By Mike Loughrin, CEO, Transformance Advisors
North of Crested Butte
Summer is a great time to pack up the hiking gear and head out to Crested Butte.
Located in the western part of the state, Crested Butte is known as the wildflower capital of Colorado. It is also known for great mountain biking, fishing, hiking, and pondering the challenges of keeping a balanced life.
Our goals included putting the claims of wildflowers, hiking, and pondering to the test by selecting Oh Be Joyful as our trail of the month.
This trail is located about 5 miles north of Crested Butte on Slate River Road. There’s plenty of parking near the trail head.
Crossing the Slate River
An early challenge is crossing the Slate River; this is where a fallen tree can come in handy.
Wildflowers
Waterfalls
Saboo, Director of Adventure
Pondering
Crossing the Slate River
Back to that challenge of crossing over the Slate River.
Instead of a fallen tree, another approach is to take off your boots and socks and find a shallow spot.
I also needed to make sure that Saboo, our Director of Adventure followed me. He is not a fan of ice cold water.
Back in Crested Butte
The last step in our journey is a stop at Slogar’s. This restaurant is located on 2nd street and only has 1 thing on the menu: fried chicken with all the fixin’s.
You do get some options in terms of beer, wine, or sarsaparilla.
Having to make no decisions about what food to order is the perfect way to maintain that stress-free feeling you get after a great day of hiking.
When You Go
When Crested Butte was a mining town in the late 1800s and early 1900s, it provided raw materials for those hungry supply chains of that long ago era.
Now, it is a service provider to those that need to get away and ponder challenges such as crafting a sustainable lean organization.
If you need to get away for your own investment in pondering, then Crested Butte has all you need.
Mike Loughrin is the CEO and Founder of Transformance Advisors. He also teaches for Louisiana State University Shreveport and is on the board of directors for the Association for Supply Chain Management Northern Colorado.
Mike brings exceptional experience in industry, consulting services, and education. Mike has helped organizations such as Levi Strauss, Warner Home Video, Lexmark, and Sweetheart Cup.
Keeping a commitment to a balanced life, Mike loves downhill skiing, bicycle rides, and hiking in the mountains. See one of his trails of the month at: Little Switzerland.