Date: 4/12/2018
Who: myself
Length: about 11 miles
Time: 6 hours
Weather: about 50 degrees, windy
Mueller State Park is located west of Pikes Peak, less than a 1 hour drive from Colorado Springs. It adjoins Dome Rock State Wildlife Area. Dogs are not allowed on the trails in either area. I camped in the park campground one night, and spent the next day wandering around the trails.
My route started at the park visitor center. I hiked several trails which together formed a 11 mile loop. I reached the Hammer overlook, from which I could see Dome Rock. However, I did not make it all the way to the rock. I hiked all day without encountering another person until the last mile.
The trails on this hike were mostly well marked and easy to follow, with some exceptions. A map is a good idea. For route-finding, I used my old Pikes Peak Atlas map, which is no longer published. If I were going to buy a map today, I’d consider Pocket Pals. Free trail maps of the two areas are available from the state park and wildlife area sites linked above.
antler bone on the trail
I’d like to go back to try the loop trail around Dome Rock. However, it is open to the public only from July 15 – Nov. 31, in order give a bighorn sheep herd protected land during calving season.
Date: 12/30/2017 and 3/24/2018
Who: Samadhi and myself
Length: about 6 miles
Time: 3 hours
Weather: about 50-60 degrees, sunny
My goal for these two hikes was to explore the rerouted section of trail 667. The U.S. Forest Service worked with various interest groups to reroute the trail over the last 2 or 3 years, in order to protect greenback cutthroat trout living in Bear Creek. There have been several stories about it in the local paper (example, example). Now that the new section of trail is open, I headed out to see it for myself, and to find out whether or not access to Mt. Garfield is still open. Mt. Garfield is still accessible, and I think they did a fine job with the new trail.
Official Forest Service documentation on this is in Order # PSICC-2017-12. The Forest Service map is difficult to interpret: It’s not topographical, and weirdly the protected asset Bear Creek is blocked out from the map.
Trail 667 has historical significance as the route to the summit of Pikes Peak in the 1800s, before Barr Trail took over. The book “Shattered Dreams on Pikes Peak”, available in special collections at the Pikes Peak Library, documents developers’ efforts in the area.
The new trail 667 starts at the saddle in Jones park, just west of the summit of Mt. Kineo. Going east, it follows the north slope of Mt. Kineo, then jumps over to the south slope for a section, then meets up with the original trail east of Mt. Kineo summit. It is still possible to make a loop hike from the 4-way parking lot in N. Cheyenne Canyon park.
Hikers be aware, trail 667 is multi-use so you will likely encounter motorized dirt bikes and mountain bikes.
Heading west on trail 667 from the junction in the Jones park, I quickly encountered a turn-off for new hiking trail 622A. Trail 622A is designated for hikers, horses, and mountain bikes (not motorized dirt bikes). It goes northwest towards Bear Creek, crosses the creek, and leads directly to Loud’s cabin. The steep unnumbered trail to the saddle between Mt. Garfield and Mt. Arthur starts at Loud’s cabin.
From Loud’s cabin heading west towards Lake Moraine, it appears that the original trail 667 along Bear Creek remains open for non-motorized use. (Will this connect to Ring the Peak?)
Chris and Samadhi on 7 Bridges Trail 622
March 24 was also my first hike with a new Osprey Atmos AG 65 backpack. I loaded it up with about 30 lbs. of gear. I’m getting ready for a backpacking trip later this year. It has almost twice the capacity as the pack I use for day hikes.
I updated my Google Maps page to show the re-routed sections in GREEN. I did not delete the old closed sections from the map yet. This is based on my memory. I do not have a GPS tracker.: View Colorado Chris Hikes in a larger map
In December 2017 I was in Minneapolis, Minnesota for two weeks for some technical training. During my free time, I explored the Minneapolis city park system and took a day trip up to the north shore of Lake Superior.
One thing I noticed during my visit to Minnesota was the shorter day. The sun came up a bit later and went down a bit earlier compared to Colorado. I also noticed so many lakes–it seems like there’s a lake around every corner.
Fish Lake, a suburban lake in Maple Grove (northwest Minneapolis)
Mississippi River in Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park at sunset
Minneapolis hikes followed the BLUE lines: View Colorado Chris Hikes in a larger map
Highlights of the day trip to Lake Superior included breakfast at Duluth Grill (recommended!), views driving along the lakeshore, and a hike at Gooseberry Falls State Park. I’d certainly like to come back in the future, to visit Isle Royale National Park and wander the lakes in the vast Superior National Forest along the Canada border.
Freighter on Lake Superior viewed from Silver Creek Cliff
Gooseberry Falls hike followed the BLUE line: View Colorado Chris Hikes in a larger map
