Dad, ever the explorer, chooses a forest road he’s never been up for his birthday weekend excursion. Four Mile Creek Road in Pike National Forest takes us into the Mosquito Range west of Fairplay, Colorado. We’re initially put off by swaths of private property and mining detritus, but end up having a beautiful hike up Horseshoe Mountain. There’s a great variety of rocks in this area, the wildflowers are in full bloom, and the long gentle ridges beg to be meandered along. We scramble down a rock field to Leavick Tarn, where the view of the Horseshoe Mountain cliffs above is unbeatable. There is so much to see that I fill up my 128MB memory card with photos for the first time.