Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Buffalo Cabin Trail




Today I hiked Buffalo Mountain (12,777 ft.), and I went into it not knowing what to expect. Speaking as a novice, it is definitely the most difficult hike I've done to date. Having this one under my belt, I feel a bit more confident when considering some of the 14ers I am planning to climb later in the season.
Buffalo is an imposing peak that looms above the town of Silverthorne, CO. The trail starts at the top of Wildernest, which is a housing development above town. Click on this article's title for a link to driving directions.

19th Century Cabin Ruins
These are the namesake of the trail. I'm not sure why people built here...Mining?







The trail crosses some large rock fields and is marked with cairns. Even though it's July there was snow over parts of the trail and still clinging to the top of the mountain and its bowl.













Monday, June 29, 2009

Hiking the Lenawee Trail













Today, I hiked the Lenawee Trail from Peru Creek to the top of Lenawee Mountain. I didn't read that much about it before I started, so I was surprised to find myself at the top of the East Wall of Arapahoe Basin Ski Area. Lenawee is one of many peaks on the Great Divide, and it seems one can see forever in any direction from the top.

After a three-hour hike to the summit, I stopped for lunch. As I finished a granola bar I heard large rocks moving above my head. Startled, and expecting a slide I turned and looked up to see three mountain goats descending from the rocky peak straight toward me. I stood and waved my arms thinking it better not to let them get too close before I was seen. They stopped not more than 30 feet away, and watched me as I watched them. One of them even appeared to be lounging as they, presumably, waited for me to leave. I grabbed my camera and got a little footage of this rarity.

I also saw Elk, some kind of Marmot-looking beaver things, mice, and plenty of birds. No bear sign today, and that was a good thing. The trip took about 5 hours, and was the best hike I've done since moving to Colorado.

Monday, June 22, 2009


Well I really thought I had done some serious hiking yesterday. Today I hiked the Ptarmigan Peak Trail. The climb to the summit (12,498 ft.) took about 3.5 hours. It was a fantastic hike, but I wasn't planning on being gone that long. I thought I had reached the summit about 5 times before I actually did it. Quitters never win, right?







Sunday, June 21, 2009

The Keystone Gulch Road

Here are a couple of videos and pics of my Jeep/hiking excursion today. I took the Keystone Gulch Road, which is the back way to the Outpost building where I work. At the gate to the Outpost I took a right and climbed toward Erickson Mine. I am trying to find a little history on the mine, but have none yet. I drove until I found snow covering the road, then hiked to the mine and then past it to the top of Keystone Mountain (12,408 ft.) and Bear Mountain (12,585 ft.).































Thursday, June 18, 2009

Bittersweet





Here are some pics I took on the Jedi trail outside Keystone before I went over my handlebars and broke my ribs!