Jay Em, Wyoming

 Today Noelle and I wanted to get out of the house and so we headed into Torrington, stopped at the Bread Doctor in Torrington for some goodies and then headed north to the fading town of Jay Em. The town is named for James Moore's J Rolling M Ranch. 

We parked the car on the side of the street in the old, historic business district. While there aren't any businesses currently operating, the area is on the National Register of Historic Places. Here's what we saw:

Nebraska National Forest: Soldier Creek Wilderness: Boots and Saddle-Trooper Loop

 Today, Rosie and I headed back up north to the Soldier Creek Wilderness Area just outside of Fort Robinson State Park. This time we would hike the Boots and Saddle/Trooper Trail Loop.

We set out on the Boots and Saddle Trail and crossed over a branch of Soldier Creek several times before heading away from the water and into the grasslands.

We saw some wildflowers in bloom including:

Thermopsis

Pasqueflower

phlox

We traversed along several small canyons 

and eventually made our way to the site of the Officer's Club.

where there were some old concrete foundations.

From there, we climbed up a ridge and then started to make our way back to the trailhead via the Trooper Trail which we had hiked las week. 

Nebraska National Forest: Soldier Creek Wilderness Trooper Trail Loop

 This morning I drove north as the sun rose over the prairie.

I headed up to Crawford, through Fort Robinson State Park, and over to the Soldier Creek Campground for my hike into the Soldier Creek Wilderness. Noelle and I had backpacked here before, back in 2009 when we were working seasonal jobs at Wind Cave National Park.

I parked the car, grabbed my pack and got Rosie ready for our hike. We would be hiking the Trooper Trail Loop and the walk started with us entering the wilderness 

and a descent down to the namesake creek. 

Much of the beginning part of the hike was down in the valley formed by Soldier Creek.

Eventually, the trail climbed up to the top of a ridge with great views of the surrounding landscape.

The area has burned at least once before, but there were areas of tree, ponderosa pines up on the ridges.

The first half of the trail headed northwest, but once we made the turn we headed mostly southeast back towards the trailhead. After the final descent, we followed a low area back towards the trailhead.

It was a fairly long, but very enjoyable hike through a part of western Nebraska that I need to make it back to. 

Laramie's Pilot Hill Recreation Area: Jacoby Ridge Rural Trail

 I've been trying to hike/walk every day at least one mile. Unfortunately, I've missed one day since I started this endeavor; the day I had my coloscopy procedure. I think this is a permissible day to miss. This morning, Rosie and I woke up in Laramie and decided to get in a quick hike before we headed home after our ski trip. We opted for the Jacoby Ridge Rural Trail in the Pilot Hill Recreation Area on the east side of town and close to the house we stayed at.

It's a gravel trail and while it is not the most exciting trail I've ever hiked, there were some nice distant views of the Snowy Range and other distant mountains. 

Snowy Range Ski Area: 2026 Ski Trip

 Sierra and I spent the last two days skiing at Snowy Range Ski Area as part of our annual ski trip. Unfortunately, Noelle was unable to ski as she is still recovering from shoulder surgery. With lower snow totals than in years past, the skiing was a little iffy on a few of the runs (particularly the Seminole Trail on the far east side of the ski area). However, we made the best of the ski conditions and had a great trip. 

Blue Sky and Indian Summer Loop

 I headed back down into Colorado for another hike in the Fort Collins area. Again, I made my way through Wyoming as the sun was rising and stopped to take a photo along the side of US-85.

I arrived at the trailhead for the Blue Sky Trail at the north end of the Horsetooth Reservoir and hit the trail.

After a short distance the trail passes under the road the leads to Horsetooth Mountain Open Space.

 On the other side of the road the trail heads due south along the lower slopes of a low ridge.  There were lots of great views across the small valley.

I followed the Blue Sky Trail to its junction with the Indian Summer Trail, a loop the climbed part way up into the foothills for a bit, before descending back to the Blue Sky Trail.

The views looking south on the Blue Sky Trail were pretty great. There were nice views of Horsetooth Rock and the surrounding foothills.

After my hike, I headed over to Zwei Brewing. What a great place! I can't believe its the first time I've been here in the 6 plus years I've lived in western Nebraska.