Fillius Loop Trail - A Fortress of Solitude

Fillius Loop Trail

March has arrived like a lion and exerted it’s ferocious nature by unleashing a storm distinguished by heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures. The foothills resemble an arctic landscape reminiscent of the last ice age.

The lower Fillius Loop Trail is in a secluded setting located near the edge of town. The park seems to be not well known so whenever I’m there, I usually don’t see another living soul.

The old-growth, ponderosa pine forest is a steadfast fortress of solitude. The uncultivated woodland is a barrier between an urban environment and the vast Rocky Mountain wilderness beyond.

Last week, the morning after the storm, the trees were glazed with scumbled swatches of fresh snow. Their cobalt shadows crept quietly across the smooth drifts.

Bright sunlight beamed through the clear, thin air while thawing the bone-chilling cold. The distant mountains were dusted white and set against that pale landscape, the sky was the deepest blue imaginable.

Trudging through the deep snowpack was especially difficult as the uneven terrain was broken by rocks, mud and ice. Deep inside the dark forest, traversing a steep, slippery hillside required cautious negotiation.

It was a surreal situation in which the fresh powder sparkled like cut diamonds and the thicket was encrusted with a silvery sheen. March is always our snowiest month so I guess I have more of this fairytale-like scenery to look forward to.

March has arrived like a lion

Trees are glazed with fresh snow

A pale landscape

Ponderosa pine

Trudging through deep snowpack

Reminiscent of the last ice age

Sub-zero temperatures

Cobalt shadows

Fresh powder sparkled like diamonds

A fortress of solitude

An uncultivated woodland

March is our snowiest month

Deep inside the dark forest

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