Leadville, Colorado

Since our plans to hike up Notch Mountain had been canceled by the closure of the Tigiwan Road we would need to find something else to do today. After eating breakfast and packing up our tent and sleeping bags, we headed into Leadville and the Forest Service office. Inside we inquired about some hiking suggestions and ended up with plenty of options. We decided that we would head over to the Leadville Fish Hatchery where there is a trailhead for an intriguing path called the Highline Trail.

The hike was about 6 miles long and it was pleasant if unspectacular.

After our hike we headed back into town where we browsed in some of the shops and got lunch at Rosie's Brewpub, which happens to be North America's highest. The food and beer there were decent.
After lunch we drove to the Halfmoon West Campground where we camped for the evening to be close to the trailhead for our ascent of Mt. Elbert, Colorado's highest peak, the following day.