Waking up at 6:30 on Saturday morning, I was a bit taken aback to see gray skies and a soft, gentle snow falling. The weatherman had predicted partly cloudy skies, perhaps some wind and slightly warmer temperatures for the day so my first thought was " oh boy - I don't have the right gear." I brought along sufficient layers but no hat, just ear muffs, and at the rate the snow was falling I would have a soaked head in no time flat. But, what do girl friends do but help each other?Sug lent me her hat, donned the hood of her jacket to keep her own locks dry, and off we went for a wonderful morning of snow shoeing in Mueller State Park.

That we were up and out so fast was due to the fact that we spent the night in the Park. No - we didn't winter camp. Our group of nine is a Book Club and most of us are far beyond enduring the rigors of cold, wet, hard ground sleeping. In fact, we are very much into our creature comforts, particularly after a day spent outside in the snow. We decided to have the best of both worlds: the pleasure of the Colorado winter, while enjoying each other's company and the lively discussion that our book club affords, by renting a cabin at Mueller State Park. We call ourselves Wine, Women and Books and we are a wonderfully diverse bunch in age, interests, background and skills. We love our name because it describes us pretty well. And our love of Colorado defines our idea for sharing a weekend in the mountains. Mueller State Park, just a few south of Divide on Highway 67, was a perfect choice for us. Ponderosa Cabin the largest of the three cabins available, accommodates up to ten people and provides two bathrooms, four bedrooms, a completely furnished kitchen, a cozy living space accented by a gas burning fire place and a large dining table, ideal for leisurely meals and great discussions. Aside from the ambiance created by the lodge type furnishings, it sports fantastic view of the west side of Pikes Peak, where we could see Sentinal Peak, the Crags and glimpse the Sangre de Christo mountains to the Southwest. All this and instant access to the Park's numerous snow shoe and cross country trails made our selection one that was a success from the minute we opened the door.

Arriving in the late afternoon, we hauled in what seemed like a month's worth of food along with an equally large amount of snow shoes, boots, skis, poles and other gear. Settling in to our respective rooms, we eventually gathered around the table for wonderful meal and much discussion about the weekend and the books to be reviewed. After the moon rose, a few of us ventured on to the trail for brisk walk in the woods, observing that the stars were out and that surely Saturday would be a bright day for tramping on snow shoes - thus the surprise of waking to gray skies, low clouds and falling snow. Nevertheless after a hearty breakfast (did I mention that we brought a LOT of food?) several of us prepared for the elements and were quickly on snow shoes for a great hike through the northern part of the Park. . Mueller doesn't have any huge elevation gains but the up hill and down hill of the trail kept us snug and cozy most of the time. Once or twice the snow stopped and the skies appeared somewhat brighter so off came extra jackets only to be put back on again in short order as the snow intensified and the wind picked up. Many of the trails at Mueller are loops which afford a round trip through both forest and meadow terrain. Our trail took us to Dynamite Cabin where the remnants of an old line shack lay buried under two feet of snow. Stopping to peer into the space which was once the only room, we discovered the stove which had provided heat for the cabin. We carefully dusted off the snow that had accumulated and uncovered a well preserved pattern of raised swirls and circles. Perhaps it was a cook surface but in the snow and cold and it seemed more like a touch of fantasy in an otherwise difficult and challenging place to live. What was life like in this old shack? Who lived there and what did they do? Why did they build the shack in this particular location? And of course, our favorite question - what books did they read? No answers were forth coming so we continued on the loop trail that brought us back to Ponderosa Cabin just in time for lunch.

After lunch and some down time spent trying to finish the books to be discussed, some of us returned to the trail on either snow shoes or cross country skies. The new snow was just enough to give a long, smooth glide for the skis and with the afternoon clearing, we were delighted to have broad, expansive views to the West - distant white peaks against the Colorado blue sky - perfect Colorado in every way.

The remainder of the weekend was spent in pretty much the same fashion - more good food, book reviews and discussion; some guitar picking and singing; more snow shoeing and of course, plenty of laugher.