It’s pretty awesome when, despite 90-degree weather less than an hour away, you can find yourself standing on a patch of snow in August. Such was the case last week at St. Mary’s Glacier, about 45 miles west of Denver in Idaho Springs. It was hot in the city, but it was a beautiful day in the mountains (high 60s) and we were returning to Denver from our lobster feast at Green Mountain Reservoir.

The hike to St. Mary’s Glacier is very easy – it’s only a 3/4 mile walk from the trailhead – which makes it a great place for a quick stop on the way into or out of the mountains via I-70 near Denver.  We were going right by it on a Sunday morning and decided to stretch the legs, enjoy the scenery for an hour or two. The hike is short but it’s all uphill, and it was a nice way to get the blood flowing after, in a good way, eating and drinking too much the previous night.

Here are some photos of the lake and glacier. I’ll throw a few more up on Facebook later this week.