Aldfer/Three Sisters: Evergreen Mountain Loop

Distance: 6.5 mile loop
Elevation: 7,437 ft - 8,592 ft
Elevation Gain: 1,155 ft (net) 1,174 ft (cumulative)
Dogs: On leash only (Jefferson County Open Space)
Bathroom at the trailhead: Yes
Tags: #coloradooutdoors, #hiking, #jeffco, #gearguide
Hikes nearby: Three Sisters Southern Loop

A view of several ranches from the Three Sisters Evergreen Mountain Trail

A hike to the top of Evergreen Mountain in the Three Sisters Open Space Park in Evergreen CO, is a great shoulder season training hike with some nice views at the top. The terrain traverses open Ponderosa Pine meadows as well as an overly thick Lodgepole Pine forest.  Mountain bikers can can swarm as numerously and as annoyingly as mosquitos, but the curvaceousness of the route kept them moving slowly so it is easy to get out of their way.

Trail map showing the route. 

It is difficult to miss the trailhead.

The lower part of the route travels through and open meadow dotted withe Ponderosa pines. 

This is a loop hike, that I took clockwise. Taken this way the trail starts on the opposite side of the road from the first Three Sister's parking lot (the one without the barn) on the East Evergreen Mountain Trail. The route heads south through a pleasant stand of open Ponderosa and Aspen trees, which on this trip was spotted with yellow Golden Banner, Wild Iris, and purple Sugarbowls. After a short 0.32 miles is the junction with the Ranch View Trail.

Aspens on an early part of the trail.

Heading across the broad hillside. There were a lot of birds in this area. 

After this junction, the Evergreen Mountain East trail continues to head south through small stands of Aspen before turning southwest and heading across a broad hillside. At the far end of this segment the trail reaches the slopes of Evergreen Mountain (at 0.84 miles) and starts a long series of switchbacks through a dense Lodgepole Pine forest. This is admittedly not my most favorite thing in Colorado. I find it monotonous and less fragrant than a Ponderosa forest and less exotic than the towering Spruce/Fir trees that prefer a wetter climate.

An example of one of the many switchbacks

Approaching the junction of the Summit View and Evergreen Mountain West trails. Note the large sign and dense forest. 

The signage in this open space park are National Park quality, so it is impossible to get lost. The junction at 2.4 miles of the Summit Trail and the West Evergreen Mountain Trail is no exception. Take the Summit Trail to continue heading up the hillside. At 3 miles is the junction with a scenic view turn off, which is a short 0.14 miles down to a rocky shelf overlooking Evergreen. I ate my lunch here and had the place to myself.

The turnoff to the scenic view. 

The view of Evergreen, CO from the scenic overlook. 

I almost turned around at this point rather that complete the journey to the summit because I was confessedly over the Lodgepoles but I slogged onwards and I am glad I did. The final summit circle (junction at 3.28 miles) is more open and filled with Douglas Fir trees plus some large rocky mounds (at 3.58 miles) with pleasant views of the Mt. Evans Massif. There were a lot more people lounging at the top but with so many nooks and crannies, it was easy to find a private place to sunbath. By this point, I had climbed 1,092 ft.

One of the many rock pile son the summit. It is not as steep as it looks.

The view of Mt. Evans from the summit. Notice all the ranch land. 

After heading back down, I came to the Evergreen Mountain West trail at 4.55 miles and took this trail to complete my loop. This trail has some nice granite boulders to break up the Lodgepoles. At 5.1 miles is a large sign explaining that this part of the hill is a Lodgepole demonstration forest where they have purposely tried to thin it back to normal. I was surprised to learn that unmanaged, this type of forest can contain as many as 5,000 trees per acre. No wonder it felt closed in to me.

A section of thinning forest. 

On the Evergreen Mountain West Trail.

At 5.57 miles the route leaves the hill and transitions back to open meadows. Here is the junction with the Wild Iris Loop. Across the road is the second trailhead for the southern side of Three Sisters. There are lots of great trails there as well. Back on the north side, this trail quickly becomes the Ranch View Trail, which will takes us back to the Evergreen Mountain East Trail (at 6.22 miles) that we started on.

Looking across the Wild Iris Loop, which circumnavigates the meadow, to the south side of the Three Sisters. 

This trail reminds me a lot of Crosier Mountain near Rocky Mountain National Park. It's lower elevation means it will remain clear of snow most of the year, which makes it a useful training hike. Both hikes spend a lot of time in the Lodgepoles.

You get to Three Sisters by taking Hwy 73 just south of Evergreen Lake and then turning right onto Buffalo Park Road.

Sagebrush

Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) blankets much of the state. This example is from the Dolores River Canyon.

Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) is like skier traffic on I-70, you can't escape it. Every semi-desert or seemingly arid part of the state is covered with this low shrub that can grow to up to 10 feet tall. Not as fragrant as the herb, this plant, never-the-less, will exude a strong scent, particularly when wet. Don't let this "odeur" attract you to a midnight roll in the proverbial hay. Sagebrush can cause dermatitis in humans who are highly allergic to it.

A close up of the leaves. Sagebrush is a popular color in western motifs.

Dolores River Canyon Hike

Distance: 6 miles round trip
Elevation: 5,000 ft - 5,100 ft
Elevation Gain: 100 ft (net) probably 300 ft (cumulative)
Bathroom at Trailhead: No
Dogs: Off leash

The scenic Dolores River travels over 500 miles through Colorado, cutting canyons as it goes. The hike out of Bedrock, CO is an easy way to explore this unique topography.

Thought that Arizona has a monopoly on cool looking red canyons? Think again! The western part of the state is crisscrossed by rivers that have carved deep, winding slots through millions of years of sedimentary accumulations.

Looking up the canyon from where we parked at 38°17.742/108°53.884. The first cliff in the distance is the sharp right turn that is 0.87 miles way.

Looking back up the road we drove down toward the entrance to the canyon. The cliffs bordering the northern end of the Paradox Valley are clearly visible in the distance.

The hike along the Dolores River from Bedrock to the junction of the Le Sal creek will take you into the heart of this area and will let you immerse yourself in the red desert dust, sagebrush, and towering cliffs. While WAY out of the way, this is a must do hike for anyone serious about exploring the state.

The flow within the Dolores River is controlled upstream by a dam. Usually just a trickle, the authorities release water at certain times of the year for agriculture and rafting.

We have just made the sharp right turn at 0.87 and are heading further up the canyon. The slot in the center of the picture is our destination.

Bedrock is located up the stunning Paradox Valley on highway 90 between Naturita and the Utah border. The only landmark for this once populated town is the old Bedrock store, now closed, that marks the turn off towards the boat ramp for the Dolores River. We were surprised at how large the parking area was and how full it was given our isolation. The cars were for rafters, however, and not hikers.

The geology of the area is the primary appeal. Ancient sand dunes and river beds form sequential layers of various colored rocks of Triassic and Jurassic periods. The most prominent is the Wingate Formation, formed from dunes around 200 million years ago.

Near the deep stream bed that is reach at 2.0 miles, the ground was filled with layers that were obvious ancient mud beds, which give it this purple color.  This part of the trail was littered with bright teal fragments.

Past the boat ramp, the road travels up a short hill and splits into several directions. It took us a bit to find the road that continues down into the canyon. Be advised, this is a high clearance 4x4 road only. With our truck we managed to get 1.7 miles beyond the split but this entailed gingerly traveling over several large boulders and along a highly eroded shelf. We managed to drive down to a spot with plenty of turn around room, but a couple of jeeps in that area would have made it more complicated.

Looking down into the dry stream bed with its many layers of rocks. Just a few weeks prior to this hike, I hiked to Linville Falls in North Carolina. There I saw similar geology but active water. The contrast was startling.

The trail is close to the river at times and further away at others.

The route follows an old road and is very easy to follow. At times it is close to the river and at times farther away. We were doing this on a hot day in May and drank at least 2 liters of very hot water (the place were staying at had no ice). By the end I was craving an ice cold beer (something I rarely drink), so plan accordingly.

Near the end of the trail, is a large series of boulders that obviously fell from the side of the cliff. Some are upright (e.g. layers are parallel to the ground) and some are on their sides (layers exposed). The one containing the petroglyphs was quite obvious. It is close to the trail and there is a large National Park Service sign pointing them out. What we did not find was the dinosaur tracks that are supposedly on the back side of on of the boulders that is on its side.

It was hard to pick a picture that typifies the cliffs in the area. The reality they surround you on both side and hog the distances.

Some milestones along the way include the sharp right turn at 0.87 miles, a traverse across an old stream bed at 2.0 miles, Indian petroglyphs at 2.5 miles and the junction with the Le Sal Creek at 3.0 miles (our GPS when nuts at this point because the last part is under a cliff shelf and the GPS lost its signal). It looks like one could continue up the Le Sal a way, but the trail descended directly into the willows surrounding the creek, so I suspect the route would be a sloggy one.

The view looking up Le Sal Creek. You can see the trail fading off into the distance.
Topo map of the area. Hwy 90 is visible in the upper right and the Le Sal Creek in the lower left. The sharp 90° turn is noticeable where the river passes close to a sharp point in the relief. The scale and varied nature of the cliffs is also discernible form the map.

Plateau Lizard

A pair of Plateau Lizards on the side of a B&B in Paradox Valley

It is not everyday that you can bust in on a couple of Plateau Lizards in flagrante delicti. I don't think they were too happy about my Paparazza voyeurism but they were too self-absorbed to break off their assignation to scurry under a rock.

The Plateau Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus) is diurnal, spending most of its time basking in the sun. It consumes large amounts of insects and spiders. After mating in the spring the female will lay up to 12 eggs in early summer. The young hatch in the fall.

I have seen these lizards called the Eastern Fence (subsp), Prairie, or Plateau Lizard. To the untrained eye, they all look very similar. Growing up in California, we had the Western Fence Lizard, which was know locally as "blue bellies".

Am I being anthropomorphic, but does the female have a bit of a gazed look in her eye, or is it just resignation?

The blue scales underneath the male's belly and near its throat are undoubtedly attractive to the opposite sex. When courting, these lizards will lift up on their legs to flash their blue scales. As with most species the girls like their boys flashy.

Rabbit's Ear Trail

Distance: 5 miles round trip (out and back to the overlook), 6 miles round trip (if you do the loop)
Elevation: 5,000 ft -5,700 ft
Elevation Gain: 700 ft (net), 1,347 ft (cumulative)
Dogs: Off leash
Date Hiked: 26 May 2011
Bathroom at Trailhead: No

The skeleton of a Utah Juniper stands guard over the vista of the Colorado River on the Rabbit's Ear Trail

The Rabbit's Ear Trail near Fruita, CO and the Utah border is a semi-desert hike to a river vista that will make you drop your jaw and find a rock and gaze stupefied into the distance. Not as easy as it looks, the route travels up and down humps of a ridge until it reaches a plateau 700 ft above the trailhead. From this point on, the trail is flat and the going is soft and easy.

The trailhead with its kiosk

An early trail segment with a smooth path and Sagebrush in the distance

Rabbit's Ear is part of the Rabbit Valley Recreation Area located at exit 2 on I-70 near the Utah border. While the main trails of Rabbit Valley can be filled with ATVers, Rabbit's Ear, 4 miles back west up a dirt road, is for hikers only. We had the entire place to ourselves.

Utah Juniper (Juniperus osteosperma) dots the landscape as clouds hang over the distant western plateaus.

Looking west into Utah. That is I-70 in the distance.

The terrain is rocky with occasional Utah Junipers, tufts of grass, Yellow Rabbitbrush, clumps of the unusual Mormon Tea, and since we did this hike in May, the occasional wildflower.

Desert Paintbrush (Castilleja angustifolia variety dubia) likes hot, dry, sandy soils. It blooms in the desert in early spring. Don't confuse it with Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja miniata), which is found in more alpine settings.

A glimpse of the long ridge ahead. Our destination is the lump on the far right.

The Rabbit's Ear Mesa, whose shape gives the area its name, overlooks the Colorado River as it winds its way through several canyon systems. The sedimentary striations of long lost sand dunes are clearly visible from the trails many vista points. To the east the Book Cliffs and Grand Mesa can be seen in the haze.

Ginger enters the slot canyon at 1.0 miles

The trail traverses both rock and dirt as it climbs steadily higher.

I found myself stopping frequently on this trail. Not only were there numerous critters, plants, and vistas to photograph, but this was the first hike of the season after being laid up all winter with a foot injury and I was sucking wind more than I would like to admit.

Another trail segment heading up through Utah Juniper

A steeper segment

Some mileage points to guide your journey include a small slot canyon at 1 mile, the final stretch to the top of the mesa at 1.36 miles, and 2.3 miles to the best views. The trail does continue around in wide circle past our stopping point but we were doing this in the heat of the day and decided not to take the longer route back (6 miles round trip versus 5 miles round trip). As it was this trail was rougher than I should have been doing first time out of the gate.

Looking down on the Colorado River and colorful rocks of ancient sand dunes

There were several specimens of the Claret Cup Cactus (Echinocereus uspenskii) blooming along the trail. It typically grows in clumps in rocky open areas between 4,000 and 9,000 ft.

At our stopping point, one is gazing down into Ruby Canyon, which has resulted in this trail to be called the Ruby Canyon Overlook in several prominent hiking guides. In the distance is the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Area and the entrance to Mee Canyon. Further away are Utah's Le Sal Mountains with their snowy peaks and the broad expanse of the Uncompahgre Plateau, which we planned to drive around the following day.

The view to die for. The Colorado River as it winds through Ruby Canyon on the way to Utah. Tiny rafts dot the river. The snowy peaks of the La Sal Mountains in Utah are visible in the distance.

Heading back down at the edge of the mesa

We could see several large rafts floating serenely down the river. I couldn't help but wonder what the canyon looked like from that level. Certainly, the towering walls must have been majestic indeed.

A photo of rocks, lichens, and a rail tunnel in the distance

A close up of what looks like the Red Crust Lichen (Caloplaca trachyphylla). Lichens are actually two organisms. A fungi and an algae living together in a symbiotic relationship. The algae provides food and the fungi provides the home. They are common throughout Colorado. The Egg Yolk Lichen is another favorite.

There are two common lizards on the western slope that can be hard to tell apart. The Plateau Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus) and the Sagebrush Lizard (Sceloporus graciosus). If I had to guess, I would say the former. These lizards feed on insects, primarily grasshoppers, moths, crickets etc.

If you are in the Grand Junction Area and are looking for a short hike with major payoffs, this hike if for you. Just bring plenty of water and be prepared for changing weather conditions. This is snake country as well, so look before you sit or place your hands on any rocks. We did not see any snakes, but the lizards were out in force, so I know the snakes were out there too.

A close up of Mormon Tea (Ephedra nevadensis). This unusual plant has long, jointed needles. It is highly prized for various medicinal properties.

A parting shot of the river and desert beyond