Archive for the ‘Backcountry’ Category

Mt. Zirkel Wilderness Area

Rumor has it – When God takes a vacation, he goes to a Colorado Wilderness!

I just love that saying because I feel the presence of the Lord any time I am in the backcountry. This saying is on the website for Mt. Zirkel Wilderness at http://bit.ly/46gsGV. 

I was in Steamboat for a business trip and ended up staying longer then I planned at the end of August. I borrowed a vehicle from a friend and it broke down, which meant I had to wait over the weekend for a part. Good thing I had my backpacking gear and my gracious hosts willing to drive me several miles to a trail head so I could get at least one night backpacking in. (My first night in town due to the auto issues so I stayed at a local campground http://bit.ly/1lFdSP. It was nice and quiet and during the week so not too many people).

Thanks to a local shop: Because I was not real familiar with the area I stopped to pick up a topo map and ask some of the locals their favorite spots. The guys at Straightline Sports http://bit.ly/1c6mvw directed me to a great place to check out. 

Buffalo Pass Trailhead: From Steamboat, travel 2 miles north on Forest Development Road 323 (Hot Springs Road), then 12 miles northeast on Forest Development Road 60 (Buffalo Pass Road). Four Wheel Drive or high clearance vehicles are recommended for the Buffalo Pass Road.

My route: I was dropped off Saturday evening after we spent the day at Steamboat Lake. My goal was to make it to Round Mountain Lake to camp for the evening. It got dark quick and so I just found another site and enjoyed a wonderful sunset. The next morning the goal was to hike the Wyoming Trail up to Lake Elbert, Luna Lake, and Lake of the Crags. This morning brought a gorgeous sunrise that I enjoyed while I was packing up camp.

I am going to have to visit this area again because storms moved in and I made a decision to hike back out before reaching the lakes. According to my calculations and map I was too darn close to do turn around. I don’t do that too often but the clouds were ominous and I was also on a time crunch to meet my hosts at the trailhead.

I got out in time before the storm and actually down early enough that a wonderful couple from town was heading down so they gave me a ride. That saved my hosts the time and drive to come get me and I met two wonderful new friends that delivered door to door service

When I go back I will plan on doing at least 3-4 days and a big loop. There is so much to see and I really want to spend more time at the lakes. Great time in Steamboat and thank you to my gracious friends who didn’t plan on me being in town for more then a few hours!

On my way out of town I grabbed a sandwich at Backcountry Provisions http://bit.ly/Bs5Nn.

Have you hiked in this area? If so please share your experiences.

Fantastic Hike – Hanging Lakes

Before we get into the ski season, I’d like to back peddle a bit and share some of my experiences of this summer. 

Virgin Trip ~ this was my first time at Hanging Lakes on September 1^st.  I have always had a dog so I wasn’t able to take this hike before this year.  I know many of you have been there and most likely had the same reaction I did. ~ WOW ~ planning on a quick hike and ended up spending most of the day there, it was so beautiful.  Amazing gems we have here in Colorado.

Hanging Lake ~ This 1.5 Acre Lake was formed by a geologic fault which caused the lake bed to drop away from the valley floor above. Water flows into the lake over Bridal Veil Falls. The lake edge has built up from dissolved carbonates which are deposited on the shore as the water flows over. Swimming is prohibited because body oils in the water stop this deposition. Trout are visible in the lake, but fishing is not permitted.

Sprouting Rock ~ for centuries, water has dissolved a passage through the limestone to exit out of a sheer cliff wall as a spectacular waterfall.

No dogs are allowed on this trail because of its resource impact (swimming), debris on trail (that some won’t pick up), and wildlife disturbance … Over 60,000 people visit Hanging Lake each year.

About the trail: This short, steep, scenic trail travels from the bottom of Glenwood Canyon up through Dead horse Creek Canyon to Hanging Lake. What I liked about this trail is the water was along the trail for most of the hike, with mini waterfalls and several places to stop and rest (if you wanted to).

The hike is up through Dead horse Creek Canyon, a passage through millions of years of geologic history. At the bottom there is Precambrian metamorphic greenstone, schist and feldspar. Then there are layers of sedimentary sandstones deposited during a period of ancient seas. The upper portion of the trail is dominated by gray and white limestone’s also laid down by early seas.

The trail begins in oak brush, Pinion pine and juniper, and then enters a Douglas fir forest with serviceberry and cottonwoods. The trail is well-maintained with many switchbacks to accommodate the rise in elevation. Cutting the switchbacks promotes severe trail erosion. There are several rest stops along the way. Some parts of the trail are rocky, especially in the beginning and at the end where the trail has steep stairs carved into the canyon cliff rock.

The trail ends on a boardwalk around the lake. It is important not to walk off this boardwalk, because the fragile shoreline breaks easily; allowing more of the lake’s water to flow away.

There is a short offshoot from the trail, just before the boardwalk, which leads to Spouting Rock. This was fantastic also. I hope it was ok for impact reasons that I found a place to hang my hammock. It was by far the best hammock spot I have ever found.

* Information above provided by the Forest Service

http://hikingincolorado.org/hang.html I like this information from Steve Fry

Information from White River Ranger District: http://tinyurl.com/yealfjg

Protect Colorado Roadless Forests

You can read the full article at the Wilderness Society http://tinyurl.com/npyhxd

Some of Colorado’s most pristine places are at risk.

While the federal 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule protects nearly 60 million acres of pristine forests throughout the nation, the state of Colorado continues to move forward with a proposal that would exempt the state from the national rule, replacing it with a weaker version that could damage some of the most beautiful countryside in Colorado.

Currant Creek, high above the North Fork of the Gunnison River, is one of the places that could be ruined. This distinctly remote and unaltered landscape spans diverse mid-elevation forest landscape hosting aspen, oak and serviceberry. This area is essential to elk calving, mule deer rearing, migration and other seasonal wildlife habitat issues.

Under the rule Colorado is proposing, Currant Creek would be opened to coal mining and a network of new roads and coal drilling platforms — all far from any existing coal portals and transportation networks.

You can make a difference by acting NOW: http://tinyurl.com/mcaxb8