Mount Sanista!

Today I paid my $5 again for bus-fare to Boulder with a full day planned!  Yesterday I learned about another nearby peak - Mount Sanitas - I intended to climb plus the BolderBoulder expo!

I knew I should get on the mountain ASAP as a storm was due later that afternoon.  Unbeknownst to me, today Boulder was having its' weekly farmers market.  Farmers market is kind of an understatement if you ask me...I thought it was some sort of celebratory festival judging by it's sheer size.  I love the idea behind farmers markets but the execution is always a bit too convoluted for me.  I checked out some of the stalls but left shortly after toward the BolderBoulder expo on nearby Pearl Street.

Instead of being within a convention center or similar layout, the expo was basically strewn about Pearl Streets' boulevard.  It felt more like a farmers market than the actual farmers market did! 

STRAVA!

I'm not a huge STRAVA fan...but a lot of my friends are.  It was cool to chat with the team about STRAVA's involvement with other brands and their dynamics though - talked a little about Run Happy Island too!  I'm excited to see them again at the BolderBoulder finish line to show off the DSD :)

After wandering around the expo for a bit it was time to head toward Mount Sanista - the trailhead about a 20 minute walk away.  Though the clouds were heavy, it hadn't started raining or thundering yet so I figured I was safe.

BolderBoulder mural I found en route to Mount Sanista.

The ascent up Mount Sanista was MUCH easier than that up Green Mountain.  Trails were very hard-packed, and in spite of heavier traffic and heavy rain the night before were still in really good shape.

Sanista trailhead.

Heavy storm clouds over the Flat Irons.

From the ascent up Sanista.

 About 45 minutes into the ascent the sky opened up...

Rain wasn't that bad...but the temperature dropped a little and that turned into hail.  I only started worrying a little once the thunder started....  Unlike Green Mountain, the ascent up Sanista was very exposed with sporadic tree coverage, I was afraid that by continuing the ascent upward I might be setting myself up to get struck by lightning!  Luckily that didn't happen....

Sanista summit :)

Give you an idea of what was going on around me...

Luckily the hail and thunder abated a bit...but the rain stalked me all the way down...

Overall it was AMAZING!  Though I am thankful I wasn't struck by lightning...the weather made the excursion all that much more memorable.  After getting down I headed back toward Pearl Street to locate a coffee and warm-up!

Picture of the Flat Irons I took while walking back.

Mocha at the Laughing Goat in Boulder.

Well I am exhausted....  Tomorrow we actually have work to do too!

Tomorrow is the day that we deliver the DSD to the finish line area of BolderBoulder.  The race itself is Monday - Memorial Day - so once we clean and freshen-up the DSD I'll have the rest of the day to explore!  I still want to summit Mount Flagstaff and Bear Peak before I leave the area so tomorrow after our Run Happy Island duties are done I'll probably find myself back up in the mountains. :)

Until tomorrow ~

#RunHappy