Up a mountain without a motor? Is that even possible?

If you know Brad, then you know that he likes anything that he can ride that contains some sort of an engine or the ability to make him go really fast.  I thought it might be a struggle to get him to enjoy hiking, since all of his past experiences with mountains have included either a dirtbike, a 4 wheeler, a snowmobile, or a snowboard.  And then there is the whole "I have a torn acl and refuse to get it fixed" thing.  But, Brad was a trooper.  So was Willa for that matter!  We hiked both days that we were in Estes.  The first day was more of a nice walk in the mountains, very laid back and not at all challenging.  Maybe a mile or two.  The second day, we decided to try a different route and it was a little bit more gnarly.  Lots of rocks, some narrow paths, several signs warning us of bear season and how the bears can smell you from 5 miles away.  This path was rumored to be about 1.3 miles long, with a lake somewhere in the middle of it.  That is, if you can read a map.  I am horrible at reading maps and I somehow managed to get us on the wrong trail after we left the lake and it was loooooong.  Miles long.  It was chilly and drizzly.  It was still fun, though.  We had a baby backpack that we put Willa in on the rough patches, and for her nap.  She slept in that thing for like an hour!  We did not get eaten by a bear, although we did have a plan for if one happened to snatch Willa off the trail.  It involved me punching it and Brad stabbing it.  As far as wildlife goes, we did see some unusually friendly chipmunk things, a few elk, and some giant wild turkeys.  It is mating season for the elk right now, so we got to hear the really sexy cry of the male elk trying to attract a lady elk.   If you are wondering what it sounds like to hear an elk use a pick-up line, it is something like a cow with bad allergies dying a slow and painful death.  Ask Willa to do the elk noise for you.  She is pretty good at it. 
Now for some pictures: