FreeMan Ride & Hike

Josh crossed several things off his bucket list this summer. He bought a streetbike, and passed his motorcycle test so that he's licensed to drive it, he hiked into the Bighorn Crags (more to come about that later), and he hiked up to Freeman Peak. 

He had plans (which I didn't know) to go up to Freeman Peak in June when I had taken the boys with me to Utah for a few days. He rode his dirtbike through town and up the Carmen road, but as he was heading up the gravel road trail towards Freeman, the bike's motor quit. He didn't want to be stranded after it got dark, so he decided to turn around and coast down the elevated road instead of getting off and hiking up. After he reached the paved Carmen road, the bike started up again and he returned home. I'm actually grateful he didn't end up going hiking that day, since he was alone and no one even knew he was going there. 

He was determined to try again, though, and went again on Saturday, July 18. He packed up his backpack with snacks, drinks, and other emergency items, got on his motorbike, and drove back into town, along the highway, up to Carmen Creek road, and then to the gravel trail (which is where he was last time when it quit on him). This time, the ride went smoothly, and there was no problems. He parked his bike at the end of the gravel trail, and did the rest on foot. He was once again alone, but this time I knew where he was and what his plans were, and he took lots of photos for me to see. 

Josh's favorite wildflower: Indian PaintBrush

He passed this old cabin on the way

Interesting tree: bent at the base,
and grew out of a rock!

Its crack is showing!

He found a patch of snow and made a little
snowman, complete with a rock cap!

Someone had built this chair and left it along the rocky base of the mountainside

The woodwork was impressive, and the
chair itself was a mysterious monument! 

He captured a nice view of the mountain lake below

After hiking up a ways, he looked back on where he left the motorbike. Can you see it in the picture below? It's in the center, in the grass just to the right of a short horizontal line (the visible gravel trail).

The view of the valley below

 "High on a Mountaintop..."

The mountain range seems so close to heaven!

He got to the peak that was right next to Freeman Peak, but in order to get to the top of that one, he had to hike way down, then all the way back up, and there wasn't a trail from where he was to do that, so he decided to stop for the day. He thinks he can hike all the way to Freeman Peak from a different access point near Kirtley Creek Road, so he wants to try that another time.

his view of Freeman Peak

An almost-to-Freeman-Peak selfie!

He walked down to the lake that was below, and soaked in some more of the surrounding beauty before heading back to his motorbike.

The wildflowers were so colorful!

What a beautiful view!

The lake was so peaceful and calm

When he got back to the dirtbike, there had been some kind of groundsquirrels chewing on the handlebars and seat cover. He couldn't believe the damage they had done in his absence! It was so weird and unexpected!

He came home early that evening (it was about a 6-hour excursion), and was so happy. He'd enjoyed his day trip; he was glad to have done something he's wanted to do for years, and he'd loved being surrounded by God's beautiful creations.