[Journal entry for January 10, 2015; Lilypad Lake, Eagle’s Nest Wilderness, near Frisco Colorado]. In the mid-afternoon, after skiing with Dallas at the Frisco Nordic Center, I parked at the Meadow Creek Trailhead, just off of I70 near Frisco Colorado. I donned my snowshoes and headed off on the Meadow Creek Trail. The trail ascends through pine and aspen woods into the hills below Buffalo Mountain. In just a few hundred yards, it runs along a low ridge that offers a great view of Dillon Lake and the mountains that surround it. I switched onto the Lillypad Pond Trail at an intersection, marked by a prominent sign, about a half mile from the trailhead. The trail crosses a brook in a deep gulley via a footbridge, and then ascends up into the hills, passing some open spots with good views of distant mountains. I soon reached Lilypad Lake, a small pond set in a hollow and surrounded with woods, with the summit of Buffalo Mountain visible above it. The late afternoon sun was lighting up the snow on the lake as I arrive, but the shadows grew as I walked around the lake, so by the time I reached completed the loop (no more than ten minutes), I was in shadow. I then headed back the way I came, pausing at each of the overlooks to revisit the views, which had changed in tone, with more accentuated topography, now that the sun was low in the sky. About 1:20.

January 11, 2014. Dallas and I walked to Lilypad Lake in light snow, and had lunch sitting on a log in front of the lake. About 2:00.