Guides and Trips
Trips
Stormy Peaks (12,148') & Pass, Pingree Park
Box Prairie, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 11.1 miles
Hiking | 11.1 miles
The journey of two drops of rain, each falling a foot apart, on opposite sides of the Stormy Peaks Pass. Although only a foot apart on the Pass, the raindrop on the north migrates into the Wild & Scenic Cache la Poudre River, the southerly raindrop finds its way down to the Big Thompson River drainage. They won't be rejoined again until over 50 miles of travel to the Delta in the...
Many Thunders Mountain (8,540') -- Revisit, and Ranked Peaks 8555, 8540
Red Feather Lakes, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 4.7 miles
Hiking | 4.7 miles
A revisit to a summit that was aborted last time, due to weather, and a couple of ranked peaks for extra-credit. Our trip was inspired by the experience of a hiking friend, although the route was slightly different.Many Thunders is a relatively easy climb, off-trail when you leave the USFS 2-track at the end of the meadow. We chose to climb the false summit first, and then hike along the boulder-strewn ridge-line to the...
Triangle Mountain (8,415'), Revisit at First Light
Glen Haven, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 3.0 miles
Hiking | 3.0 miles
My first visit of Triangle Mountain was Jan of 2010. This visit was quite different...seeing the summit views at first light, and hiking under a full moon. Once again, I'm amazed at how such a low-level mountain, can offer such inspiring views.
"Drunken Sailors!"...that's what our track looks like. Our goal was to summit "the hump" on "The Camel" (8,408'). We did, and rambled around the area, since it was all USFS land.For extra credit, I thought we might be able to climb the Camel's "head", as well as the "hump". NOT! The head is a whole different ball game. Got stuck at the crux. Class-4 minimum, likely low Class-5. Climbing shoes would have been better than...
Lulu Mountain (12,228') Loop, Continental Divide
Walden, Colorado, United States
Snowshoeing | 7.0 miles
Snowshoeing | 7.0 miles
Lulu Mountain, revisited...the 2011 attempt was unsuccessful. The weather in Feb 2011 was humbling, and resulted in the title changed to "Thunder Pass Loop", the best we could do.This time around the Ol' Gal smiled on us, and permitted us to visit Her summit. The weather, and the snow conditions were ideal.The American Lakes area (aka Michigan Lakes) is one of the most scenic in the Cameron Pass vicinity. Great views of the...
Cherokee SWA, Lone Pine Loop, Ranked Peaks 7322 & 7835
Mishawaka, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 12.2 miles
Hiking | 12.2 miles
Trekking through the Lone Pine Unit of the Cherokee State Wildlife Area, with hopes of tagging a couple of Larimer county ranked peaks was an interesting ridge-walking experience. And since it is a designated wildlife area, prime hunting area, you'd hope to see the elk, mule deer and moose that we encountered.Right off, crossing the swollen Lone Pine Creek was a challenge. I chose to cross on a submerged log, that was dropped...
Many Thunders Mountain (8,540') -- Aborted
Red Feather Lakes, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 6.2 miles
Hiking | 6.2 miles
"Close, but no cigars"....Got within 200' laterally and 10' vertically of the true summit of Many Thunders Mountain (8,540'), but decided to call it quits. It's still there, and I'll tag it on another day.My partner got bummed-out 600' laterally from the true summit. The Vedauwoo-like rock, which is "sticky" for good friction climbing, was slippery due to the 2" of soft, melting snow cover.I continued on for another 400', tagging the false...
These two "soft-shouldered", low-elevation peaks are easy to do, and do offer some nice panoramic views of the Indian Peaks at the the summit. And for the bucket-listers, Taylor is a ranked peak in Boulder county.A few points:The highest point on Taylor is actually about 50' NW of the cairn, near a lean-to.We dropped 320' of vertical bushwack on the return, on the NE side of Taylor. Our hope was to find...
I don't have a "bucket list", but fortunately others I hike with do. I was invited on an off-trail hike to tag Larimer County's ranked peaks 8722 and 8820. And even these lowly 8,000' peaks offered a wonderful view of the Red Feather Lakes area. You can see Wyoming to the north, Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park to the south, and the Medicine Bow Range to the west. Great views!Both peaks have false summits nearby,...
Deer Mountain (10,013') Traverse, RMNP
Fall River Estates Subdivision, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 5.4 miles
Hiking | 5.4 miles
If you have a couple of cars in your group, considering doing a point-to-point shuttle hike across the east and west slope of Deer Mountain. The east slope is very different than the west in the winter...you'll have to punch through snow drifts near the summit.Everybody does the west slope, but the east slope will offer you a bit of off trail. Distance wise, the traverse is much different than a round-trip...
Just a few pics of the west side of the Continental Divide at dusk...awesome!
Green Mountain Trail, Kawuneeche Valley, RMNP
Gaskil, Colorado, United States
Snowshoeing | 4.1 miles
Snowshoeing | 4.1 miles
Another easy snowshoe in RMNP, trail-head well marked. Final destination was the Big Meadows, fed by the Tonahutu Creek.The elk were in the low-country, so all we saw was a lot of moose tracks. And plenty of snow.Never did find the 2 cabins remains at the Big Meadows. Probably didn't go far enough.
The Baker Gulch TH is well marked, and starts in the Kawuneeche Valley, in Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park. Starting out, you'll cross a large, open meadow created by the Colorado River.About a 1/4 mile from the TH, the trail splits: Bowen Gulch to the left, Baker Gulch to the right. 3/4 mile from the TH, you'll leave RMNP, and enter the Never Summer Wilderness.It was a windy and cold day. We didn't feel...
Another great day in the high-country...enjoying the mountain weather that Mother Nature brewed for us. It's just plain awesome to see the chaotic clouds of spindrift coming off the Divide.My last snowshoe visit to Embryo Lake was 3 years ago, and was pretty much on trail. This trip was mostly off-trail, and offered a "tour de ponds", hitting in addition to the Loch, "Serendipity", "Little Bear", and a couple of other unnamed shallow,...
A good friend offered to share a mystery hike with us on this fine, mountain weather day. Early on, it became apparent that we were headed to Miller Rock, since we were on the Miller Rock Trail. What wasn't apparent was the ghost town...Gresham.It was a real surprise to encounter Gresham, and explore the two remaining buildings in the former mining camp, one a cabin, the other the post office. Gresham's post...
It was 3 years and 1 day since last I was on the summit of East Glacier Knob, going off-trail and following a route described by Lisa Foster. The goal this time was to explore the possibility of a different off-trail route to the top, which from the digital resources, appeared easier.Bottom line: It took the same time (1 hour) to ascend from the Fire Trail, same distance (0.5 mi.), and about...
North Fork of Cache la Poudre, From Eagle's Nest to Gateway
Laporte, Colorado, United States
Hiking | 9.4 miles
Hiking | 9.4 miles
This trip presents 10 miles of the 60 mile long North Fork, a major tributary of the Cache la Poudre..."Hide the powder" (French). A substantial part of the route is off-trail, beginning in the Eagle's Nest Open Space in Livermore, and ending at the confluence of the North Fork and the Cache la Poundre, Gateway Natural Area.My last trip on the North Fork, was just a short 1/4 mile jaunt, less than...
The USGS list 33 "Sheep" Mountains in Colorado. This "Sheep" Mtn is within 12 miles of the "Sheep" Mtn I visited last week. And, I can report that there are sheep on this Sheep Mountain!It's an easy off-trail climb, with a well defined summit...but no view. Once you reach the summit, if you hike a bit to the south, you'll be rewarded with a view of the entire Lumpy Ridge and the...
Funny how mountains are like people: approach them from a different angle, and you might see a different character. My previous hike in 2010 of Sheep Mtn followed the well-worn trail to a less than impressive summit.This time we chose to go off-trail at the "pot rock", and follow the ridge to the summit. The summit hasn't changed, but the 1,100' of vertical bushwhacking was a joy. Rock outcrops had to be navigated along...
Lyric Falls is not much to see in the Winter...a cascade covered in a blanket of snow. But it was fun going off-trail, and climbing around and over the boulder field...without snowshoes. Suddenly you'd punch through the 1-1/2 ft of snow and drop into the interstitial space, and find your self waist deep...and your boot wedged between the boulders.Looking forward to coming back in the Spring, and seeing the Lyric cascade over the...
