Report on Mt Barney Weekend (2014)

2016

Supervisor of this area of San Juan National Forest, Rod Blackard, spoke to the group. There are mountain lions and bear in the area, elk, deer, bighorn sheep. Federal trappers report about 13 grizzly bear at the head of Piedra River. (A later ranger at West Ute Creek said the grizzly bear preserve was in the West Ute Creek area.) There are coyotes at all altitudes. No wolves. There are no snakes at high altitudes. Joe Hotter, outfitter, gave tips for riding. August 3, Tuesday. Rose 6.00 a.m., finished packing. Breakfast at hotel. Drove Bill's car out to Hotter Bros. Ranch. Denver and Rio Grande Narrow Gauge Railroad left 9.1O a.m. Spectacular ride up the canyon of the Los Animos River. Saw Needle Mountains, Grenadier Range, etc. Off at Elk Park, where we were given lunch, and took about 2 hours fitting us to horses. Climb through the Elk Creek Canyon-lovely all the way. My horse is Chief, a large horse presumably given to me because of my height. Joe Hotter describes Chief as a "pusher." Bill's horse is Trigger. Hard to ride and take pictures. Camped for the night in a flat park some halfway up the canyon. Very flat area in canyon bottom, presumably alluvium in old lake bed, formed by massive rock slide at lower end. (so Atwood says) Good supper, steak and potatoes. Altitude here 10,000 plus, seems to leave you a little short of breath. Chipmunks are abundant. On rockslide near camp heard cony. Rabbit-like animal of high mountains, lives in rocks. Sound is like a short toot me from a Halloween horn. Horses are always hobbled for the night. August 4, Wednesday. Rain in the night, with thunder, lightning, but clearing by breakfast. Hotter says night thunderstorms are not uncommon. Got off about 10.00 a.m. Continued climb up Elk Creek Canyon-of exquisite beauty. Steep climb for the horses up often narrow trail. The Grenadier Range is south side of canyon. Further away West Needle Mountains, and a few peaks of the Needle Mountains seen behind the Grenadiers. Ate lunch on continental divide-here open rolling bald meadows, representing the San Juan peneplain (so Atwood.) Unidentified hawk here. Crossed upland area, rerouting some because of snow banks across trail. Numerous snow banks remain scattered in area. Descend to Beartown area (Bear creek) with rest stop near creek. Steep ascent through woods breaking out to higher open area about at the divide between Bear Creek and Starvation Gulch. Here we crossed several snowbanks with some difficulty, some of the horses stumbling, esp. just as we reached Ute Pass. From this area distant mountains can be seen-the Sange de Cristo? or Uncompahgre? Descent into the West Ute Creek area, and camp for the night, about 11,200 ft. Lovely scenery through the whole day, but we were whipped at day's end. Headaches and short of breath. Bill says about 4.00 p.m., "Doc, I can't take much more of this. The only reason I'm staying on is that I can't get off." Pretty severe case of "lockjaw of the knee". Cook is Dean Minor; assistant cook is Betty, who has love affair with Ronnie Hensinger one of the wranglers. Wranglers: Syd Bryd, little Ronnie (Kolz), Daryl, Bob Wood-a loner and confirmed bachelor, Kenny Ledford. They are in late teens, early twenties. Dean and Betty travel with saddle string. Kitchen pack string travels early, leaving a little after and often arriving before the saddle string. Gear travels in 5 pack strings, which are latest to leave and to arrive, often couple of hours after saddle string arrives. All told 65 head of horses. Tents are 7 x 9, tepee style, of very heavy canvas. Two sleep in a tent. They weigh 40 lbs each, are put up with two large wooden poles, available at each camp site. Riders pitch their own tents, selecting sites. Aug 5, Thursday. Layover day in West Ute Creek area, gently sloping area, grassed in center and forested either side. Red-tailed hawk seen in a.m. Stayed in camp getting used to high altitude. Malone and others fished up to West Ute Lake with good luck and we had fish for breakfast on Friday. Trail Blazing Crew is camped up the meadow, also some 30 Future Farmers of America camped in next canyon. Cold night; thermometer read 38 degrees, wranglers said there was some ice on water buckets. Patched leaks in air mattress. August 6, Friday. Rode down West Ute Creek to the junction of the three forks, over open grassland. Then a steep switch back climb up forested slope toward Rio Grande pyramid. Break out onto meadow, for lunch, then slabside slope of light grass and rock to a pass just east of Rio Grande Pyramid, about 13,300. Several tuff rockslides rather difficult to cross. Steep descent, and rode around to get closeup view of the Spanish window, a rock "window" adjacent to Rio Grande Pyramid. The two make a noticeable high landmark, and are on the horizon for miles around. We could look back and see them often afterwards. Backtrack and slabside now on opposite (Pacific) side of drainage, area drains into Los Pinos River. Deeper and flatter floor than I had imagined from topo sheet. Camp at Weminuche Pass (women-ooch), 10,629 ft, broad open bass, with much meadow either side and some open forest. Squirrels and chipmunks here. Also saw snowshoe rabbit-brown with white rear feet. Patched another leak in air mattress. August 7, Saturday. Spent day in camp at Wemimche Pass. Bill and I walked a couple miles across the meadow at the pass. For wildflower list, see books. August 8, Sunday. Ride to Squaw Lake. We rode down from the Pass to 1st canyon and up this canyon, partly wooded, partly open. Lunched on top at the divide. Large hawk-like bird, perhaps immature eagle seen at rest stop. Rode into Squaw Lake across high country with a sea of peaks in distance on all sides. Sheep graze here, kept by a lone sheepherder. Chief, my horse, gave me some trouble here. He is bad to roll with gear on, rolled with Exakta camera in sidebag at rest stop. He shies when I go to mount. Also hard to stop in line, when other horses move on, and hard to keep from trotting when other horses trot. Binocular strap snagged in spruce tree and broke and binoculars fell off. Here loosened side bag unnoticed from which camera subsequently fell and rolled down steep hillside. Rain briefly at camp. August 9. Monday. At Squaw Lake, a perfect cirque with cirque lake, now enlarged by artificial dam. 11,800 ft. The group had breakfast on beautiful trout caught by Malone evening before. Bill and I hiked to head of cirque and on to the higher summit some 1,000 ft above lake, about 12,800 ft. Several cirques are compound here. Saw and heard several conies at close range. Saw marmot-yellow bellied. Saw and photographed ptarmigan with 5 chicks. Rocks are all volcanic, look like cinders. Rain in late afternoon. Considerable marsh below the lake. Pack string rode out 16 miles round trip for groceries from here. Mosquitoes and flies something of a past here, though the mosquito bite is not severe and leaves no swelling. August 10, Tuesday. Breakfast on trout again. Ride to campsite below Trout Lake. Rode down the drainage (cirque?) southeast of Squaw Lake, and on down to the main Squaw Creek valley, wide and open, and thence up Squaw Creek (s.e.) to its head. Flushed grouse with three chicks at rest stop. Squirrels and chipmunks frequent, also conies. Lunch at grassy spot near head of creek, with rain now threatening. Raingear on in saddle for first time in trip. Switchback climb eastward to continental divide, and then rode a hi-line trail partly slabsiding Little Squaw Creek valley and partly slabsiding Williams creek drainage. Rain and some hail more or less continuous through the remainder of day. In the distance peaks in sunlight could be seen. Most of group got pretty cold, but the ride was pretty even in rain and hail. Descended to Trout Lake, with Williams Lake directly south and on opposite side of Continental Divide. Steep descent past Trout Lake into large Cirque several hundred feet below. Waterfalls into cirque. Marshy floor with high ground on s. side, where we made camp. Riding is easier now, but still glad to get off the horse at day's end. Waited about 2 hours in rain for gear, though Bill's gear and tent had come on earlier packstring with the kitchen. He sacked out while the rest huddled around fire in rain. Clearing skies in the night. August 11, Wednesday. Day in camp at cirque below Trout Lake. Awoke with horse's nose in tent. Frost on grass outside tent, enough to crunch underfoot. Cloudless sky and soon warmed up and dried out. Washed up before lunch. After lunch walked around cirque to waterfall on far side and spent afternoon there. After supper, campfire singing led by Malone, as is now usual every night. August 12, Thursday. Rode down West Trout creek to junction with main Trout Creek, then up East Trout Creek to camp near head. Trail was mostly timbered down and up, with some delay on account of fallen logs across trail and much working around fallen timber. On earlier days, Hotter and a couple wranglers have scouted trail for blowdowns. Chain saw is carried by pack horses, used for trail clearing and to provide firewood. Passed old sulphur mine, and crossed low open valley of Trout Creek on private land. Delicious steak supper. August 15, Friday. Layover at East Trout Creek. Washed up and napped. Lunch at waterfall on trail down the creek. Group is somewhat keyed up over 25 mile ride over high-line trail tomorrow, especially in view of rain in late afternoon. Temperatures at rising in a.m. have been 38-42 degrees lately. Peculiar mixture of rain, sleet, and few flakes of snow falls out of up wind cloud, with blue overhead and sun shining. August 14, Saturday. Fabulous hi-line ride on the continental divide. Rose 6.50 a.m. on trail by 9.00 a.m. Rode to head of East Trout Creek, timbered trail breaking out at timberline just below continental divide. Remainder of day was on a high, open, and exciting trail. About lunch we approached South River Peak,...

2004

Field trips in the southern Rocky Mountains, USA / edited by Eric P. Nelson and Eric A. Erslev. p. cm.-(Field guide ; 5) Includes bibliographical references.

2008

Tourism and hospitality, 2023

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

2007

Heard coyotes fussing outside home at night. Waked us in the early a.m. Jan. 18, 1970. Snowshoed in RMNP. First time on my new snowshoes. Snowshoed to Alberta Falls, one mile round trip. About 2-3 ft. of snow in here. The trail is easy to loose. Snow flurries with some blue sky (clear day on the plains). Strong wind. Also used down mittens for first time here. Later, snowshoed about one mile around the Glacier Basin Picnic Area, walking in from road. Lodgepole pine has notable persistent cones, seen in this area. 3 deer, one buck, near exit from park. Jan. 25, 1970. Sunday p.m. Went to look at the Pinyons in Rex Quarry above Owl Canyon. About 8 deer, all bucks but one, grazed freely to within feet of our fire in front of the cabin. Continued into the night, and were not disturbed by flashlight. Also a marten prowling about, and, in the dark by flashlight, a porcupine. Marten (?) persistently gnawed at the cabin window and door all night. Something carried off my pot scrubber, and left me handicapped in dishwashing for the week. Many marmots, conies, and white crowned sparrows. Descent on Tuesday to Trail Junction, and lunched at bridge and falls on the Lake Nokoni Trail. Missed Lake Solitude Trail here and made through the brush leaving the trail in the vicinity of the first switchback. Night and following day at Lake Solitude (see other notes). Beaver in the Lake the second night. Considerable mosquitoes. Little sign of others having been here recently. Broken trail found on way out, running on north side of North Inlet, much down timber on it. Trail crew met, at their tent camp, just over hump from the falls, where I previously lunched. Climb to Lake Nokoni, in time for lunch there; cooked beef stew. Man from Denver (made airline maps) and two sons, and neighbor's boy were there, fishing. Ate supper with them, eating roasted fish. Fish are cleaned, and the rib cage stuffed with some bacon. Wrapped in foil and roasted about 10 min, or less, on each side. Delicious. Hiked to Lake Nanita that afternoon. Both lakes are lovely. Hiked out the following day, Friday. Left Nokoni about 8.30, reached Grand Lake about 1.30, 5 hours for 11 miles. Some rain on way out; mosquitoes bothersome after rain. A fire seems to keep them away considerably. Total trip 25 miles. The hike from Bear Lake to Grand Lake could be done satisfactorily with an overnight at Hallet Creek, or by a seasoned hiker (esp to Summerland Park) in a day. Would be o.k. on horseback in one day.

Mountain Research and Development, 2010

This paper examines impacts of increased visita-tion leading to human trampling of vegetation and soil along several trails in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) to understand how abiotic factors and level of use can influence trail conditions. RMNP is one of the most visited national parks in the USA, with 3.3 million visitors in 2012 across 1075 km 2 and 571 km of hiking trails. 95 % of the park is designated wilderness, making the balance between preservation and visitor use challenging. This research involves the application of trail condition assessments to 56 km of trails to determine prevailing factors and what, if any, connection between them exist. The study looked at a variety of inventory and impact indicators and standards to determine their importance and to develop a baseline condition of trails. The data can be used for future comparison and evaluation of development trends. We found that trail widening (mean trail width 88.9 cm) and soil loss (cross-sectional area 172.7 cm 2) are the most visible effects of trail degradation. Further statistical analyses of data identified the role and influence of various factors (e.g., use level and topography). Insights into the influence of these factors can lead to the selection of appropriate management measures to avoid or minimize negative consequences from increased visitation.

Geoarchaeology, 1997

Benedict's most recent publication on Front Range game drives provides a detailed description of two of the four known drive sites within the boundaries of Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. Neither site has been excavated, but both have been visited over the years, and subject to detailed examination by the author. The goals of the book (p. xiii) are to describe all available information on the sites (including written documents and collected artifacts), describe and interpret the rock features and develop a chronology for their use, and build a constituency for their preservation. The book is organized into four chapters, with a bibliography and four appendices.

2012

Went to Cleon and Betty Kimberling's wedding anniversary, a brunch at Highlands Camp, Mostly sunny, and not bad at Higlands. Took Rolston, and came back through Rocky Mountain National Park, so he could try out his binoculars, which he won as a Cub Scout award. Saw about two dozen elk, in half a dozen groups, some nice bulls, one particularly huge rack still really in town. Fern Lake Fire, starting in October, and continuing in various breakouts from smoldering throughout November and December, has burned much of Moraine Park. They were rather surprised by this, winds drove it down from Forest Canyon to Moraine Park and they even feared for the YMCA camp, which was not damaged. 2012 was the hottest year on record by an average of one degree F. January 13, 2013. Temperature-0.4 when I got up. Coldest day yet this winter, which has been rather cold, in the single digits at night, and no higher than teens and twenties in the day for several days.