Hiking in Colorado

[Abster]

Ahhhhh Colorado!!

I second Nederland and have spent many days hiking at the base of Eldora ski area. It is quite and somewhat remote, but very beautiful. If you are starting in Fort Collins, I would recommend heading to Steam Boat - one of my favorite towns in Colorado (Telluride is the other). Steam Boat has an endless choice of hiking/biking trails. The locals are nice, the town is of some size (restaurants & hotels), but is small enough to be cozy.

Please remember these things:
1) afternoon thunderstorms (this was mentioned already). usually by noon or 1pm you should be headed DOWN from a peak, or this could really ruin your day if you are caught in one of these up high
2) bring lots of water! The Northeast is great because there are so many rivers and streams. I remember how dry the air is out west and in July at altitude you will want to take extra. Unless you target a river or lake on the map there is not a lot of chance you will run into one. I am very sensative about this because I always had to ensure my dog had enough water also.

Have fun!!

 

[halfmoon]

What kind of base-camp are you looking for? Cabins? Campground? Hotel?

In a word cheap. Not looking for anything luxurious, just a very basic, preferably clean motel/cabin. I would not want to stay in a bunkhouse on this trip for the other patrons' sake, i.e. baby crying.

If I were going for the most bang for my buck, I would do a collegiate traverse of Yale and Harvard. Beautiful scenery.

In addition, the Missouri/Oxford/Belford traverse looks really nice. I am focused on identifying hikes where I could scramble to a summit, but have a really pleasant spot for my wife and daughter to enjoy themselves while I am gone for an hour or two.

So far I have identified several really nice hikes that meet this criteria. I could scramble up Capital Peak while my wife/daugter are chillin' at Capital Lake (this would be a 13 mile hike for them). Another peak with a really nice hike is Mount of the Holy Cross...there are lakes all around the base of the peak to enjoy while I scramble up. Of course Long's Peak would be very enjoyable for myself and my family (Chasm Lake). Mt. Zirkel is starting to look pretty sexy right now also. Last but not least would be the Four Passes Dayhike for me, while my family went as far as Snowmass Lake or the pass directly above.

The crux for me is going to be rousing the family up early enough that I could be up and off a peak by 1:00 PM. Of course, I will not be dissappointed if I don't get to summit peaks. I am not sure what the little one is going to up for at 8 months...she is only 6 weeks right now.

The problem with both Leadville and Buena Vista is that there is not much to do there but stare at the mountains...

Thanks, this is good info, I will search around a bit more.

If you are starting in Fort Collins, I would recommend heading to Steam Boat...

Thanks, I have been looking into this more and more after seeing photos of the Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area. This place looks amazing. I may well end up doing some sort of loop that includes RMNP/Indian Peaks WA, Steamboat (Mount Zirkel WA), Carbondale (Maroon Bells Snowmass WA), and Leadville (Mount of the Holy Cross WA and Collegiate Peaks WA). That would be a nice loop, but alot of driving also. I will have to decide whether to limit myself to a couple areas, or go for the grand circle.

Thanks alot everyone!

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

Thanks everybody for all the great suggestions. We looked at a lot of options and with our logistics (driving to/from Nebraska and having an ~ 8 month old) we ended up splitting our week between Medicine Bow National Forest and RMNP.

Big thanks to Kevin for suggesting Medicine Bow, an area we wouldn't have considered otherwise. It was the perfect way to break up the drive and although the Snowy Range is small, it was beautiful and had a lot to offer. The wildflowers were gorgeous and those alone were worth the trip.

One of our favorite shots from Medicine Bow and our little hiker:

 

[Kevin Rooney]

Thanks everybody for all the great suggestions. We looked at a lot of options and with our logistics (driving to/from Nebraska and having an ~ 8 month old) we ended up splitting our week between Medicine Bow National Forest and RMNP.

Big thanks to Kevin for suggesting Medicine Bow, an area we wouldn't have considered otherwise. It was the perfect way to break up the drive and although the Snowy Range is small, it was beautiful and had a lot to offer. The wildflowers were gorgeous and those alone were worth the trip.

Glad you liked it - have always thought it was a little jewel tucked away on the Wyoming/Colorado border. Just came back that way myself from an east coast trip and did a couple of peaks in RMNP.