Mount Elbert 14er and Molly Brown Campground

We arrived to Molly Brown Campground before 2pm. The kids thought the drive was super short. Our site was very roomy and allowed us to set up 3 tents: 1 for me and Lola, 1 for the girls, and 1 for Connor.

There were tall pine trees everywhere and turquoise lake was just a short walk away. The kids just ran free and explored. Carly made her own little potty in the trees. Every campsite was full and stayed that way until we left.

We went to bed very early and I woke at 4:40am to make oatmeal and coffee. I dragged the kids out of their tents in their pjs. I had all of their clothes and hydration packs in the car so they could dress while I drove. It was a 30 minute drive to Emerald Lake, where the trailhead to Mount Elbert was. I explained to them that I do not want to hear complaining. We are all gonna hurt. Please don't tell me that your feet hurt. Just tell me if something is really wrong, if you get dizzy or a headache. We started hiking and it was a steep uphill that never stopped. Carly whined for the whole 1st Mile.

Connor enjoyed listening to me talk to other hikers. We didn't meet a single hiker from Colorado. They were from Chicago, Virginia, Texas, Arizona, and Georgia.

A man from Virginia said that the kids are doing some amazing things and most Moms won't take their kids to ever do something like this. I told the kids that I would buy them ice cream if we summited before 10am and Carly took it seriously. She started jamming after we passed tree-line.

A lady walked up to me and said she was worried about her pace until she found out she was from Colorado. "You Coloradans have some good lungs!", she said. Carly's energy faded about a mile from the top. Both her and Camilla said they wanted to go back. I kept reminding them of ice cream. I pushed them up lots of rocks and kept giving them candy.

There were about 5 false summits, which can be so disappointing. But, we just kept trudging. At the last false summit, the girls refused to go any farther, so I walked with Connor to the peak, while they rested.

Then, I came back and pulled them to the peak. Camilla said that the view was amazing. Connor and Carly played on the rocks. Lola ate snow. We saw bighorn sheep.

Then, we went down. The kids ran most of the way down, which is how Carly got lost. Her and Connor were racing.

She turned down the trail toward Colorado trail. There were lots of hikers that were doing Mt Elbert as a sidestep while backpacking across the Colorado trail. Thank god for nice and helpful hikers! We ate a huge feast afterwards and came back to read by the campfire.

We all fell asleep fast! I got lots of, "Thank you for taking us Mom!" The next day, I made a morning campfire and read to the kids.

Then, we biked to Turquoise Lake. Carly swam in her underwear and they made a country with sand.

They also made lots of experimental foods with our camp food. Connor started a game board in the dirt and each kid had their own village.

It rained most of the night so I read to the kids in the tent. Our last night was the coldest! Lola was shaking so I had to put my long sleeved shirt on her. I woke up the next morning and immediately started a fire. The kids really enjoyed making pancakes over the fire.

We finished our book, "Among the Imposters," which is a story about a government that does not allow people to have 3 children. The kids and I are fascinated by the story! The kids were a little disappointed to leave such a fun place, but they were all very helpful in helping me get the car packed. It is only 5 more days before we go camping again.