OT: Backpack trip in Salida area

Craig Brossman scribbled on a scrap of paper:

Quoted message said:

Salida area brethren, I am looking at planning a weekend winter backpacking trip in the Salida
area, perhaps build a snow cave, maybe tent. I'm meeting some buddies from the front range, we'll
probably use snowshoes (as opposed to skis) and spend 2 evenings. A little loop of 4-7 miles/day
would be ideal, perhaps less on the coming out day. Any suggestions?

find a spot near a hot spring. ;-)

Penny

Craig Brossman said:

Salida area brethren, I am looking at planning a weekend winter backpacking trip in the Salida
area, perhaps build a snow cave, maybe tent. I'm meeting some buddies from the front range, we'll
probably use snowshoes (as opposed to skis) and spend 2 evenings. A little loop of 4-7 miles/day
would be ideal, perhaps less on the coming out day. Any suggestions?

I know of some good areas on this side of the divide, but I usually only go there in summer. Seems
like the snow would be pretty deep, but there's beautiful trails and scenery around Whitepine,
Pitkin, and Ohio City.

You could also come up the Rainbow trail from the Salida side, but I don't know how much motorized
activity that gets. I've been on some hut trips up to the Lost Wonder Hut which is a couple of miles
up the trail from the Monarch Mtn Lodge in Garfield (on the pass). Nice area, but once again there's
a snowmobile tours place right next to the trailhead. There are a couple of forest service huts you
can sleep in up there and I think they're free on a first come first served basis. Here's some
photos of that area from a trip I took in 2000 mattb.netclover climb3.jpgOpen ↗ mattb.netcloverOpen ↗
climb.jpg mattb.netclover climb2.jpgOpen ↗ mattb.netmeOpen ↗
summit.jpg mattb.netsled xtrm.jpgOpen ↗

The folks on that side of the divide may have some better suggestions for that neighborhood.

Matt

Penny S said:

Craig Brossman scribbled on a scrap of paper:

Quoted message said:

Salida area brethren, I am looking at planning a weekend winter backpacking trip in the Salida
area, perhaps build a snow cave, maybe tent. I'm meeting some buddies from the front range, we'll
probably use snowshoes (as opposed to skis) and spend 2 evenings. A little loop of 4-7 miles/day
would be ideal, perhaps less on the coming out day. Any suggestions?

find a spot near a hot spring. ;-)

Penny

Actually, that is an excellent idea since there are several hot springs in the area. I've done a
similar trip into some hot springs on the west side of Lolo Pass, in your neck of the woods.

--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado (remove ".nospam" to reply)

Craig Brossman said:

Salida area brethren, I am looking at planning a weekend winter backpacking trip in the Salida
area, perhaps build a snow cave, maybe tent. I'm meeting some buddies from the front range, we'll
probably use snowshoes (as opposed to skis) and spend 2 evenings. A little loop of 4-7 miles/day
would be ideal, perhaps less on the coming out day. Any suggestions?

Any thought to heading southeast along Rainbow from Chaffee CR101 to somewhere around Hillside and
shuttling back? That stretch is wilderness so no snowmobiles. The Crest would be epic in winter!
Bring your avalanche beacons. South Fooses creek is a nice stretch as is Green's Creek (albeit more
exposed in places, avalanche?). Maybe up one, across some of the Crest trail and down the other.
Also Colorado trail north out of Maysville to Mt Princeton hot springs :-) Except for Fooses (XCS),
I've only ridden or hiked these trails, so YMMV.

Cheers, Shawn

Thoughts Tom P?

Shawn Curry said:

Any thought to heading southeast along Rainbow from Chaffee CR101 to somewhere around Hillside and
shuttling back? That stretch is wilderness so no snowmobiles. The Crest would be epic in winter!
Bring your avalanche beacons. South Fooses creek is a nice stretch as is Green's Creek (albeit
more exposed in places, avalanche?). Maybe up one, across some of the Crest trail and down the
other. Also Colorado trail north out of Maysville to Mt Princeton hot springs :-) Except for
Fooses (XCS), I've only ridden or hiked these trails, so YMMV.

Cheers, Shawn

Thoughts Tom P?

Thanks Shawn, We definately want to stay out of harms way. I have ridden S. Fooses and really liked
it. That may be a good possibility.

--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado (remove ".nospam" to reply)

Shawn Curry said:

Craig Brossman said:

Salida area brethren, I am looking at planning a weekend winter backpacking trip in the Salida
area, perhaps build a snow cave, maybe tent. I'm meeting some buddies from the front range,
we'll probably use snowshoes (as opposed to skis) and spend 2 evenings. A little loop of 4-7
miles/day would be ideal, perhaps less on the coming out day. Any suggestions?

Any thought to heading southeast along Rainbow from Chaffee CR101 to somewhere around Hillside and
shuttling back? That stretch is wilderness so no snowmobiles. The Crest would be epic in winter!
Bring your avalanche beacons. South Fooses creek is a nice stretch as is Green's Creek (albeit
more exposed in places, avalanche?). Maybe up one, across some of the Crest trail and down the
other. Also Colorado trail north out of Maysville to Mt Princeton hot springs :-) Except for
Fooses (XCS), I've only ridden or hiked these trails, so YMMV.

I'm also pretty much a fair-weather explorer, so you may want to take anything I recommend with a
grain of salt. But that said, I would consider going up Starvation Creek and down Silver Creek, or
the other way around. That would allow for minimal shuttling, and you'd be out in the high lonesome.
I think that the snowmachine people may be allowed in the Starvation drainage, but I don't think
they are in Silver. I love that area, and it's accessible off Chaffee County road 200, which goes
west off 285 about 7 miles south of Poncha Springs.

I would also consider doing a loop to the west out of St Elmo (west of Nathrop).

If you want to be sure to not hear two-strokes whining, you'll want to pick a Wilderness Area. It's
not too close to Salida, but the area up near Winfield is beautiful, and you're into the Collegiate
Peaks Wilderness not too far west from Winfield. To get there, go west off 285 at Clear Creek Resv
(between BV and Leadville).

Or, the closest Wilderness Area to Salida, The Sangre de Cristo Wilderness, which I would access
from as close to Hayden Pass as I could get, up a Fremont County dirt road out of Coaldale. But
Shawn's recomendation is probably better/more specific for that area.

If you're really serious about actually *knowing what you're doing*, I would recommend
getting advice from our local mountaineering shop, Headwaters Outdoor Equipment & Clothing at
(719) 539-4506.
--
Tom "make sure you bring your bike" Purvis
Salida, CO - arkansasvalley.nettpurvisOpen ↗