Iowa Hill Mining District

Distance: 1.2 mile loop, not counting spurs to visit buildings
Elevation: 9,600 ft - 9,910 ft
Elevation Gain: 310 ft
Bathroom at Trailhead: No
Dogs: On leash
Date Hiked: 17 June 2012

The restored boarding house is the highlight of the Iowa Hill Trail

Iowa Hill is a historical mining exhibit just north of the ski resort of Breckenridge.  Its short trail winds up and around a Ponderosa covered hill filled with interpretive signs, old buildings, and mining relics.  While Colorado has no castles it certainly has mining ruins!

The fancy sign at the entrance to Iowa Hill. The verbiage says trailhead, but that is actually 100 yards further up a dirt frontage road that starts near this sign. 

The official trailhead

Early trail segment through young Aspens

Obvious signs lead the way through the exhibits

Sluice box for capturing gold

Gentle trail segment

Blacksmith shop with interesting tools wired to the wall

It took me a bit to find Iowa Hill because it is much further north of town than than I realized. It is actually past the Highway 9 bypass and roundabout. To get there from downtown Breckenridge, take either Main Street or the Highway 9 bypass and head towards Frisco. If you are on the bypass, turn left at Airport Road and continue north. If on Main, go into the roundabout and take the bypass for a quarter mile or so and then turn right on Airport Road. The entrance is on the left of Airport Road near the public works facility. Take the short frontage road near the fancy copper and wood sign to a small parking lot with a typical trailhead sign. A small arrow on the fancy sign points the way.

Old mine shaft now filled in

Crane with Bald Mountain in the distance

Hydraulic pipes use gravity to enhance the  water pressure 

Example of the cannon head

You can actually see where the water cut into the hillside in large swaths.

Mining car outside a closed tunnel

Iowa Hill is all about hydraulic mining.  This technique involved shooting water canons at the hillsides to erode and dissolve the dirt and run it through a series of sluice boxes where heavy metals like gold fall out.  It is engineering intensive and does not exactly leave a pretty picture behind.

Canon perched on a hillside in the distance

Bench overlooking the lower part of the trail

Backside of the boarding house

Weeds along the house highlighting the mud insulation between the logs

Close-up of the log construction

Iowa Hill educational and pleasant, although I did it on a day when it was way to hot, so plan accordingly if you are in Breck during another Colorado heat wave. If you like this sort of thing you can also check out the smaller Lomax Mine on the way to Peak 8 in Breckenridge.

Bull Moose...Oh MY!

As fall approaches, so does the Fireweed and the occasional Bull Moose.  This hunk of burning love (tis that time of year) was over 6 feet tall, and drew a crowd of onlookers.  In the fading light I captured a few grainy shots.  I should have run back for my tripod but like most of the other female groupies I was enraptured by his 4-foot "wing span", towering manliness, and and two-foot "bell" (the flap of skin that hangs down below the chin). While there was a younger male Moose nearby, this mature specimen was all we had eyes for.

Don't let this pastoral scene fool you.  This Bull Moose was very large indeed. While he was primarily interested in chomping down on the Fireweed covering this open meadow, it would not take much to provoke him into a charge. I was hunkered down behind some shrubs, trying to blend in with the scenery as I watched him. 

You can tell the rut is approaching, because this Moose has been scrapping the velvet off his antlers. Only used to impress the ladies, they will fall off as soon the "season" is over.  

After last summer's oddessy of stalking my first Moose, having this immensely huge animal walk right up to me (I kept having to back away) was almost too easy. Seems like the number of Moose sightings have increased this year and if this boy has anything to say about it, the population will continue to increase.

Sloan Lake and the American Basin Trail

Distance: 3.2 miles round trip
Elevation: 11,600 ft - 12,941 ft
Elevation Gain: 1,341 ft
Date Hiked: 16 July, 2012
Dogs: Off leash
Bathroom at the trailhead: No
Tags: #hiking, #mountainlake, #coloradooutdoors, #gearguide

Sloan Lake in American Basin is nestled in one of the prettiest places in Colorado.

Sloan Lake out of American Basin in the San Juan Mountains is not the most spectacular lake in Colorado, but the journey will rock your world and twirl your planets!

Early morning at the trailhead

Columbine along the trail

The sun finally touches the rock formations at the back of the basin

American Basin, twenty miles from Lake City, is a glacial carved valley with jagged rock formations at the far end.  At the right time of year the basin is filled with wildflowers and peak baggers on their way to Handies Peak.  At the far end of the basin is a rock glacier.  Rock glaciers are different from ice glaciers in that the water is not a solid mass, but exists between the rocks so all you see is flowing (in geologic time) rock. To me it looked like a giant multi-"toed" amoeba ready to gobble us whole. 

American Basin is known for its wildflowers.  While the other hikers we met said this was  a poor year, I was hardly disappointed. 

Heading up the trail now

Larkspur 

The route travels up the left side of American Basin, gradually gaining altitude before veering to the left an onto a shelf for an adjoining basin. Another rock glacier lies in the distance and Handies Peak is off to the left.  Turn around at this point for spectacular views back down American Basin.  The rugged rocks and green tundra grasses are quintessential apline terrain.

The tongue of the rock glacier is just ahead

Looking back down on American Basin from the perpendicular shelf

The lake is on the shelf to the right.  The route will go up and over the small berm in the foreground than and then switchback up to the shelf on the berm in the middle of the image. 

Once on the shelf, the route heads straight back before suddenly switching backing up the right side of the basin. At the top is a large cairn. This monument marks the junction between Sloan Lake, which is only a 30 yards or so away and the route up Handies, which crosses the rock glacier and over to the other side of the basin.

Heading across the shelf

Almost to the top

The large cairn marks the junction of the trail to Sloan Lake,  which is just ahead, and the trail to Handies Peak. 

The volcanic nature of the San Juans is evident all around the lake, which is bordered by coarse igneous rock.  While we were visiting the lake on our return trip from Handies, we ran into a couple who hike to the lake every year.  We ran into quite a bit of wildlife on the way including Ptarmigan and baby Marmots.
 

View of the lake

Looking back down on the lake as we continued up towards Handies Peak

While I can't gush enough about this area, I must warn you that getting to the trailhead is a chore.  While maps and guidebooks say the road to American Basin is passable by a passenger car, we had trouble in our 4x4 truck.  If you really want to do this trail, I would suggest renting an ATV in Lake City.  An ATV will get you up and over the rocks but will be much thinner and shorter the better to pass other like minded individuals on the narrow shelf road.

Carolyn Holmberg Preserve at Rock Creek Farm (Stearns Lake)

Distance: 3.6 miles round trip
Elevation: 5,276 ft
Elevation Gain: Nominal
Date Hiked: 8 July 2012
Bathroom at Trailhead: Yes
Dogs: On leash (Boulder County Open Space)
Tags: #lake, #bcos, #stearnslake

Looking at Stearns Lake in the Carolyn Holmberg Open Space

The Carolyn Holmburg Perserve at Rock Creek Farm is a small Boulder County Open Space located north of Broomfield on Highway 287.  It is popular with fishermen and locals taking strolls with their kids and dogs.  Located in the middle farm land, it is very pleasant in the spring and fall and is usually snow free in the winter.

Trailhead with parking and picnic enclosure

Starting out on the Mary Miller Trail

I chose a steamy day in July 2012 (can you say record heat anyone?) to try running the trails in the park so I grabbed my cell phone to track my pace and distance as well to take pictures on the fly. If the pictures in the post don't seem up to snuff, that is why.  In the humid air, my phone was like a wet bar of soap

Farmland stretches off to the right.  The lake is on the left behind the berm.

The route leaves the lake (out of frame to the left) and heads off to the east.

There are several named trails in the area, but the logical route is to leave the parking lot and head due west along the shore of Stearns Lake.  Technially, this is the Mary Miller Trail, but that name is not evident as you leave the parking area. As you head east, you may see Canada Goose, which frequent the Cottonwood-lined shoreline.

The road leading due east that intersects the trail.  The directional sign is on the post to the right.

Close up of the directional sign.  The arrows point down the road.  I am not sure this is how they want people to go.  If you avoid this turn you come to another trail sign further up the road.

On the far eastern side of the lake there is a large gate and dirt road that continues directly eastward.  Attached to the right-hand post of the gate is a trail sign with two arrows.  This sign was just loosely attached with some wire and was twisted in such a way that the arrows were pointing down the road.  This is NOT correct.  While you can take this road, it may be private so when you come to this junction, continue northward until you see a large trail sign pointing to the right.

If you keep going this is the sign that point to to the trail as it forks eastward.

Looking back towards the lake near several interpretive signs.  Farmland is on either side.

From this point of the route, the trail heads eastward along a slight ridge looking down on a working farm.  I chose to turn around when the dirt trail turned to pavement as it connected to a bike path heading under Highway 287.

My turn around point.  This is where the gravel path becomes paved and travels under Highway 287.  Note the farm buildings in the distance.

Back near the trailhead, this is the sign pointing to the Cradleboard Trail, which from this angle heads off to the right.

After running back around the lake, I took a left on the Cradleboard Trail, which heads due south before more curving westward.  The Cradleboard trail comes to a junction at a dirt road.  To return to the parking lot, turn right.

A typical segment of the Cradleboard Trail.  The Flatirons can be seen in the far distance.

The junction where the Cradleboard Trail continues southwest and a dirt road wraps around to the north to return to the parking lot.

One of things I love about Colorado is that "parks" are more often open space rather than green grass and manicured deciduous trees.  The Carolyn Holmberb Preserve is a perfect example.  While not large, it is perfect for a short run, afternoon stroll, or picnic at the shelter in the parking area.

The parking is ahead in the distance

Map of the trail system.  The dirt road is marked with a dotted line.