As we were driving down highway 93 on our way to Golden Gate Canyon for a day of hiking. It was around 9:30AM MT, when the radio announcer broke in with the best news of the year: Joe Biden is our President-Elect! There was honking on the highway and yelling out of car windows. What a glorious beginning to a beautiful day!! This hike was the most beautiful one so far. (Or perhaps it was colored by our overwhelming joy, it’s kinda hard to say, actually.) Here are some photos, so you can see for yourself:

Black Bear trail was rugged and a lot of verticality, clambering over and up rocks. The sky and the clouds were exquisite, the view of the Rockies in the distance was breathtaking. Horseshoe Loop was mainly downhill or flattish, with gorgeous aspen and birch trunks, as well as fields of golden grasses. Pearl was totally in her element.