Kent's 50th B-Day Camp Trip

Hello, last weekend I began celebrating my 50th birthday while backpacking with a group of seven friends over Labor Day weekend. Click here for a slideshow. Camp trip B-Day. My actual B-day is September 5th - tomorrow!
We selected Lake Charles near Eagle, Colorado, because it is close enough to Denver, yet a tough, five-mile hike. We were hoping there wouldn't be too many other campers at the lake and we weren't disappointed.
We had a great camp site at the far end of the lake which made for a beautiful sunset on our first night. The next morning I was surprised to see all the paraphernalia my fellow campers had packed-in to mark my special day. It was also our really big day to hike and fish.
We headed off to Mystic Lake which is about another mile-and-a-half at the end of the canyon, with mountain peaks above and an elevation at about 11,500 feet. By the time we arrived at the upper lake, the sun was pretty much gone for the day but that didn't stop us from spending the afternoon fishing for cutthroat and brook trout. Paul and I hiked all the way around the lake, maybe two additional miles, and most of the time in the rain. Our trek paid off as I caught more fish than I've ever caught before - 15 trout! We released most of the fish but kept enough for a delicious dinner cooked on a makeshift grill over campfire coals. Before dinner we had a birthday toast with little bottles of margaritas that Geri had secretly packed in!
While the foil-wrapped trout cooked over the fire, a few of us thought we would dry out our wet socks, using sticks to hold them over the fire - kind of like cooking a hot dog. It wasn't a bad idea, but we needed to be a little more careful than we were. More than one sock ended up charred or with burn holes.
On Monday morning it was time to pack up and head down the trail, which turned into another adventure searching for wild mushrooms. Back in the parking lot, Geri had one last surprise for me, as I was sprayed with little, confetti party poppers.
I owe a big 5-0 thank you to Paul, Margie, Stephanie, Jimmy and Rosie and especially Geri for being such good sports and great friends.
Cheers, Kent Meireis

July 4th Camp Out

Hello, I finally had a weekend off to go camping with Geri and a group of friends over the Fourth of July holiday. We decided to pitch our tents near Home Stake State Park between Leadville and Minturn.
Click here to see a slideshow.Camp Out.
My friend, Paul Broome, arrived first and found a perfect campsite off the road with our own lily pond and river access plus lots of room for the rest of the group who were arriving the next day.
So Paul, his black lab named Jackson, and I had the place to ourselves the first night. In terms of car camping this was the best site I've ever had. The ponds weren't deep enough for fish to survive over the winter months, but at the end of the road was Home Stake Reservoir at more than 10,000 feet in elevation.
The reservoir visit was a full day's adventure using Paul's pontoon fishing boat and Jimmy and Rosie's canoe to transport everyone across the lake including two dogs.
It was a beautiful day for boating, fishing and sunning but the water was a little too cold for swimming - unless you were a dog.
Speaking of dogs and fishing, you might be wondering what the deal is with the weird fish hat. Well, it actually belongs to me. I traded for it at a White Elephant post- Christmas party a few years ago and decided to wear it one morning. Then someone came up with the idea to photograph everyone wearing it including the dogs.
Cheers, Kent

Ski Tip Lodge at Keystone Wedding

Hello, a few weeks ago I helped my good friend and fellow wedding photographer, Sean Cayton, photograph a fun wedding at the Ski Tip Lodge at Keystone. Sean Cayton.
Bonnie and Erin planned their destination winter wedding at Keystone because they love to snowboard.
It was a beautiful and almost warm day followed late evening snow storm which worked out perfect as couple had plans to go skiing/snowboarding the next day with family and friends.
CLICK HERE to see a slideshow: Winter Wedding at Keystone.
Cheers, Kent

10th Mountain Division Hut Trip

Hello, last weekend we made our annual 10th Mountain Division Hut Trip with a group of 16 friends from around Colorado. This year we went to the Harry Gates Hut which is between Aspen and Vail. 10th Mountain Division Hut Association
For the first time, I snowshoed rather than skied. The first 3 miles of the trail were steep, narrow and icy. The last 3.7 miles were up and down on a snow-packed road. Snowshoes aren't as fast as skiing but much safer.
Our friends Darrell and Dana drove our backpacks most of the way to the hut with their snowmobiles pulling a sled. Snowmobiles aren't permitted on the first part of the trail so they went the long way around and met us on the road and then had to park about a half-mile below the hut.
It was a long hike in carrying a day pack and a camera. It took me almost 4.5 hours!
Using the snowmobiles adds a nice safety factor if anyone has a medical emergency, gets lost, etc. Plus they allow you to take more supplies in such as food, wine, beer, snowboards, etc.
The weather this year was almost perfect - not too cold, not too hot and lots of snow. Last year we left for Uncle Bud's Hut in a huge blizzard.
After a good nights sleep, Sara and Jason decided to build a jump for their snowboards while others spent the day hiking or snowmobiling around the area. Four members of our group could only stay one night and hiked out early on Sunday.
On Monday morning we prepared a huge breakfast including Mimosa's, we even added a few raspberries.
Then it was time to clean up and pack up. It only took 2.5 hours to get back to the trailhead. If you would like to see a slideshow of trip, CLICK HERE: Winter Hut Trip

Extreme Winter Sports

Hello, last weekend I was hired by Alex, a bride from one of my weddings last summer, to go along with her husband Jay and his buddies into the mountains on their snowmobiles to the top of the continental divide where they snowboard or ski down extreme chutes and off cliffs. Alex gave this photo session to Jay as his birthday present last November.
Wow, what an experience! Click here for an Extreme slideshow. Extreme slideshow. It was quite a ride just to get to the top and then the wind was blowing at times 40-50 MPH as these guys negotiated which chute they wanted to drop into. Jay listened to the song White Wedding by Billy Idol as he made his first run so that is the song on the slideshow! Don't worry no one was hurt during this adventure and please don't try this unless you are ready to turn Pro.
After a few runs from the top and grilled bratwursts for lunch, they decided to jump off some cliffs in a gladed area to finish off the day before the sun went down.
If you would like to see Jay and Alex's wedding slideshow click here, Jay and Alex wedding. And if you want to see their engagement session which was shot on one of the coldest days last winter click here, Jay and Alex engagement.
Thanks for another wonderful photographic experience Alex/Jay.
Cheers, Kent

Welcome to Winter in Colorado

Here are a few pictures from a somewhat recent trip to the mountains around Aspen and Basalt. Colorado is having a record breaking snow year, at least in the mountains. It can be fun if you like to play in the snow but it can also make for a long winter and the spring melt will be interesting. For me there is something special about being in the mountains during the winter. Colorado is at the top of the water chain because the Continental Divide, the main series of mountain ridges in North America, forms a watershed that separates the rivers flowing east into the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico from those flowing west into the Pacific Ocean. The last three pictures are our friends Nancy and Ray Broome with their Golden Retrievers, Brandy and Marley, and Geri is the one scraping the ice off the windshield. Cheers, Kent