why we have such a passion for beyond boulder...

We love hiking the trails around Boulder, Colorado.  There is nothing that will set us right after a stressful week working more than getting out in the foothills and front range in Boulder County for a long walk.  Listening to the sounds of birds, the trees swaying in the wind, spying deer, moose or bear we feel far removed from civilization and can almost imagine ourselves walking in the footsteps of such great Rocky Mountain explorers as Zebulon Pike, John Wesley Powell, Stephen Long, and Rufus Sage.  At those times we're a few days journey from the nearest outpost instead of an hour's walk to the nearest microbrewery in town.  To be clear though, we're not conquerers of mountains.  We don't have the desire, or ability, to trail run or see how many fourteeners we can summit in a season.  For us, the best part of hiking is being able to slow down, to find a hike that just slightly pushes our abilities, that lets the imagination wander, and which leaves us feeling renewed and more attune to nature.  Nature is an amazing healer.  

Often, when we venture out to discover something about nature on a new hike in the mountains we often end up discovering more about ourselves.  We believe there is something very vital to humans in reconnecting with nature.  In the years since we've moved to Boulder we've had many visitors stay with us.  We've strived to take each person or group in our home on at least one hike.  A hike that we felt would provide the most mountain wonder, yet not tax the ability of our visitors.  Some embraced the idea at once, and others not so much.  I remember our daughter setting out with me one morning commenting she was sure she was headed for the equivalent of the Bataan Death March.  Yet, remarkably, most visitors have commented that their hikes were the most fun they had on their visit.  While we'd like to take some credit for their enjoyment, most likely it was the mountains calling to them, the recalled memory of a youthful hike from years gone by, the feeling of accomplishing something worthwhile, or the sheer beauty of the trail that was transformative to them.  Regardless, we love not only feeling that sense of wonder on the trail ourselves, but the joy of sharing it with others.

We've since taken our beginner guide books on Boulder hiking and put them on my reference shelf with other hiking and biking guides.  Now that we've acclimated to the altitude and geography and learned many of the trailheads we do more impromptu exploration than trip planning.  I won't go so far as to say the popular trail guides are not useful, but they are trying to play to a broader audience, and many times those of us not native to the higher altitudes, thinner air, rougher terrain, and steeper climbs typically found in the front range are lured into hikes for which we are sorely unprepared.  Been there, done that as they say.

Beyond Boulder was born out of a passion to provide visitors new to, or unfamiliar with, hiking in the Front Range centralized, guided assistance in enjoying all the beauty of Boulder and Boulder County, at a comfortable pace and with the knowledge that really anyone with a desire to experience the natural beauty of a peaceful hike can go... Beyond Boulder. 

Hike on!