Summer 2022, Day 42: High Mesa to Hartman Rocks

Posted on August 1, 2022 by Ben

Another beautiful morning on High Mesa:

The pattern here seems to be daily rain starting at 10AM. It’s a bit much for me, so I packed up. On the way out, I did a quick hike out to Lost Lake, passing this pond along the way :

Lost Lake:

Another lake on the return trip:

I continued on to visit the High Mesa visitor center:

I came down from High Mesa into Delta, Colorado, loosing 5000 feet of elevation and gaining 40 degrees of heat. I then drove south to Montrose, then east to the same dispersed camping location I used last year in Hartman Rocks:

See the trip map for today’s drive.

Hike to ORAK

Posted on April 20, 2022 by Ben

The four of us hiked with my parents up to ORAK:

Summer 2021, Day 27: Run/hike of Redcloud Peak and Sunshine Peak, Hartman Rocks reposition

Posted on July 11, 2021 by Ben

Today I motorcycled down from Slumgullion Pass to the Alpine Loop to access the trailhead for the fourteeners Redcloud Peak and Sunshine Peak. I started up:

I ran over the summit of Redcloud Peak (14,034’) and on to the summit of Sunshine Peak (14,001’):

I ran back from Sunshine Peak to the Summit of Redcloud Peak:

Views from Redcloud:

On the way back down:

The hike was 12.5 miles in total, with over 4,000 feet of elevation gain:

After the run/hike, I packed up and repositioned to Hartman Rocks near Gunnison. See the trip map for today’s drive.

Summer 2021, Day 24: Run/Hike Handies Peak, Motorcycle Alpine Loop

Posted on July 8, 2021 by Ben

I drove the motorcycle down from Slumgullion Pass to ride the Alpine Loop. Along the loop, I parked at the trailhead to run/hike the fourteener Handies Peak:

Off I go:

The run/hike was a relatively short 3 miles to the summit at 14,058 feet:

Views from the summit:

On the way back down:

I continued along the Alpine Loop over Cinnamon Pass:

I next arrived at the ghost town of Animas Forks:

I next drove from Animas Forks down to the town of Silverton, visiting ruins along the way:

Silverton, Colorado:

I was hoping to drive the road from Silverton to Ouray, then drive the off-road route from Ouray to the Alpine Loop, but I was told in Silverton that the off-road route from Ouray to the Alpine Loop is too technical for a motorcycle, so I instead drove back to Animas Forks, then further along the Alpine Loop towards Engineer Pass:

Engineer Pass:

Views from Engineer Pass:

I finished the Alpine Loop by continuing on towards Lake City:

I drove down into Lake City, then back up to the RV at Slumgullion Pass.

See the trip map for today’s motorcycle ride.

Summer 2021, Day 22: Motorcycling and Hiking Wheeler Geological Area

Posted on July 6, 2021 by Ben

I drove the motorcycle down to the Wheeler Geologic Area today. Round trip, it was 18 miles on pavement, 16 miles on gravel, and 28 miles on a 4×4 rough road. Turns out motorcycles are not the most popular choice: