 
 

Dave and Frankie at the summit in October 1999.
 
 

Dave and I on Lookout Mountain, October 1999

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