MistyCastle

Archive for the ‘Trail Journals’ Category

I’d been planning on a camping trip to Utah’s Canyon Country after the wedding in the hopes of getting out into red-rock country. There is something I find fascinating about this beautiful but desolate area and I was looking forward to the warmth, photo opportunities, and no responsibilities. However, in the end we opted out of the long drive and decided to try something a little closer to home. A little research on the Internet turned up a similar area in the Santa Fe National Forest. Located in north central New Mexico, the Rio Chama Canyon became our destination for an extended Memorial Day weekend.

The forecast was a bit dubious but we headed out and worked our way south through high winds and rain arriving at the Coyote Ranger station a few minutes before they closed. We snagged a map of the area and located a nice lookout point on the map at the end of a 4WD forest road that promised extraordinary views of the canyon and river. It took another hour to get there but the view did not disappoint. The only problem was the stinking weather! The winds were still kicking up and it was hinting that it might snow. We decided that setting up camp on the exposed lookout was not the best idea and retreated back into the forest where we pitched the tent among a bunch a small trees.

Misadventure #1: I forgot to pack the sleeping mats. Doh! Rhonda came to the rescue and created a comfortable bed out of the materials we had on hand.

The wind died down and I made a nice campfire but after supper the big old fat snowflakes started coming down. It was pretty but we didn’t linger too long after such a long travel day. We crawled into the tent and quickly realized we should have brought our winter bags. The down blanket and vests we always bring saved the day, er…night, and we managed to stay warm. At least for awhile. I woke up in the middle of the night wondering why the dog was sleeping on my legs. It wasn’t the dog. Read the rest of this entry »

This is the last Saturday that the three of us ‘at home’ will all be here before Kristina leaves for California next week. We decided that was reason enough for an adventure so off we went to Einstein’s Bagel shop for breakfast to get a good start on the day. It was a somewhat cool morning so we skipped eating out on the terrace. We chatted over breakfast about Daniel, the military, school, and of course, California. It was great to hear Kristina share some of what is taking place in Daniel’s life, how God is working and how that affects her future.

Taking Abby a little snack from our breakfast, we headed off to Glen Eyrie, a part of Colorado history, owned by the Navigators. It is an awesome facility down in Queen’s Canyon, named after Col. Palmer’s wife, Queen. He built a castle for her in the Canyon before Colorado Springs was founded. It is now utilized as a seminar facility for Christian seminars of all types. A truly beautiful place, the grounds are often frequented by part of the Big Horn sheep herd that makes its home in the canyon and on the adjoining Greg Francis Big Horn Sheep Refuge. The canyon is no longer open to the public on the weekends but one of Kristina’s perks as an employee of the Navigators is to have access whenever she wants it. Flash her employee ID badge at the gate and we are on our way.

The canyon was arrayed with reds, golds, and still a fair amount of green foliage as we drove through to the far end parking lot. We are hoping to see some of the Big Horn sheep in the canyon so we were constantly looking up the canyon walls for any signs. The cloud cover provided great lighting for my two photographers. Josh recently gave Kristina his old 35mm and so she is shooting today as well as her Dad. We have written previously about the trail and posted pictures so I will not go into too much detail as you can read the old post for a more in depth description of the trail. The trail doesn’t go very far in to the canyon before it crosses over into the National Forest and begins a continual, gradual increase to a tall waterfall. The trail was a magic place today – the leaves were falling and the stream that supplies water to Glen Eyrie was babbling as we followed along. Read the rest of this entry »

Well….yesterday was pretty darn awesome!

I had a midterm exam to deal with on Saturday but Sunday was supposed to be really nice in the weather department and we decided to take our new snowshoes and head for the Continental Divide. Wanted to get an early start but hooey….bad timing on the spring forward thing. Still, we managed to get headed out by 7:30 or so and were eating breakfast in Buena Vista, CO a few hours later.

After a hearty breakfast at the Roosters Crow we headed up towards Cottonwood Pass to find the Denny Creek Trailhead. What we found was around thirty or so trucks with trailers and snowmobiles all over the place. They were having a blast roaring up the road to the pass which is closed for the winter. Nevertheless, we did find a parking space and got our gear on and headed up the trail. The snowmobiles were quickly forgotten as we headed up through the forest, around the bend, and entered the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness.

The trail was nicely snowpacked and we were able to make good time as we worked our way up the valley. When we did venture off trail we found the drifts were quite deep but were able to stay on top of them for the most part. Abby quickly decided the trail was a better choice for her. A little over a mile or so up the trail we found the sign pointing the way to the Mt Yale summit (14,196 ft) but did not think we were in good enough shape to tackle that. We continued up the trail towards Browns Pass taking in the awe-inspiring beauty of the Rocky Mountains in winter. We were surrounded on all sides by the Collegiate Peaks.

The sky was that deep blue color and there was not a cloud to be seen. The temps were climbing along with us and the layers started coming off so we did not overheat. After another mile of trekking we made it up to the junction of Hartenstein Lake trail which is in a large meadow-like area and rested for a while. Our goal was to make it to the top of Browns Pass. So far we had gained about 1,200 ft in elevation and my leg was starting to complain. We decided to push on anyway and see how far we could make it. The trail shortly disappeared and we found ourselves breaking trail as we went. In about a half a mile it became apparent that my leg was not going to make it and we were forced to turn around. We were at 11,250 ft elevation and still had another mile to go topping out at 12,000ft.

The trip back down went quickly and was much easier on my leg. Back in the Jeep and stop at Cottonwood Hot Springs on the way down. Aaahhhhhhhh! Geothermal hot springs. What a way to finish off a wilderness adventure. There are three outdoor pools ranging in temp from Too Hot, Hot, and Warm. We stayed for an hour then drove back into Buena Vista, stopping by Bongo Billy’s coffeehouse for some nourishment and then headed for home.

I’m here to tell you….I slept GOOD last night.

My Mom came out in September to help celebrate Kristina’s 21st birthday. While she was here, we had agreed Mom should have a bit of the Colorado ‘Fall flavor’ so our first stop was the REI store to fit her in Merrell brand ‘trail’ shoes. With Mom properly equipped, we headed west to Mueller State Park to do a little hiking and check out the brightly colored aspen trees. Mueller State Park is located on the picturesque west flank of Pikes Peak; a high mountain park with average elevation over 9,000 feet. We headed a half mile down Outlook Ridge Trail, turning south onto the Raven Ridge Trail which ends in scenic overlook.

Although the trail is wide and well tended, Mom quickly grew to appreciate the Merrell’s grip on the loose surface and exposed rock. The trail winds through the forest among the aspens, various pine, and fir trees. The smell of the forest is always present but varies depending on whether you are passing by cedar trees, pine trees, or walking in groves of aspen. Glade air freshener may have tried to bottle the forest fragrance in aerosol form but… trust me… it’s not quite right

Raven Ridge Trail descends a little more steeply for another 1/4 of mile while providing numerous glimpses of the surrounding mountain vistas. Eventually we made it to the overlook, found a few logs to sit on, and admired the view. In the surrounding mountains and valleys there were large patches of gold and orange aspens. In the distance, approximately 60 miles to the Southwest, stood the awe-inspiring snowcapped Sangre de Cristo mountains. We never tire of their breathtaking beauty!

I climbed down amongst some rocks in search of interesting formations to become part of my photo compositions. We belatedly realized we had left our snacks in the car and so decided to head back. On the return trip, the trail was mostly uphill but we maintained a steady pace and took numerous breaks to admire the scenery, before long we were back at the car. Overall it was a mile and half hike and Mom did a super job!

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Ronda and I finally managed a short backpacking trip out into the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness. The wilderness area is located right on the Continental Divide. We drove up through Cottonwood Pass and down the western slope to Taylor Reservoir. Then a little north to the access road that follows Texas Creek. The forest road is in pretty bad shape and even though it’s passable to regular vehicles ther are so many rocks in the road that the going is mighty slow. This went on for about 5 miles and then the road becomes passable only to high clearance vehicles.

Of all the roads I’ve encountered designated as 4WD this one lived up to it. Nearly all 4 miles of it were rough and tumble. Much later than we had planned we arrived at the trailhead. Everyone put on their backpack (including Abby) and off we went down the trail. The trail follows the Texas Creek drainage area and is a pleasant hike that has very gradual elevation gain. We saw quite a few beaver ponds, an old abandoned mining cabin, and made several creek crossings without getting wet.

As the afternoon wore on we scouted out a camping site that was off the trail and near a water source. We set up camp then lounged around, had supper, and enjoyed a nice campfire before retiring for the evening. The temp must have dropped down under the freezing point as there was heavy frost on the tent and bushes the next morning. Poor Abby spent some of the night shivering as she has no sleeping pad/bag. We’ll have to see what we can figure out for her that will stuff into her pack!

We spent the morning being lazy and finally packed everything up and hiked back to the Jeep. It was a nice escape into the woods even if it was short.

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Our initial goal on this trip was the Grand Canyon. Neither of us had ever been there before and it has a somewhat legendary status as far as things to see in your lifetime. We planned the trip so as to arrive on the North Rim after a fairly hard drive from Wolf Creek Pass in Colorado. The drive across Northern Arizona was long and quite desolate although I was surprised at the amount of traffic on the two-lane highway. It seems that no matter where you go these days there are a lot of people. We arrived in Page, AZ around 4 pm or so and drove down into Marble Canyon to cross over the Colorado River at the Glen Canyon Dam. Our goal was to get to the Kaibab Forest visitor’s center before it closed at 5 pm.

Driving along the Vermillion Cliffs just below the Paria Plateau we started gaining elevation and suddenly left behind the barren desert landscape and entered the Kaibab Forest. Arriving at the visitors center with time to spare we secured a map of the forest and inquired about good places to disperse camp along the rim of the Grand Canyon. Dispersed camping, in case you are not familiar with the term, means finding your own campsite somewhere in the forest. It has the advantage of guaranteeing solitude as long as you don’t mind dispensing with modern conveniences like water, showers and toilets. But then again … that’s what camping is all about. Right?

Having received a couple of pointers from the Rangers we headed down the forest roads towards the canyon. Read the rest of this entry »

I had only a few goals for this vacation trip but hiking a slot canyon was one of them. I did a fair amount of research on them and was happy to find that one of the premier slot canyons was very close to where we were planning to camp while visiting the Grand Canyon.

Their is an amazing piece of real estate along the Arizona/Utah border called the Paria Canyon/Wilderness area. It has several notable features; the Vermillion Cliffs, Coyote Butte, and the Buckskin Gulch slot canyon. Buckskin Gulch is considered by some to be the ultimate in slot canyons. For 12.5 miles, the gulch is enveloped in a very narrow gorge 100 to 200 feet deep, flanked by vaulting, convoluted walls of Navajo sandstone. Many people hike the entire canyon but this obviously requires a shuttle vehicle.

We were only interested in a short day hike so opted for the Wire Pass access to the main canyon. Wire Pass is notable because it is even narrower in places than Buckskin Gulch. We arrived at the Wire Pass trailhead on a beautiful morning, registered at the trailhead, and began the easy 1.2 mile walk through Coyote Wash. There were a surprising number of vehicles at the parking area, a testimony to the popularity of the place.

The trail remains wide and shallow, bounded by low slickrock bluffs and sandy bluffs, but evetnually the walls close in and you enter the first short stretch of narrows. Beyond this we were quickly swallowed up into a very narrow slot where only about 4 feet separate the canyon walls. We saw a large log wedged in between the walls about ten foot overhead which served as a good reminder of the tremendous force of flash floods in narrow desert canyons.

The colors were very striking and sculptured walls were textured in an array of shapes. the third and final narrow shrinks down to a mere two feet wide in places. After exiting this final slot there is a large shadowed alcove that has some extremely soft sandstone. So soft that you can make a handprint by working your fingers back and forth. Many people have done so as evidenced in the picture. We also saw some old Indian pictographs near here.

The junction of Wire Pass and Buckskin Gulch is wide and open with a number of sheer rock faces and interesting patterns. You can proceed up or downstream from here, we opted to head down stream and within a few hundred feet were back into the slots again. We eventually were stopped by a deep pool of water that was impassable without getting wet and we opted to head back since it was lunch time. We had our lunch in the open space where the two slots meet and then went upstream for a little ways before deciding that we needed to get back to the Jeep and keep moving.

The trip back up Wire Pass was a little more challenging as the drop-offs became climb-ups but we made it ok. It was definitely a rewarding hike and I would like to hike a few other slot canyons sometime in the future.

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