August 6, 2011 Bowen Gulch- Valley 5 mile rt.
Just what the doctor called for; a easy hike. Very tired all week long after the Mt Ida hike. Left the house around 3:30 a.m. Arrived at Gaskil barn area around 6:00 a.m. Turned on the dirt road and two yearling cow moose were near the road. Looked like twins, but did not see the Mom around. The air was very cool.Winter Park temperature was 39 degrees, but felt warmer here. Just as I approached the Colorado River another older yearling was by the river. I took a few pictures. She crossed the river and came right by me. She proceeded to the west towards the forest. I saw another one south going to the east towards the cabins sought of the barn. Great way to start off the hike. Once I got on the portion of the trail that comes from the Baker/Bowen trailhead the trail is very nice. Very easy trail. The closer you get to the northern end the more little creeks you cross. A couple of very muddy areas my boots have taken a beating this year. At the Baker/Bowen trailhead they have an access for the hunters during hunting season, I always wonder why they would go here. Now I know why. When you get close to the trailhead the trail comes very close to the valley floor and the National Forest begins. From this area you can see the elk in the valley in the early morning and once the sun comes up they will wander into the forest. The hunters wait and follow them. They probably work in pairs; one a spotter and the other taking the shot(s).
The portion that we tried cross country skiing last winter looks totally different without all the snow and fallen trees. It's a wide road to a creek which you would never know with all the snow. We had a hard time skiing it due to the fallen trees and snow amounts. It is amazing to see it now. I followed a few animal tracks to explore. One deadhead and found another more interesting, eventually it took me just north of the trail. this particular animal trail was being used alot. There is a small creek that is an overflow from the Bowen Gulch creek that runs near the trail. I saw this man walking fast away from the forest along the creek. The land south of the overflow is private land. I thought he might be the owner, you could tell he was on a mission. He worked himself around the small creek to the road past me and back into the forest. Strange. The creek is running very high. The grass in the area is about a foot and half tall and very green. No elk though. I was walking around the barn area and taking pictures of the wild flowers and on the way back ran into the same man. He told me this area just opened about 2 weeks ago. I headed back to the truck there is an area just south of the parking lot that has a sign private drive. I have seen moose down in this area before so waled along the river avoiding the private drive. I could see moose tracks near the fence. Last year I saw a Cow and two babies in the same area last year. As I headed back to the truck I see a cow and baby laying down. I could not get clean shot. I moved in closer, maybe too close, but could not get a clear shot. Finally they got up and headed south, I was able to get some good shots. This area is just a mess with all the down trees. They have been cutting the beetle kill trees and some have fallen on the fences breaking them down.
Heading back I came to the gate and saw a family having a picnic right by the river. I then notice two moose right across from me. A cow and baby, I got some good pictures. There is a fence that runs along the river and the baby was going to get on the other side, It tried going in between but would not fit. Finally it went under. The Mom just jumped it. The people having the picnic had no idea what the animals were across the stream. Amazing. I saw two other moose while driving toward the Colorado River Trail, and a juge cow and Bull near the Beaver Pond area.
Friday, December 26, 2014
Monday, December 15, 2014
Mt Ida July 30, 2011
Mt Ida 11.5 miles
Finally!! One of nine trails to hike this year. This is the first and I was looking forward to the most. Most of all the other trails are still packed with snow or have washed out bridges and or the creeks are still running too high. Tough spring snow season.
I arrived at Milner Pass or Poudre Lakes about 5:15 am. Daylight was starting to break but still very dark. I brought my headlamp but was not crazy about hiking in the dark on a trail I am unfamiliar with. As I arrived there was a group of boys about 12 years old with two 20 year olds that were going the same direction. They all had headlamps as well so I just followed them. When they say the first 1.5 miles is the toughest they are right! The first mile is in the trees. There was a landslide in the middle of the first 1.5 and it was difficult to see the trail in the dark, but with the help of the other group we found it. Once you get about tree line the views of the Never Summer Range are gorgeous. This is one of my favorite views in Colorado. I was taking pictures going up. The group passed me, I have never seen a group this young attack the mountain like they did. Not one complaint from any of them and they had a very fast pace. They got further in front of me since I was taking pictures which was OK with me. The trail disappeared about 1.5 miles from Ida. You have to use the cliffs to your left as a guide line. You do have to walk on some loose rocks at times but it is not too bad. Once you get to Mt. Ida the views are spectacular. You can see Longs Peak to the Southeast. Southwest is Grand Lake and Shadow Mountain Lake. To the west is the Never Summer Range and to the north you can see Noka Crags, Thunderpass and even Snowy Mtn Range in Wyoming. Very hazy. It's been hot so that did not help but the views were great. The Northeast side of Ida goes straight down. Lake Agnes is still Frozen and Lake Inkwell is partially frozen. Amazing! The snow that hanging in the east face of the mountain is at least 20' deep. Amazing to see this at this time of the year. The west side of Ida is a very easy to climb Very gentle slope. You an see Big Meadow from Mt Ida, it looks very green in the valley below. Very green on the higher peaks. Chief Cheley and Crocktop that are south of Ida have ton's of snow on them. On the way back I enjoyed the beautiful day and overlooking the small lakes below in the forest in Never Summer Range to the west. It got very warm coming back.
I saw a herd of Elk down in a valley west of the trail about 100 or so. Just a beautiful hike, but long and too much above tree line. Weather was great until the heat rolled in at the end.
Finally!! One of nine trails to hike this year. This is the first and I was looking forward to the most. Most of all the other trails are still packed with snow or have washed out bridges and or the creeks are still running too high. Tough spring snow season.
I arrived at Milner Pass or Poudre Lakes about 5:15 am. Daylight was starting to break but still very dark. I brought my headlamp but was not crazy about hiking in the dark on a trail I am unfamiliar with. As I arrived there was a group of boys about 12 years old with two 20 year olds that were going the same direction. They all had headlamps as well so I just followed them. When they say the first 1.5 miles is the toughest they are right! The first mile is in the trees. There was a landslide in the middle of the first 1.5 and it was difficult to see the trail in the dark, but with the help of the other group we found it. Once you get about tree line the views of the Never Summer Range are gorgeous. This is one of my favorite views in Colorado. I was taking pictures going up. The group passed me, I have never seen a group this young attack the mountain like they did. Not one complaint from any of them and they had a very fast pace. They got further in front of me since I was taking pictures which was OK with me. The trail disappeared about 1.5 miles from Ida. You have to use the cliffs to your left as a guide line. You do have to walk on some loose rocks at times but it is not too bad. Once you get to Mt. Ida the views are spectacular. You can see Longs Peak to the Southeast. Southwest is Grand Lake and Shadow Mountain Lake. To the west is the Never Summer Range and to the north you can see Noka Crags, Thunderpass and even Snowy Mtn Range in Wyoming. Very hazy. It's been hot so that did not help but the views were great. The Northeast side of Ida goes straight down. Lake Agnes is still Frozen and Lake Inkwell is partially frozen. Amazing! The snow that hanging in the east face of the mountain is at least 20' deep. Amazing to see this at this time of the year. The west side of Ida is a very easy to climb Very gentle slope. You an see Big Meadow from Mt Ida, it looks very green in the valley below. Very green on the higher peaks. Chief Cheley and Crocktop that are south of Ida have ton's of snow on them. On the way back I enjoyed the beautiful day and overlooking the small lakes below in the forest in Never Summer Range to the west. It got very warm coming back.
I saw a herd of Elk down in a valley west of the trail about 100 or so. Just a beautiful hike, but long and too much above tree line. Weather was great until the heat rolled in at the end.
Synder Creek Trail July 23, 2011
Snyder Creek Trail 8+ miles (5 hours)
Very easy trail, flat for most of the trail. Wild flowers everywhere but beginning to dry out. Creek was running higher than last year at this time. There was some concrete bricks near by so we put in the creek so we could cross, our feet still got wet. La;st year we stayed in the valley and did not take the trail up the mountain. This year the trail at the north end was not visible due to all the snow and rain this year so we stayed on the main trail. It seems to go on forever. We finally turned around. Once you get on top of the first ridge the trail turns into a road. This is not a heavily used trail which is nice. Saw one female moose in the woods, she took off very quickly. We did not see any other wildlife on the trail, although we did see numerous tracks on the road and trail. It was a very hot day for this time of the year. We waded thru the creek on the way back. On the drive back we went through Gould on Hwy 14. We saw 3 bull moose on the top of Cameron Pass.
Very easy trail, flat for most of the trail. Wild flowers everywhere but beginning to dry out. Creek was running higher than last year at this time. There was some concrete bricks near by so we put in the creek so we could cross, our feet still got wet. La;st year we stayed in the valley and did not take the trail up the mountain. This year the trail at the north end was not visible due to all the snow and rain this year so we stayed on the main trail. It seems to go on forever. We finally turned around. Once you get on top of the first ridge the trail turns into a road. This is not a heavily used trail which is nice. Saw one female moose in the woods, she took off very quickly. We did not see any other wildlife on the trail, although we did see numerous tracks on the road and trail. It was a very hot day for this time of the year. We waded thru the creek on the way back. On the drive back we went through Gould on Hwy 14. We saw 3 bull moose on the top of Cameron Pass.
Sunday, December 14, 2014
Lake City Colorado July 8 thru July 15th 2011
Our first destination was Lake City, CO. We have never been to this area of the state. Very small towns, no major brand stores, all Mom and Pop Shops. Takes about 5 minutes to drive through the town. Friday we dis small 2 mile hike along the Henson River. Interesting rock formations.
July 9th, we rented a jeep and drove the Alpine Loop. There is a 50+ mile drive over some very rough and narrow roads. Very scenic. You are above tree line the majority of the drive. We did a hike up to Sloan Lake, 1.3 miles one way. They say it is one of the most popular hikes in Colorado. Very scenic area. We ran into quite a bit of snow near the lake area. No signs or directions. 90% of the people on the trail were going to Mt. Andres 14er. Had a difficult time maneuvering thru the snow to get to the Lake. Finally arrived at the lake but was disappointed because it was still frozen. Nice view of the mountain ranges. Wild flowers were all over the place. Back in the jeep we continued on the Alpine Loop up to Cinnamon Pass. Nothing remarkable. We then dropped down to Alamosa Junction, old ghost town. We drove up to Engineer Pass, very scenic.
Great view of 14 and 13er mountains all around Clouds started to move in and very dark to the west. We made our way back into Lake City. It was a one and done, scenic but boring.
Once back in Lake City we drove over to Creede, which is a very small town not much to see. We tried the Bachelor loop but had trouble with the jeep and did not want to get stranded so we headed back. The roads were so narrow with only enough room for one car, could not imagine getting around any oncoming cars, we glad it was not busy. The jeep kept on shutting down as we were going down hill. Not fun!58
Sunday - we drove up to the Cataract Trail. Plan was to go to Cataract Lake we never made it 1/2 mile out we had to cross a stream that was running very fast and was unsafe to cross. The hike up to this point was very beautiful and full of wild Columbine. It was tough trail almost straight up.
Monday we drove to Telluride. We took a shortcut on road 58P. We drove by the area were they shot scenes for the movie "True Grit". Wild flowers were everywhere, so beautiful. We dropped down into the small town of Saw Pit towards Telluride. Very beautiful area. We hiked up the very popular Bridal falls. It was a beautiful hike but lots of people and storm started coming in.
It rained a good part of the following day.
Tuesday we drove down to Lizard Head Pass to hike to get a good view of Lizard Head Peak. The trail climbed very quickly for about a mile. We ran into some snow but nothing major. Finally found an overlook off the trail to see Lizard Head, Mt Wilson, Wilson Peak and Wilson Meadow. Clouds started moving in so we headed back down.
Wednesday we drove to Grand Junction by taking the back way thru Norwood and Gateway We drove up to Grand Mesa. Very disappointing, very few trails. Lots of lakes, great for fishing.
Thursday we drove to Debeque to the Bookcliffs looking for Wild Horses.
We were so fortunate to see 5 different bands all in the same area. We sat and watched them for about 2 hours. It was so incredible to see how the Mustangs kept their band together. It was a great experience. We had a Great Time!
July 9th, we rented a jeep and drove the Alpine Loop. There is a 50+ mile drive over some very rough and narrow roads. Very scenic. You are above tree line the majority of the drive. We did a hike up to Sloan Lake, 1.3 miles one way. They say it is one of the most popular hikes in Colorado. Very scenic area. We ran into quite a bit of snow near the lake area. No signs or directions. 90% of the people on the trail were going to Mt. Andres 14er. Had a difficult time maneuvering thru the snow to get to the Lake. Finally arrived at the lake but was disappointed because it was still frozen. Nice view of the mountain ranges. Wild flowers were all over the place. Back in the jeep we continued on the Alpine Loop up to Cinnamon Pass. Nothing remarkable. We then dropped down to Alamosa Junction, old ghost town. We drove up to Engineer Pass, very scenic.
Great view of 14 and 13er mountains all around Clouds started to move in and very dark to the west. We made our way back into Lake City. It was a one and done, scenic but boring.
Once back in Lake City we drove over to Creede, which is a very small town not much to see. We tried the Bachelor loop but had trouble with the jeep and did not want to get stranded so we headed back. The roads were so narrow with only enough room for one car, could not imagine getting around any oncoming cars, we glad it was not busy. The jeep kept on shutting down as we were going down hill. Not fun!58
Sunday - we drove up to the Cataract Trail. Plan was to go to Cataract Lake we never made it 1/2 mile out we had to cross a stream that was running very fast and was unsafe to cross. The hike up to this point was very beautiful and full of wild Columbine. It was tough trail almost straight up.
Monday we drove to Telluride. We took a shortcut on road 58P. We drove by the area were they shot scenes for the movie "True Grit". Wild flowers were everywhere, so beautiful. We dropped down into the small town of Saw Pit towards Telluride. Very beautiful area. We hiked up the very popular Bridal falls. It was a beautiful hike but lots of people and storm started coming in.
It rained a good part of the following day.
Tuesday we drove down to Lizard Head Pass to hike to get a good view of Lizard Head Peak. The trail climbed very quickly for about a mile. We ran into some snow but nothing major. Finally found an overlook off the trail to see Lizard Head, Mt Wilson, Wilson Peak and Wilson Meadow. Clouds started moving in so we headed back down.
Wednesday we drove to Grand Junction by taking the back way thru Norwood and Gateway We drove up to Grand Mesa. Very disappointing, very few trails. Lots of lakes, great for fishing.
Thursday we drove to Debeque to the Bookcliffs looking for Wild Horses.
We were so fortunate to see 5 different bands all in the same area. We sat and watched them for about 2 hours. It was so incredible to see how the Mustangs kept their band together. It was a great experience. We had a Great Time!
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