Browns Canyon: Turret-River Bench Trails

Distance: 6 miles round trip
Elevation: 7,318 ft -7,689 ft
Elevation Gain: 877 ft cumulative
Dogs: Off leash, BLM land
Bathroom at Trailhead: No
Date Hiked: 24 October 2014

The Turret Trail in the Browns Canyon Wilderness Study Area is a study in diversity. 

The Browns Canyon Wilderness Study Area near Buena Vista is a 22,000 acre chunk of transitional land that is part open grassland, part scraggy forest, and part granite hoodoo. This route travels through all three of these zones in a dizzying display of diversity. The Collegiate Peaks (Mt. Princeton, Harvard, and Yale) block the western horizon. They rise a dramatic 5000 ft above the surrounding valley in a wall that Nature surely put in place to keep out the teaming hordes from the western slope.

View of Mt. Princeton from the trailhead

Heading up the initial slope

On the initial saddle

The trailhead is marked with large signs indicating the study area and even has a couple of interpretive plaques. The route starts up a rocky gully between two hills until it reaches a small saddle at only 0.2 miles. Be sure to turn left here. An old road/eroded ditch heads to the right, which is slightly confusing.

Turning left and heading away the mountains

A not-so-unusal trail segment. Rock and trees. 

The trail winds up and down small hillsides. This is the view from a top one of them. 

The trail continues to climb for another 0.5 miles to a high point (300 ft gain) before beginning a series of descents and ascents over rock outcroppings, down gullies, and along and across several washes. There is no signage or cairns, and in several locations we had to rely on tracks in the loose sand to guide our way.

On another hill looking out over the Collegiate Peaks

Coming out into the wash. Turn right here and follow it around the bend. 

The one trail sign. It points up the slope and out of the wash. 

At 1.2 miles is a very large wash. The route actually travels IN this wash (to the right) and around a bend to the southwest until one of the few signs (at 1.35 miles) takes the hiker out of the wash and up onto a open grassland plateau. From this point it is wide-open skies all the way to the junction with the River Bench Trail (at 2 miles). The Turret Trail heads left, while the River Bench Trail travels around to the right of an eroded hillside filled with more hoodoos. It was at this point that we came across several Mule Deer that leapt and flew, leapt and flew, across our path in an effortless ballet that would have made Mikhail Baryshnikov's nickers twist with envy.

Artwork on the fence post leading out onto the grassland plateau

The plateau was crisscrossed with small washes. 

Heading across the plateau

The River Bench Trail dead ends (at 2.9 miles) at backcountry campsite complete with a central fire pit and luxurious logs. The Arkansas River, charming and sedate in the fall, a tad more perky in the spring, flowed just out of reach down a steep embankment. With such a view, we had to drag ourselves away to return to the car. Next time I will bring a gourmet lunch and contemplate the river through a glass of wine.

Passing around the hillside

More hoodoos along the way. Mountain Lion territory. 

Mule Deer with Mt. Yale in the background

Browns Canyon is up for National Monument consideration. We only scratched the surface of this unique area on this trip but the unusual combination of granite outcroppings, Ponderosa and Limber Pine forest, and Sagebrush grasslands was really a treat. Colorado is blessed with so many interesting ecosystems. The one found in Brown's Canyon is both fun to play in and deserving of protection. I hope the powers in Washington, who don't always understand the West and our culture, decide to preserve it. Regardless, take a trip to Beuna Vista and check it out for yourself.

The campsite

The lovely view of the Arkansas River

Golden Gate Canyon State Park: Black Bear-Horeshoe Loop

Distance: 5.6 miles round trip
Elevation: 8,180 ft - 9,379 ft
Elevation Gain: 1,516 (cumulative)
Bathroom at Trailhead: No (closest is the visitor's center)
Dogs: On leash (State Park)
Date Hiked: 7 Sept 2014
Tags: #coloradostatepark, #goldengatecanyon

Rocks, pine, and lots of sky dominate the Black Bear Trail in Golden Gate Canyon State Park

Golden Gate Canyon State Park near Golden, CO is filled with numerous and varied hiking options...often on the same route. The Black Bear-Horseshoe Loop is a perfect example. Uphill, downhill, rock scrambles, and open meadows are just some of the features I encountered. The park has an amazing backcountry feel even though it is within spitting distance of the city.

The loop described here ascends the Black Bear Trail, turns right onto the Mule Deer Trail, continues past the Horseshoe Trail to a spur that goes through Greenfield Meadow, then down the Horseshoe Trail to a connector that goes back to the Ralston Roost parking area.

The route starts directly across from the Ralston Roost parking lot on a small dirt track. The first 0.34 miles is very steep and rocky with an immediate 215 ft of elevation gain. Like most of the route, it alternates between Ponderosa Pine, open grasslands, and small clumps of Aspen.

The start of the Black Bear Trail

Much of the early route is open Ponderosa Pine

At 1.0 and 1.3 miles are two viewpoints. The first is more of a jumble of rocks, while the second is a broad shelf looking down on the pastoral beauty of several ranches. From this point the trail begins to descend a bit and then gradually increases again to the highest point on the route at 2.0 miles. The route to this spot goes through a large pile of boulders (trail signs guide the way), and across a narrow strip of land where fins of knee-high rock extrude like scales on a dragons back. When the trees thin, you can see Mt. Evans as well as Grays and Torreys in the distance.

Looking down from the first view point. That is Golden Gate Canyon Road.

Can you spot the hiker in this photo? The trail goes around the boulder.

From the high point, the trail descends through Lodgepole Pine to the junction with the Mule Deer Trail at 2.6 miles. At this point the trail is wide and sandy. Don't get sucked off onto the spur trail to several campsites, which is 20 yards or so before the junction.

Route finding through the boulders

Looking down on ranch land

We chose to continue on the Mule Deer Trail past the connection with the Horseshoe Trail (at 3 miles) to a lesser used trail that travel down towards Greenfield Meadow and several more backcountry campsites (see map). Just before the Horseshoe Trail is a very large meadow whose tall grasses could have hidden an entire herd of Mule Deer. A small cabin and interpretive site marks the spot. The meadow was a Pleistocene paradise, a testament to the 2014 rains and our ever changing climate.

Walking across the dragons back

Now on the shady Mule Deer Trail

Getting to our turnoff for Greenfield Meadow involved switching from a single track through Aspen to a large dirt road. The transition was unexpected and we looked around a bit before proceeding. The trail to the campsites splits off from Mule Deer Trail only 0.3 miles beyond the Mule/Horseshoe so we eventually found the junction. A large green sign talking about campsites exists at a right angle to the road.

Meadow by the Horseshoe junction

Ahead the Mule Deer Trail goes left while the spur trail that becomes a dirt road goes straight.

From this point the trail gets a little rougher as it winds down and through small stands of Aspen. At 4 miles the trail rejoins the Horseshoe Trail. It is more of the same for another mile until the trail connecting back to the Black Bear Trail splits off. This short half mile trail heads uphill again through a dense Lodgepole forest with occasional traverses of open hillsides.

Heading up the dirt road

Heading back down the Horseshoe Trail

Since our dog is getting older and tolerates being on a leash more, I am getting to explore new areas including Golden Gate Canyon State Park. The Aspens in fall are very nice indeed and there are even camping yurts that might be fun to try out. Another long hike to do in the park is the Mountain Lion Trail with a side trip to Windy Peak.

The connector trail leading from the Horseshoe Trail back over to the Black Bear Trail is a total change. It is uphill and in a Lodgepole forest.

Almost back to the parking lot.

Darling Creek

Distance: 4 miles round trip out of a possible 12 miles
Elevation: 8,740 ft - 9,601 ft
Elevation Gain: 642 ft
Bathroom at the Trailhead: No
Dogs: Off leash
Date Hiked: 28 September, 2014

While Darling Creek Trail is named after the creek, it is the Aspens that steal the show.

Darling Creek is an obscure trail on the east side of the Williams Fork Range near Silverthorne, Colorado. It wasn't until I took a fall color drive on Ute Pass Road that I even knew the area existed. While the upper slopes of the Williams Fork Valley are mostly dead Lodgepole Pine, there are several small groves of Aspens and it looked like this trail might go right through one.

A small sign points the way. The trail travels around the Henderson compound.

Williams Fork in Autumn glory

Interestingly, the trail starts near a tunnel where the world's largest conveyer belt, connecting the Henderson Mine (think molybdenum) in the east and the Henderson Mill in the west, comes out from beneath the Continental Divide. The belt is 15 miles long! Who knew? Molybdenum is used in the making of steel alloys. You will have seen the Henderson Mine if you hiked Butler Gulch or Vasquez Pass.

Some junctions are well marked. Much of the trail is indistinct.

The first half mile of the hike travels around the Henderson compound and up the Williams Fork River. Here too Autumn was evident. The willows were a rusty brown and I kept expecting a bull moose to wander into view all "geared" up for the annual rut.

The first mile of the route is the prettiest.

At 0.4 miles the trail splits with the South Fork Trail going straight along the river and the Darling Creek Trail doubling back up the hillside. This segment is very rocky but filled with Aspens. The trail then travels above and behind the Henderson compound (at 0.7 miles) and heads up the Darling Creek drainage.

Could not resist another Aspen shot

Be warned that the trail is often indistinct and hikers will need to be comfortable trail finding. On the way back we got sucked off on social trail that ended up on the east side of the fenced compound and had to back track, never a fun prospect, to find where we had gone wrong.

The blue sky belies a winter storm that was barreling down on us. By the time we returned to the car it was raining.

After the mine, the trail weaves up and down the drainage never straying far from stream. At one point (at 1.3 miles) the trail crosses the stream on a bundle of round, slick tree trunks. I hate such water crossings. My balance standing on pavement is poor. My balance on such a contrivance is non-existent and I am practically paralyzed with indecision on how to move. My preference is to ignominiously scramble on all fours over such obstacles. My hiking partner was disgusted with my timidity and zipped back and forth in a vain attempt to show me how easy it was. It is at times like these that I feel that a good wallop with a hiking stick is good for the soul. 

The trail wound around several hills filled with Aspen debris.

Since a winter storm was brewing, we only went 2.0 miles up the trail. At our turn around point, the Aspens had receded and only the stark skeletons of dead Lodgepoles remained so we did not feel guilty about turning around. The trail does continue for another 4 miles.

The perilous, at least to me, log crossing

 You get to Darling Creek from Silverthorne by traveling Ute Pass Road (County Road 3) west past the Henderson Mill (where the conveyor belt ends up) until it intersects with County Road 30. Take a right and travel south through the lovely Williams Fork Valley. Just before the road dead ends at the Henderson compound, it splits and travels under the conveyor belt through two tunnels. Take the tunnel even though it looks like private land. On the other side, brown signs point the way to a nearby campground and the Darling Creek trailhead. Parking is plentiful but right next to the compound, so don't get confused. A small wooden sign points the way.

The Aspens receded and soon a mixed coniferous forest cut off all view of the sky.

Darling Creek Trail is not a pristine wilderness experience and the trail is indistinct. It will appeal to those who like to leave the crowds behind and want to experience a wide variety of scenery.

Sapphire Point

Distance: 0.7 mile loop
Elevation: 9,512-9,503 ft
Elevation Gain: 98 ft
Dogs: Off leash
Date Hiked: 14 July 2014

View of the Ten Mile Range from Sapphire Point

Sapphire Point is a short loop trail to an overlook gazing down on scenic Lake Dillion in Summit County Colorado. There are also picnic tables, but you need to be prepared to haul your load quite a ways to get to them.

The northern start of the loop is on the Swan Mountain bike path

The path is smooth

I decided to check out this trail as a potential place to take my parents. The route is both smooth enough and short enough to qualify as suitable for older folks. I was quite pleased with the views and might take people there just to get them oriented to the area.

Views of Grays (14,270 ft) and Torreys 14,267ft)

Picnic Area overlooking Buffalo Mountain

The overlook

Lake Dorothy and Caribou Pass

Distance: 7.4 miles round trip to the Lake Dorothy, 9 miles round trip to Caribou Pass
Elevation: 10, 160 ft - 12,065 ft (Lake Dorothy), 11,800 ft (Caribou Pass)
Elevation Gain: 1,905 ft (net to Lake Dorothy), 2,513 ft (cumulative)
Bathroom at Trailhead: Yes
Dogs: On leash (Indian Peaks Wilderness)
Date Hiked: 18 August, 2014
Tags: #hiking, #coloradooutdoors, #indianpeaks, #gearguide
Nearby Hikes: Glacier Rim, Meadow Mountain, Pawnee Pass, Mt. Audubon

Caribou Lake viewed from the Caribou Pass Trail near Lake Dorothy in the Indian Peaks Wilderness

I have been trying to hike to Lake Dorothy for years, but fire spitting thunderstorms have always turned me away. The Valkyries must have been getting mani-pedies because I finally made it. As an extra bonus, I continued on to the rarely visited Caribou Pass over an occasionally-eroded, heart-palpitating trail.

The views begin right away on the trail to Lake Dorothy.

Passing the 4th of July Mine (11,280 ft)

The trail to Lake Dorothy begins at the 4th of July Trailhead near Nederland CO. This trailhead is so popular, that on weekends you now need to take a bus from the local high school. After driving this road in a 4x4, I can't imagine how a school bus could make it up the rocky, pitted road without its passenger's internal organs being churned into mayonnaise.

Leaving the trees for a near lifeless skree slope. That is Arapaho Pass in the distance. 

Looking south from the skree slope. The area is so attractive, I wish there were trails down into it. 

The route starts up the Arapaho Pass Trail, which switchbacks ever higher up a wildflower encrusted hillside. At 1.2 miles is the turn off to Diamond Lake, another worthy destination. The higher the trail goes the better the views of the ridge and peaks on the other side of the valley. You don't have to wait very long for the scenery to dazzle on this trail.

Arapaho Pass

Lake Dorothy

A 1.7 miles, the trail levels out on a broad shelf you could drag race on and passes the 4th of July Mine and the junction with the Arapaho Glacier Trail before heading out on a mile long traverse on a skree covered hillside devoid of any living thing. No matter, the valley below is filled with stunted Sub-alpine fir, small tarns, and lush greens.

Starting out on the Caribou Pass Trail

Another view of Caribou Lake

The route hits Arapaho Pass (11,906 ft) at 3.2 miles with tantalizing view of Caribou Lake far below. I had no idea as I hastily threw on hat, gloves, and wind shell that I would be examining Caribou Lake from a more airy perch in just a bit. While the Arapaho Pass Trail switchbacks steeply down to the lake, I turned left and headed up another embankment to Lake Dorothy.

A narrow, built-up portion of the trail

A wide section of the trail

Lake Dorothy, like all mountain tarns, in nestled at the base of several peaks. The area around it is strewn with jagged rocks interspersed with grasses, which by late August had already switched their polish to a rusty brown. I know of at least two groups of "boys" who like to hike to the lake carrying their ruby slippers. What they do with them once they get there I don't want to know about!

A view of  Caribou Pass from half-way across

Coming to a nail-biting segment

Our group did not linger long at the lake however, however but returned to the main trail, which climbed upwards briefly and then began a slow decent to Caribou Pass. This trail is an eroded cut edged into a sheer cliff face. At times it was wide enough for a horse and buggy and at other times was nothing but a luge run of sand, rocks, eye popping drop offs. Fortunately, there were only a few bad segments and I never passed out from holding my breath. I would not recommend this trail to small children or anyone sensitive to exposure. If you want to partake of the oxygen stealing views below, you can always head out and turn around when things get too narley. I am sure conditions on the shelf vary from year to year.

Approaching Caribou Pass

Caribou Pass overlooks Lake Granby and the Continental Divide and was wide and welcoming and scoured nearly flat by continuous gale-force winds. One of us lost a hat over the 2000 foot drop and the rest received a free micro-abrasion treatment. Why should the Valkyries get all the pampering?