Colorado Trail Adventure Part I: Frisco to Missouri Gulch

Introduction

The Colorado Trail is a trail spanning nearly 500 miles from Denver to Durango.  It is one of the most spectacular trails in America.  For more information please visit coloradotrail.org. Initial preparation included route and resupply planning. I decided to add some side trips to 14ers and off-trail routes in the San Juans.  With time constraints I had to omit early segments of the trail.

Food for the journey!

Initial Travel: July 18

Berrien Springs, MI to Best Western-Frisco, CO

I awoke early to finish packing up my apartment.  My last final of the semester for physical therapy school was complete yesterday and last night we had our final class gathering at a classmate’s house.  My parents graciously volunteered their time to come help me pack up, clean, and move out.  I traveled by Amtrak from Niles, MI to Chicago Union Station.  Once in Chicago, I took the CTA to Midway Airport and a direct flight to Denver. I then was transported by van by Colorado Mountain Express to the transfer center in Frisco, CO.  It was a short walk from there to the Best Western, my stay for the night.  Thanks Mom and Dad for providing this for me!

 

My room at the Best Western in Frisco

Days 1-5: July 19-23

Frisco (Goldhill Trailhead) to Missouri Gulch with resupply stop in Twin Lakes

Distance: 96 miles

Highlights: meeting Paul from Iowa, Ten-mile range, Copper Mountain, Guller Creek, Searle and Kokomo Passes, Meeting Steve from Sweden, Camp Hale, meeting Isaac, trail magic near Tennessee Pass, Holy Cross Wilderness, Porcupine Lakes, beautiful meadow near Hagerman Pass Road, Mount Massive summit, meeting Jo and Jodi, Mount Elbert summit, beaver ponds near South Mount Elbert Trail, Twin Lakes General Store, Hope Pass, meeting a couple completing the Collegiate Loop (check out cleverhiker.com), Missouri Gulch

The First Colorado Trail Sign

Gold Hill Trailhead Sign

 

 Campsites:

1. near Guller Creek just in the trees below Searle Pass

2. Wurtz Ditch (2.5 miles after Tennessee Pass)

3. Off the Mount Massive Trail in the trees

4. Near South Mount Elbert Trail by some beaver ponds

5. Missouri Gulch near Mount Belford Junction

Comments:

I surprisingly had no elevation problems.
 

Great times meeting new people on the trail. Camped with Paul the first night and Paul and Isaac the second night.
 

Spectacular weather, only rained/hailed on Day 1 while setting up camp.
 

I loved the ten-mile range! Probably didn’t fully appreciate it as I skipped out on the first 6 segments.

Up on the Ten-mile range

   

Copper Mountain Resort

·         The trail passes Camp Hale, a camp for warfare training during World War II.

 

Camp Hale

 

     The trail between Searle and Kokomo Passes is truly special!

 

Kokomo Pass

I could barely eat the first day, but my appetite improved after that. Going stoveless worked well.
 

I experienced my first trail magic near Tennessee Pass!  A fresh Dr. Pepper and a Nutty Bar!  Thank you so much Leadville Hostel!
 

 

Camped with Paul and Isaac at Wurtz Ditch, which is a much nicer campsite than the name conveys.  This was probably the only location I noticed mosquitoes the entire trip.
 

Hiking through the Holy Cross Wilderness was short but very beautiful.  It was my first experience in a wilderness area on the journey.

 

Holy Cross Wilderness

          

I woke early to be on Mount Massive’s summit for sunrise. After a nap, I was tired but couldn’t pass up doing Mt. Elbert later that afternoon.  I used a Gossamer Gear Riksak as my daypack for Massive.  It’s basically a stuff sack with shoulder straps and a buckle.  For Elbert, I carried my entire pack because I went up one trail and down another.

Sunrise on Mount Massive

 

Looking back on the summit ridge

Morning light shining to the west!



Looking toward the summit

Heading back down

Massive summit off to the right

Twin Lakes from Mount Elbert

Mount Elbert Summit View

 

I had planned to spend the night in Twin Lakes but chose to camp and stop in for my resupply the next morning.

 

My campsite near the South Mount Elbert Trail was near a beautiful beaver pond.  At 5:30 the next morning I heard multiple groups of 20+ hikers going for the summit.  One even bellowed out some sort of military chant.

South Mount Elbert Trail

Beaver Pond near campsite

Thanks to the Twin Lakes General Store for holding my package and for the ice cream! I spent some time relaxing and charging my phone while chatting with CT hiker Jody who had lots of experience with long distance trails including the Appalachian Trail.

 

I road walked southwest on Highway 82 until I saw a bridge that led to a trail that connected back with the CT. This was somewhat confusing and it took me a little while to figure out. After crossing the bridge I initially went left but I should have gone right.

    

Hope Pass has a great view of the Collegiate Peaks! Spectacular flowers on the climb up. Met this couple doing the collegiate loop who told me how spectacular the collegiate west was so I revised my plans regarding the next few days. The guy, Dave, has this awesome website about light weight hiking that has very informative videos with awesome footage from many different locations. If you're new to hiking or simply looking for ways to improve your setup I recommend checking out his site.  It's called cleverhiker.com
 

 

Looking toward Twin Lakes on the climb to Hope Pass

Hope Pass

 

Also, if you're interested in the Collegiate loop, Dave has written an excellent guide for the entire route: Collegiate Peaks Loop Guide
Checked out Vicksburg museum near Missouri Gulch Trailhead: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9UQV8vBkfo

Camping wasn’t allowed at the Missouri Gulch Trailhead so I made the climb all the way up into Missouri Gulch.  It was a fairly steep climb with little campsite selection along the way.  Once above treeline I found a nice flat spot near a stream to camp.  This location certainly helped ease the climb for my 14ers the next day.

Campsite in Missouri Gulch

 Continue to Part II