Hiking the Old Ute Trail in the Colorado Rockies, we ran into a family of elk. I had no idea at the time whether elk tend to be aggressive, and the rack of antlers didn’t look like it would feel too comfortable embedded in my abdomen, so I marched past quickly.
The upper trailhead sits at about 11,600 feet, just above the timber line. The panoramic views were breathtaking. Of course, hiking in the mountains with 20 lbs of baby strapped to my chest was also breathtaking.
On the return, I got a closer view.
Then, back at the car, we saw another beast with big horns.