Soothing Herbal Teas to Sip for a Hike In Boulder
The unofficial kick-off to summer, Memorial Day Weekend, is just around the corner; Memorial Day this year is May 27. Along the Front Range of Colorado, at least, the three-day weekend often comes with sun, warmth and plenty of wildflowers.
In addition to persuading us to finally ditch the sweaters, break out the flip-flops and plan meals around the grill, it also drives many of us out on Boulder’s wealth of trails. The city alone supports more than 150 miles of trails, many of them in the pine-dense foothills. Trails in Boulder County, surrounding national forests and the Indian Peaks Wilderness boost the abundance of tails dramatically. Few cities of Boulder’s size offer as many miles of trails, from lightly undulating prairie paths to rugged alpine routes that contain snow into July.
Where to hike? We have ideas. We also suggest soothing herbal teas to sip after a hike in Boulder. They can improve the experience, offering assistance with energy, inflammation and quenching thirst among other things.
It’s been a long, cold winter. We’re ready for those flame-kissed burgers and grilled Vietnamese-style chicken wings. For splashing around in pools, heading off for summer vacations and swinging in hammocks. And we also are keen to return to Boulder’s wild diversity of trails—and to fortify the hikes with delicious, healthy tea!
Soothing Herbal Teas to Sip for a Hike In Boulder: Cape Town Medley
For trail enthusiasts looking for a gentle loop that offers excellent views, we recommend heading to the Eagle Trailhead, one of two trailheads that provides access to sprawling Boulder Valley Ranch.
This broad trail involves a few gentle hills, loads of barking prairie dogs and expansive views of the foothills as well as more distant alpine peaks to the west. From the parking lot, it’s easy to complete a three-mile loop—and canine companions are welcome. Pro tip: A little more than a mile into the hike, you’ll enjoy a gurgling irrigation ditch directly to the east; to the west, a broad mesa rises. Look for trails that lead to the mesa. If you head up there, you’ll encounter especially stirring views. You can wander around on trails up on the mesa, too. When you’re ready to complete the loop, just head back down the trail you took up, and continue the trek.
For this hike, we recommend Cape Town Medley, a rooibos-anchored blend that also features pomegranate, pomelo, orange, carrot and safflower, for flavor and health benefits. This tea, which we offer both whole-leaf and in bags designed for big batches of iced tea, is especially well-suited for this loop due to its thirst-quenching properties. Rooibos is loaded with electrolytes, which are minerals that the body leverages for many different advantages. Quenching thirst is one of them. As this hike does not provide much in the way of shade, and is not at a higher elevation, it can turn hot during summer. An iced version of our Cape Town Medley in your water bottle or thermos will keep thirst at bay.
Soothing Herbal Teas to Sip for a Hike In Boulder: Tulsi Twist (Organic)
Looking for a bit more rigor for your loop? Then to the South Mesa Trailhead. If it’s a weekend, make sure to get to the trailhead before 9 a.m.—it fills up fast. If it’s full, you can park across the street in the Dowdy Draw Trailhead lot, and walk back to South Mesa.
This loop requires some relatively steep climbs, but nothing too taxing. From the trailhead, hikers enjoy a wealth of possible loops. One of our favorites: Take Mesa Trail until you hit Homestead Trail. Follow Homestead as it climbs up through a slope of yucca, red rocks and pines until it rejoins Mesa Trail. Turn left. Continue on Mesa until you reach an intersection with Shadow Canyon South, and bear left on Shadow Canyon South. This wide trail climbs and winds through lovely scenery until it dead ends, just after you pass an old cabin and cross a stream. At the intersection, head right, on Shadow Canyon North. This gorgeous trail continues climbing up through dense forest and eventually dead ends back on Mesa Trail. Head right, and follow Mesa Trail all of the way back to the parking lot. This loop is about 6 miles.
For this grand hike, we recommend our Tulsi Twist. The blend stars tulsi, also known as Holy Basil—a well-known anti-inflammatory botanical. As this hike requires a fair bit of climbing—none of it terribly taxing, but nevertheless demanding—leg muscles in particular will experience inflammation. And Tulsi Twist will help soothe those aches and pains. Brew it and bring it along for the hike itself, either iced or hot. Or sip a pot of this glorious blend after you return home. The flavorful organic tea also includes ginger root, lemon peel, strawberry leaf, marshmallow root and lavender.
Soothing Herbal Teas to Sip for a Hike In Boulder: Boulder Boost (Organic)
For this hike, you’ll want energy—lots of it. You’ll want help with inflammation. You’ll want something that quenches your thirst. Boulder Boost is your solution! This is the most strenuous hike in this article—and also spectacular.
The loop begins at the Gregory Canyon Trailhead, which is adjacent to Chautauqua, a vast park with trails up into the foothills that stands as one of Boulder’s gems. As with many Boulder trails, parking on weekends can be tough; get there early.
From this trailhead, hikers confront a variety of hikes, including a loop all of the way around the canyon. Not interested in the loop? No problem. You can take trails that begin near the parking lot, like Gregory Canyon Trail, Amphitheater or Saddle Rock, and turn around once you’re ready. But if you have the time for this roughly 5-mile loop (which due to the steepness of the climbs will take between 2.5 and 3 hours), it’s worth it. Nearly all of the hike takes place in deep shade; the pine forest up here is thick. At different points during the hike you’ll witness the spectacle of the Continental Divide, a spine of snow-capped high peaks that decorates the western horizon.
We like doing the loop counter-clockwise. From the trailhead, walk on the main trail until you reach the Gregory Canyon Trail. Turn right. This trail climbs up, up, up and includes some simple scrambling across big slabs of granite. When you reach Ranger Trail, turn left. Remain on Ranger Trail—you will climb for nearly the entire time—until it reaches E.M. Greenman trail. Turn left again—and continue climbing. When you hit Saddle Rock Trail, bear left again and follow Saddle Rock all of the way back to the parking lot.
Whew.
Our Boulder Boost is the tea you’ll desire for this outstanding hike. It’s got caffeine from two sources: Madagascar vanilla black tea, and guayusa, a South American shrub similar to yerba mate. In addition the tea contains rooibos (which we already have covered for its thirst-quenching properties), tulsi (anti-inflammatory!) and ginger, allspice, fennel and rose. It’s a spectacle of bright, engaging flavor. And the tea offers immense health and energy advantages as well. For this one, recommend bringing it along for the hike, either hot in a thermos or chilled.
Soothing Herbal Teas to Sip for a Hike In Boulder: Ginger Refresh (Organic)
As mentioned a few times in this article, parking at trailheads on weekends can challenge. But some hikes begin just along the sides of roads, meaning street parking is fine. One of our favorites is beloved by locals, and unknown by nearly all tourists: the Four Pines trail. This beauty begins with a fairly steep climb up a grassy meadow, but once you reach the woods you’ll stay there until you return to the grassy meadow again on your way down.
To complete this lollipop course, take Four Pines Trail up across the steep grassy meadow, enter the forest, and continue until you hit Enchanted Kohler Spur, and turn right. Follow this trail until it hits Enchanted Mesa, and turn left. Enchanted Mesa winds through pretty forest landscapes until it dead ends at Mesa Trail. Turn left. When you reach Kohler Mesa, turn left again. Stay on Kohler Mesa until Four Pines Trail, and bear right at this intersction. Follow Four Pines back to the street, and your car.
We recommend our Ginger Refresh for this wonderful, forested hike. The tea envlivens taste buds, and encourages wakefulness, with its high quotient of ginger root. Naturopathic practitioners have urged people for centuries to take ginger for a caffeine-free route towards alertness and energy. This flavor bomb also contains lemongrass, peppermint, licorice root and lemon peel. Bring it along for the hike, either hot or cold. You’ll love it.
