Dayhiking Colorado Trail Segment 2

Springtime is here, and that brings wonderful dayhiking opportunities.  While the ground is not free of snow, and we are not quite ready to venture into the "sleeping on the snow" scene of backpacking, we found a great day to head to the mountains.  As we studied the Colorado Trail guidebook, we realized that Segment 2's lack of water would make it a challenge for spending the night.  And thus, we were off to dayhike the entire length of Colorado Trail Segment 2.

Segment 2 is 11.5 miles long.  The listed elevation gain is 2,482 feet, ant the elevation loss is listed as 753 feet.  Hmmm.... how to manage with five-year-old and seven-year-old kids?  Well, we would start at the end and head to the beginning.  It would be downhill most of the way.  Good thing, because between the two adults we carried seven liters of water.

We started at the Scraggy Mountain Trailhead at the junction of segments two and three.  The lightly forested, rolling terrain was a familiar site.  We had hoped the warm spring temperatures would make snow on the trail in infrequent occurrence; however, we soon found ourselves stomping along a snow-covered trail.  Following the footprints of a couple trail volunteers ahead of us proved helpful.  I guess, overall, we were not surprised to see that much snow the first weekend of April.  

The cooler temperatures, however, were welcome as we quickly excited the shade of the forest into a previously burned ares.  The 1996 Buffalo Creek Fire destroyed over 12,000 acres.  We were impressed by the impact still present today.  While I am sure wildflowers are abundant in the summer, this area is quite barren  in the early spring.  But not all is lost...  The lack of trees allowed us expansive views of the surrounding mountains.

Remnants of the Quartz Mine

We returned to the forest for a few snow-covered miles, then emerged once again to the burned area.  Near the end of the burned area is an abandoned quartz mine...  A great place for the boys to explore.  Then back into the forest for a rapid descent to the car.

Taking advantage of the DOWNHILL

Still smiling at the end!

Overall this was a terrific dayhike for us.  We started on the trail around 8:00 a.m. and finished about 2:00 p.m.  The boys remained energetic throughout the hike.  And we got some needed time on the trail.

We will see you on the trail.

-Mama Bear