Argentine Pass

Distance: 5.2 miles round trip
Elevation: 11,100 ft - 13,200 ft
Elevation Gain: 2,100 ft
Date Hiked: 3 September, 2011
Bathroom at Trailhead:  No
Dogs: Yes

The precipitous trail to Argentine Pass

Argentine Pass is a destination most reach by driving their 4x4 or ATV up from Waldorf (out of Georgetown CO) .  The hiker can reach it, however, by hiking up the arduous goat track along the slope of Argentine Peak.  I have wanted to do this hike for years, and this year I got my chance.

Driving into scenic Horseshoe Basin at the end of Peru Creek

Walking by the ruins of the Shoebasin Mine

The trailhead for Argentine Pass is located at the end of Peru Creek Road near Montezuma in Summit County.  While this road is passable for passenger cars, at least to the trailhead for Chihuahua Gulch,  it becomes increasingly rough thereafter so don't try this in your passenger van.  It is only 4.6 miles in, but when you are traveling 5 miles an hour, it takes a while.

Walking up the road

White coated rocks.  The British geologists we met speculated it was due to  Kaolinite Clay coating the rocks.

At the end of the road is a large parking lot on the left.  Don't go beyond this.  The road drifts behind a hill just past this lot and there is a gate blocking further progress that you can't see until you make the bend.

The unmarked sign indicating the start of the trail.  The pass itself is visible to the left.

The route follows the hillside to the left

The trail itself begins at a small unmarked sign in the willows 0.4 miles up this road.  I ran into a volunteer ranger coming down who said it took her an hour to find this spot. We did not have this difficulty but kept wondering where it was as we slowly slogged up the very rocky road. Just keep going, you'll know it when you see it.

The first bend is just ahead.  Decatur Mountain is to the right.

Stunning views back down Peru Creek Valley

After the initial turn, the trail crosses the valley through willows taller than I was. It begins to climb quickly on the other side and will do so unrelentingly until you reach the pass.

The initial part of the route.   There are still plants on the slope.  Grays Peak is to the left.

Looking down on the route through the willows

Argentine Pass Trail has just one switchback and you reach this around 1 mile. The turn here was so rocky, it looked like a stream bed, which would make the route an ankle twisting nightmare. Fortunately, it is not. At the bend, you are already above treeline and a pleasant looking ridgeline is just ahead. It looks trivial to climb Decatur Mountain to the right and someday I hope to return and do just that.

The route becomes more barren, where is the pass?

Clouds loom where only the thistle bloom.  From this point we were still several crenelations away from the pass.

The views looking back down Peru Creek Valley are stunning from this point and if you are looking for a shorter outing, you could turn around right at the bend and call it a day. If you continue on, it is another 1.6 miles to the pass. Note, the guidebooks all say it is 2 miles to the pass, but add on the distance from the parking lot to the trailhead and another 0.2 miles of navigation error and my GPS said the distance was 2.6 miles one way.

Traversing a wide area.  On the very narrow spots, I did not take pictures.  I needed both hands at the ready in case I slipped.

At last the pass comes into view

The terrain on this part of the route is unchanging. It is rocky, very narrow in places, and devoid of vegetation accept for the mysterious Frosty Ball Thistle. You can't really see your destination from the trail because it continually weaves in and out of drainages that hug the mountain side and the ridgeline in the distance all looks the same.  This trip became an exercise in "are we there yet" as we took turns on point hoping the next bend in the trail would show us the pass.

Argentine Peak from the pass

Grays Peak (left) and Torreys Peak (just to the right of Grays) from the pass

The views from the route are amazing, so don't let the tedious nature of the trail itself deter you. The entire time you are looking down into a bowl bordered on the north by Grays Peak (14,270 ft) and Ruby Mountain (13,228ft). To the east is Mt. Edwards (13,850 ft) and of course Argentine Peak (13,738 ft) is several hundred feet above on the right.

Looking south at Mt. Wilcox (13.408 ft) from the pass. Silver Dollar and Murray Lakes are on the other side.

Reaching the pass is somewhat anticlimactic.   I have heard that Waldorf on the other side is stunning, but the slope is so gradual, you can't really see much from the pass itself.  I had hoped to climb Mt. Argentine from the pass, but we did not get started on the trail until after 1pm and pressed upwards despite the looming black clouds that always seem to shroud this area.  Going even higher was out of the question.

Back down now, admiring an old cabin in the meadow across from the parking lot

It is the history of this trail that makes it worth doing, however.  Initially a stagecoach route and later a railroad, there are places where the trail is still relatively wide and flat. Other places are so narrow a Pika would have trouble staying level. Every time I looked down I could not help but picture Grandma Moses bouncing along on those wagon wheels as the edge came in and out of view.  I have heard stories of pack animals being blown off the ridge and I could well believe it. The relentless snows in this area made this road unprofitable and it was eventually abandoned. The effort folks went to back then to traverse the Continental Divide just amaze me. And I bitch when I have to take Loveland Pass because the Eisenhower Tunnel is closed!

Late 1800's image of Argentine Pass by Chamberlain, W. G. (William Gunnison) -- Photographer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons. 

Hiking to Argentine Pass is not an easy trail.  I had climbed Mt. Democrat two days before and my quads were wondering what on earth I was doing.  Knowing the route now, I might return to climb Mt. Edwards or Argentine Peak, but it won't be on the top of my list. Instead, I would rather continue up the road to several shelf lakes that nestle at the base of Grays and Ruby.  We ran into some Brits on the trail who have been in the area many times and have climbed Grays from that route. They were complaining about the altitude but once they told me that story, I knew their posturing was just for show.

Eldorado Canyon

Distance: 7 miles round trip to Walker Ranch, 6 miles round trip to plateau before the drop off
Elevation: 5,950 ft - 7,200 ft
Elevation Gain: 1,250 ft (net).  Cumulative is much more if you go down the back side to Walker Ranch
Date Hiked: 22 July 2011
Bathroom at the Trailhead: Yes
Dogs: On leash only, State Park

Views of the foothills from the Eldorado Canyon Trail

The Eldorado Canyon Trail in Eldorado Canyon State Park is a pleasant outing particularly in the the spring and fall.  Since the trail is mostly south facing, it can also remain open when other trails, like Rattlesnake Gulch across the valley are coated in ice. 

The first mile of the route climbs relentlessly

Looking at two of the crenelations that the trail climbs around and over.  The peaks of the Continental Divide are barely visible in the distance.

The route follows the crenelations of a long hillside that heads deep into Eldorado Canyon and eventually intersects with Walker Ranch west of Boulder.  Along the way, the route weaves in and out of Ponerosa and Lodgepole Pines, Douglas Fir, and Mountain Mahogany.  I did this hike in July and Bee Balm dotted the slopes.  I did see occasional spots of Poison Ivy so don't go frolicking in the shrubbery no matter how appealing.

A trail segment that travels over rocks

A trail segment on an open sunny slope

I had planned to go all the way until the trail intersected with the Walker Loop but found that at 3 miles, the trail heads straight down to the valley floor.  I decided not to drop down only to turn around and race back up.   At this point in the route, there is a nice pleateau where one can sit, lounge and admire the views across the valley.

Looking back out the canyon to the eastern plains from my turn around point at 3 miles

The scare on the distant hillside is the train tracks.  I have climbed up to that point from the Rattlesnake Gulch Trail.

 The rocks that make Eldorado Canyon State Park a Mecca for rock climbers are not really visible from this trail but that is not a bad thing.  While there were tons of families at the early part of the trail, once I passed the first half mile they dropped off quickly.  The trail is steep in the beginning and most casual walkers turn around quickly.  This meant that I ran into only one other couple and some mountain bikers on the way. If you like solitude this might be a better option than the crowed Mesa Trail, which is free and therefore attracts more people.  A State Park's Pass will buy you this option year round.

Scenic Drive: Co 129 to Seedhouse Rd

The Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area lies at the end of Seedhouse Rd north of Steamboat Springs

 There are a lot of scenic drives in Colorado, but I particularly like taking Co 129 north out of Steamboat Springs to Seedhouse Rd. On this route you will pass bucolic ranch land, lazy rivers bordered by colorful cottonwoods, some seriously attractive homes and then end up in the Mount Zirkle Wilderness Area. The day we took this drive, we were hoping to hike but Autumn had arrived and it was cold and rainy. We settled for exploring the nooks and crannies of route itself which worked out well. These are things you miss when racing to a trailhead.

The Elk River parallels Co 129 and in several places bridges cross it for pleasant views.

Another view of the Elk River

Once you turn on Seedhouse Rd, you are still following the Elk River, but the further one progresses up the road the less domesticated it feels.

Some fall color viewed from the side of the road

I love twisty roads bordered by color

The Elk River is much wilder at this point

This part of the river interested me because of the gouges carved in the rocks by the flow.

Angus cattle graze in one of the many meadows along CO 129.  The Elk River is further from the road now but you can tell where it is by the line of Cottonwood trees.

Hope Pass

Distance: 11 miles round trip (starting from Perry Peak Campground)
Elevation: 9,300 ft - 12,600 ft
Elevation Gain: 3,181 ft
Date Hiked: 19 August 2011
Dogs: Off leash

The majestic view from Hope Pass (12,600 ft)

A hike to Hope Pass near Twin Lakes is a long and arduous journey to one of the most majestic views in Colorado.  I cheated on this hike, truth be told, because I stayed over several nights below the pass, assisting the Hopeless Aid Station and working the Leadville 100 Ultra Marathon.  As you hike this trail just remember there are folks who run up, over, down the other side and back up as part of a much longer and harder journey.  Makes you feel a little substandard doesn't it?

Starting out at the Perry Peak Campground

Passing a nice Beaver pond with lodge

Looking down into Lake Creek

For the past several years, the normal trailhead for Hope Pass has been closed because the bridge over Lake Creek was washed away.  The new bridge is sitting in the sands near Twin Lakes so perhaps someday soon they'll get it in place.

Junction between Upper Twin Lake (left) and the Willis drainages (right)

Initial segment in Lodgepoles and rocks

Heading into the Aspens

 We had a train of fully loaded llamas, carrying tents, food, oxygen etc up to the aid station, so we had to start our journey at the Perry Peak campground.  This route cuts through a short 0.5 mile swampy section of trail before joining the real route and makes my description longer than published.   The first real milestone is the trail junction between the Willis drainages and a trail back to Upper Twin Lake at 0.68 miles.

Looking down into the Aspens

Crossing the bridge at 1.7 miles

Willis Creek

From this point,  the route travels across a broad slope filled with young Aspens.  The trail is narrow, steep and rocky and over the 20 years that folks have been using llamas to gear up the aid station, more than one has tumbled off the side.  For people though, the trail is perfectly fine unless of course you are as wide a fully loaded llama, in which case you should consider a different form of exercise.

Heading up the steep segment to the left of the creek.  The candy cane tape on the shrub marks the route for the runners.

Junction between the Little and Big Willis routes

Past the switchbacks, the trail begins to level out

After a continuous uphill slog, the route intersects, at 1.36 miles, a small drainage ditch, probably used in mining.  This short flat segment is a nice break, for both llamas and humans.  At this point we had climbed 528 ft.

Passing a relatively intact cabin

The grave in llama rest meadow

Before breaking out of treeline, the route gets wetter, weaving back and forth across the creek and through willows.

At 1.7 miles, we reached the bridge over Little Willis Creek and transitioned into a damp, primeval-feeling mixed Spruce/Fir biome.  Another trail, Interlaken comes in from the left to join the route just past the bridge.  This is where the runners come in as well.

Finally breaking out of the trees

Mt. Hope

The cook and medical tents.  More will go up the next day.

After watering the llamas, we turned right and headed straight up the hill in another unrelentless climb.  At 2.2 miles is the split between the Little and Big Willis drainages.  Hope Pass is to the left up the Little Willis drainage.  At 2.6 miles begins a series of 4 lengthly switchbacks.  At the top of this segment, the trail flattens out appreciably.  I could practically hear the llamas give a sigh of relief.

Sunrise on Mt. Hope the next day.  Llamas graze in the meadow.

Starting up the final pitch to Hope Pass

From this point on the trail angles slightly upwards through a series of open meadows.  We stopped at one at 3.4 miles to let the llamas rest some more.  I don't think their wranglers were too upset about this either.  There is a large avalanche chute on the left of the is meadow and an interesting grave on the right.  Finally, at 4.8 miles we reached the tents of the aid station at roughly 12,000 ft.  Fade to black...

A series of switchbacks head up the slope

Mt. Hope

The next morning, we continued our route to the Pass.  The aid station is located right at treeline on the broad slope overlooking Little Willis Lake.  Mt. Hope, one of the highest 13ers in the state dominates the view.  It was a quick 0.75 miles and 600 feet elevation gain to the pass itself.  While steep, the views down the valley are stunning, so there are plenty of excuses to stop, breath, and admire the scenery.

Looking back down on Little Willis Lake and Leadville in the distance

Further up on the pass

From the pass at 12,600 ft,  the hiker gazes deep into the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness.  The number of towering 14ers makes this view majestic indeed.  From left to right is Mt. Oxford (14,153 ft), Mt. Belford (14,197 ft), Missouri Mountain (14,067 ft), and Huron Peak (14,003 ft).  Mt. Hope is to the right and Mt. Quail to the left on the pass itself. 

The pass itself

Heading up the slope of Mt. Quail

I decided to try and climb Mt. Quail, the 13er to the left of the pass.  There was no trail, so I left my pack below and just took my camera and started bushwhacking up the slope.  It was slow going with my camera dangling below my chest as I used both hands and feet to pull myself upwards.  I did intersect with a trail and followed that for a bit until it ran into a area of loose gravel and tallus.  At this point, I knew getting down was going to be a butt slide, so I decided not to go any further.  If I do this again next year, I'll have a better idea of the route.

Looking down on the pass from a couple of hundred feet up Mt. Quail

Looking into the Collegiates from the slope of Mt. Quail

My turn around point on Quail.  The summit is up that ridge and to the right.

A journey to Hope Pass is a treat to a little visited area of the state.  While a leg buster, you can at least feel grateful that you are not running 100 miles and are only hiking 11.  The view of Mt. Hope along makes this journey worth it in my book.  Being there really made me feel like I was in the mountains.

Moose

A young bull Moose (Alces alces) lounges in the shade on a hot day in Summit County

This creature, the Moose,  is one of the meanest, most unpredictable, foul-tempered beasts you are ever likely to encounter in Colorado and I descided to stalk it over several soggy days, hoping to finally bag a shot of its malevolent personality. Don't try this at home children, I had a telephoto lens!

This tale, reminiscent of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, began when several people in my condo complex gloated that they had not only seen the Moose in our neighborhood but actually had a close encounter of the scary kind in the large expanse of forest between us and I-70.  The most ignomious part of this is that it actually crossed the road right in front of our car but we couldn't see it because of the back up in traffic.  Our neighbors never let us live that one down.

So what's so scary about a Moose?  Well besides their already mentioned pleasing personality, they are big, as in really big.  Our friends were walking their two dogs in the forest when they passed a small Aspen Grove.  At once this large, ominous shape began to rise vertically out of the grasses and kept on rising.  The dogs freaked, the woman screamed, and general bladder control was threatened.  Fortunately, these startled humans and canines took appropriate action... they ran for their lives.   Another friend of a friend recently did the opposite.  She cowered in a ditch and a Moose nearly pummeled her to death.  So children, while you fight off a Bear, Mountain Lion, and that person who just took the last parking spot at Copper Mountain,  remember....run from a Moose.  They don't have a prey instinct, unlike the skier at Copper.  

So, hearing these tales I was bound and determined to find this Moose.  I set out at 7 pm one evening and started trudging off trail through Willows, clear cuts, and generally swampy areas.  I was having no luck at all until I noticed a large Aspen with monster-sized chunks of bark scrapped away.  I immediately froze in my tracks and started creeping about very carefully.  It did not take me long to find the large areas of grass that had been flattened like crop circles in the UK.  The hairs on the back of my neck rose.  Was I alone in the thick grass?  It seemed I was, so feeling rather like a voyeur, I tiptoed around the Moose's haunt, poking at scat, following trails, and generally being intrusive.  At least now I had my target zone.  Every evening I went back with no luck.  It was on my last day, and the middle of the day when at last I saw him.  I was walking the dogs of course and was totally unprepared.  I ran them quickly back home, grabbed my camera and the rest is history. 

This young Moose was easily as tall as I.  A typical Moose is 6-7 ft at the shoulder.  Note the large flap of skin called a "bell" hanging from its neck.  Along with the distinctive antlers, this is another great identifying feature.

While other parts of North America, Alaska in particular, have more Moose than they know what to do with,  they are less common in Colorado.  Introuced three decades ago, their population has been growing.  Walden is known for a large Moose population as well as the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park.  Their range is expanding, however so more and more people are finally getting a good look at this impressive animal.

The largest member of the deer family and the largest antlered animal in the world, the Moose habitually lives in cold, boreal forests eating terrestrial and aquatic vegetation, particularly Willows.  They are most often spotted in small ponds head down in the water.  The largest sub-species exist in Alaska, while the smallest in Colorado and neighboring states. 

A male's antlers are strickly a breeding enhancer.  They can grow to up to 4.5 feet across, and without their velvet, are impressive indeed.  Once the rut is over, however, off they go.  Maybe I'll find this male's set somewhere out in the Willows. 

Antlers are covered in velvet, which is rich in blood.  This helps protect and feed the antlers as they grow.  I wonder how large this set will get by the time of the rut in late September and October?

My personal odyssey at an end, I look forward to more Moose encounters...from a safe distance of course. 


Note: In 2012 a beautiful Bull Moose walked right up to (I was hiding).  Check it out!