Follow along to join me on my next adventure-- in food or on the road. By tnmule20, February 10, 2022 in Camping & High Adventure. Heres my caltopo map of the Elk Park/Needleton hike: There are no fees or permits needed to hike or camp in the Weminuche Wilderness. After taking some great photos near the lake, I started heading down. Everything was wet, including my feet. There were many stream crossings and several large waterfalls that we passed, but due to the weather and number of miles we had to cover, we didnt spend any time checking most of them out. The Elk Park to Needleton loop in the Weminuche Wilderness, to be precise. Now through this little plateau area, the trail starts heaving down pretty quick. Elk Park Stop Elk Creek Trail This trail travels east from the railroad, climbing into the upper reaches of the Needle Mountains. Looking for a slightly larger backpacking pack that will still fit a short torso? After the train dropped us off at Elk Park, it was pretty quiet. The plan was to camp at either Kite Lake or Eldorado Lake, whichever looked more appealing. Generally considered a challenging route, it takes an average of 11 h 10 min to complete. It even had some rails leading in and out of it. I put my poles away now as I found it necessary to use my hands a little here and there going up some of the boulders. Either way, it was going to be another short day with only about 6 miles to cover. But we opted to take the train! Trail Name - Elk Park/Needleton Loop Location - Weminuche Wilderness in the San Juan National Forest, CO Park Type - National Forest, Wilderness Area Fees & Permits - None Length Of Time Hiked - 6 days, 5 nights Trail Type - Semi loop - Train drops you off and picks you up Miles Hiked - 48 Trail Difficulty - 8 I'm hoping that we weren't unncessarilly cautious and missed out. It was only 11:45, so we had 3:45 to wait. Still, I was glad to have spent the night at Eldorado Lake. The third day we hiked ~11 miles, starting with 2 miles downhill and then 7 miles to the top of columbine pass and then 2 miles down to camp at Chicago basin. Sure enough, they appeared at the top of the trail heading down to our camp from the main trail. He mentioned a possible shortcut to get up here from the Colorado Trail, by going up the drainage. You'll need to reserve this option in advance, but it makes for a great opportunity to explore the San Juan National Forest. For some reason, the mileage the GPS reports to me in the field is always more than the mileage it gives me at home when I am reviewing the final data. After about 20 minutes of hiking, I ran into my first mountain goats of the day. Theres also a Deuter backpacking pack thats a standard size, if youre taller than I am! I took advantage of the weather and took a ton of pictures up here. On day two, we encountered an even larger debris field between Beaver Pond and the ascent to the miner's shack. All of our gear was dry and life was good. We had a lot of rain, starting everyday around 1 pm and lasting for a couple of hours. I was awestruck with the beauty of those mountains. I got injured jumping off the bridge there, so we couldn't complete the hike north over hunchback pass, and down Elk creekwe were kinda bummed. After staring me down for a minute, they decided to move in my direction. A group of seven hikers (2 men, 5 women) also loaded their packs, giving a total of 12 of us to be dropped at Elk Park. Learn more about the wildlife in the area. Not today, it gre more and more intense as time went on. We had to stand guard for a while to make sure they didnt walk right into our camp. Or are there other routes you could r commend for some stream and lake fishing? Maybe not a traditional campsite, but it was by far the driest campsite Id seen on this trip yet. Have a good hike! Lower elevations and farther south, definitely no snow and the spring melt off is going to be done by then. Yes, either hiking boots or hiking shoes are a very good idea on these trails. This was true for much of the trip. There were only one or two campsites occupied here, and it would have been a nice place to stay the night if we didnt already have our trip planned out. But if you need an even warmer quilt, weve heard very good things about the quilts from Enlightened Equipment. It's mainly visited for hikers departing on overnight backpacking trips into Chicago Basin. Before we knew it, we saw the Weminuche Wilderness boundary sign. (we were going from Needleton to Elk Park). The only way to combat them is it cover up your skin with long sleeves, jacket hood, etc. As we waited by the tracks, one of the hikers we were talking to in the shack was showing another guy his sleeping pad. Molas Lake to Animas River via Molas Trail, Vestal Basin via Colorado and Elk Creek Trail, Stony Pass, ATV Trail 821, and Cinnamon Pass OHV Route. I dont like to sit in the tent if I dont have to. They must not have found much in this one and abandoned it. We followed Bear Creek down to the Rio Grande by following the 4wd road and used our sat phone to arrange for transportation to Silverton. We hardly saw any other hikers until Chicago Basin. It was the kind of terrain, like sand, that feels like you take one step back for every two steps forward. A friend and I attempted this horseshoe hike in reverse last weekend (Aug 14). It was well worn and looked much less difficult than I had imagined. My GPS said we did 16 miles today, including going up Hunchback Pass, but later when I reviewed the data for this trip it calculated the day at 14.5 miles. The rain sucked, but it sure did make you appreciate what little sunshine we did get. This is a popular trail for birding and hiking, but you can still enjoy some solitude during quieter times of day. The weather was cloudy and more scattered rain throughout the rest of the day. We had been told by the forest service that we would encounter more avalanche debris fields in the basin. Hey Trey, Its been many years since I did this hike so pardon my memory here. Awesome views all around, but it was still cold and precipitating out and thus my camera stayed under my rain jacket. As always, questions and comments are welcome! We departed about 15 minutes late, and slowly made our way out of Durango. Especially considering the status of cell phone service (which well discuss below). Parking in Durango is $8 per day for cars and $10 per day for RVs. One night while we slept inside our River Country trekking pole tent, something chewed the cork handle off one of the poles (presumably because of salt residue from sweat). False alarm. We were thrilled when a ranger who had just cleared out the trail told us the three 12,000-foot passes on our route were free of snow. Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "a9fc6034fcd46f19ce6730fcccb725d8" );document.getElementById("b86db021e5").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); Hi, I'm Sarah! Many jokes were cracked regarding the stench of ones self or others in their group. There were a lot of berries along the trail, although not all edible. Our food and gear were safe from the mice last night, so that was a relief. They didnt seem afraid of humans at all. However, after the first couple of miles and adjusting to altitude, I love it! After driving around town, we realized that there was zero parking available anywhere. They didnt seem to concerned with our presence though. Hiked from elk park to needleton 7/1/2022-7/4/2022. Miles Hiked 10.4 Weve also been testing this Deuter Aircontact Ultra 45 + 5 pack and love it. Thanks for the great report! Parking is available at the Silverton Depot at no charge. Back, finally! We got off the train at elk park ~11:45am and hiked ~6 miles uphill the first day. There was another group who did this, and the train staff didn't seem to have any problem with it (we had paid for a RT ticket anyway). My boots were the driest theyd been since day 1, and I really didnt want to get stuck in rain today. I am curious - does anyone have first hand knowledge of current conditions in Chicago Basin, Columbine Pass, Johnson Creek and Vallecito Trail. Lots of flowers, waterfalls, and views. Leave from Durango or Silverton and get off to explore at Elk Park, Needleton or one of the flagstops. After going up a series of switchbacks, I had reached the Twin Lakes by around 7:15. You can use this file with your GPS unit, or load it in caltopo.com (or your favorite mapping website or application). Creating new thru-hiking routes & guides, hiking videos, outdoor documentaries, backpacking trip reports, trail journals, photos and more! Route Elk CReek campsite to Eldorado Lake. On day three, we made our way up and over the Continental Divide and into the beautiful meadow just below Hunchback Pass. We did this trip in September. Our trek group of 6 - ages ranging from 17 to 64 years. We met others that were completing this 36-40 mile trip as we were walking into the wilderness from Needleton. Mojave-Sonoran Trail (2021) We saw 3 hikers coming down Hunchback Pass earlier as we were going up, and didnt see anyone else today until we got about a mile from the Vallecito Creek Bridge. It rained a little very briefly when I got back, then was party sunny the rest of the day with only a few intermittent showers. It was almost comical how many people waved at us as the train chugged through town. Everyone in the shack jumped up immediately, rushing to put on boots and grab their gear as we rushed towards the tracks. 2/21/22 12:55pm. Since cell service is unlikely, the Garmin InReach Mini 2 became our lifeline. Weminuche Wilderness National Geographic map, Black Diamond Alpine carbon trekking poles, MSR PocketRocket Deluxe backpacking stove, Sea to Summit Thermolite sleeping bag liners, Elk Park to Needleton Backpacking Loop (Silverton, CO), Supplemental Privacy Notice For California Residents, Supplemental Privacy Notice For Nevada Residents. Clearly has not been maintained for a few seasons. It was nice to know that we had a day off of hiking coming up tomorrow, at least for Lisa anyways. Thank you so much for your detailed description! I made it to the top before Lisa and snapped a few pictures before the rain returned moments later. There was an insane amount of biting flies and mosquitoes by the river here though, and I was regretting my decision to leave the bug spray and mosquito head net behind. I do regret getting the open-cart seats though, because it was raining and it was not dry inside. Not this time though! I recommend bringing a trekking pole to help support and steady yourself on the trail. Length: 7.9 mi Est. I used a Garmin InReach Mini 2 to track our location, and any time we came to an unmarked trail junction, we knew which way to go. Continental Divide Trail (2018), "His breathing is measured as he narrates his journey, describing the personal allure of the great outdoors, the difference between mere hobby and real passion. Two other climbers reached the top during my stay up here. After all, it was Saturday evening. It has a mesh frame that holds the weight of the pack slightly off your back. We spend a good while collecting firewood, but as wet as it was, it was a bit of a challenge. You can board the train for wilderness access in Durango or Silverton. Thats why, if you come from a lower elevation like us, I recommend easing yourself into it while youre preparing for the Elk Park to Needleton hike! Shortly after Elk Park along the Colorado Trail, also called the Elk Park trail for this section. Straddling sections of the infamous Continental . Bob Marshall. Of course, now it starts to rain for the first time today. 2. My home area is the Bob Marshall Wilderness in Montana and am looking for a backcountry trip in Colorado. The weather was once again threatening to rain as I made it to the top, finally sitting up on the CDT. I hope your backpacking trip is just as epic as ours was. Wouldnt you know it, as soon as we got all the wood together, it started raining. We hiked from the Elk Park train stop to Needleton, which includes about 43 miles of hiking in the San Juan mountains. We settled for this spot and set up camp by 4pm or so. Our stop is Elk Park, a 3 hour ride from Durango. Oh well. The names of surrounding landmarks included Stormy Gulch and Storm King Peak, and now I understood why. Bugs were pretty bad this year. We didn't. Windward_Coug. Within the first mile, we encountered a snake on the trail. Two friends of mine and I did this backpack in 1995. Swampy, muddy areas where your foot sinks ankle deep in mud are also likely, as well as multiple creek crossings. It was one of our Black Diamond Alpine carbon trekking poles, which was extra sad. Amazing views and pretty easy navigation (cant miss the trail). - John Glionna, Las Vegas Review-Journal article on the Basin and Range Trail, Watch Pioneering Nevada's Basin and Range Trail on other Streaming Services: Tubi, Xumo, Telus and Filmocracy, Like what you see? Are there fishing opportunities along this route? This was a pizza by the slice kind of place, and the slices were enormous! The weather started to improve a little as we set up the tent and took care of the usual camp chores. These odor proof bags have never let me down, and with all the rodents around, it was going to be a real test tonight. A mine along the trail leading down into Chicago Basin. I have done this one twice!! Unlike Snowmass though, the trail here was more open and very well worn, and not much here to get me wet. All we could do is move downhill as quickly as possible, and after descending another 1500 feet or so, all was well again. Every mountain we encountered was amazing! It was about 1/3 the size of his sleeping pad, and as far as I know, is the lightest one on the market at 9.1 ounces. My knees were holding up very well so far this trip and I figured, why not? There is no cover up here by Eldorado Lake, which sits well above the treeline at 12,300ft. Obviously I skipped this route on our way up here, opting to go the traditional way up the switchbacks to the CDT, but I was curious if it was doable. Wed been in Colorado a week now, doing other cool stuff like the Colorado National Monument, Mesa Verde National Park, Denver & Boulder, Rocky Mountain National Park, Telluride, etc. The train kept on going though, as this one wasnt scheduled to stop here. This is when the fog really started growing. We also brought along these touch-screen activewear gloves, Buffs to help protect us from sun (or keep our ears warm), silk thermals for a base layer, and a balaclava to keep warm at night. There were at least 5 if not 6 avalanche debris fields on the Elk creek trail. I meandered around the lake a while and snapped some pictures before heading back to camp. We ended up eating at Diorios Pizza which was pretty good. with an Osprey water bladder. Generally considered a moderately challenging route, it takes an average of 19 h 35 min to complete. It felt good to be hiking today its amazing what a little sunshine can do. ALLTRAILS and the AllTrails Mountain Design are registered trademarks of AllTrails, LLC in the United States as well as certain other jurisdictions. The nature back there is unbelievable. Awesome, glad it was useful to you. For your monthly pledge, at various tier levels starting at $5, you receive perks and benefits in return. The people were yelling at them and throwing rocks to try and scare them away, but the goats were pretty stubborn. We recommend it as long as you are ready to stay 7 days in the backcountry! What a morale booster it was. This is the "fourth bridge" of vallecito creek, north of the vallecito campground/Trailhead. The only stop on the southbound trail in the afternoon is Elk Park. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from May until September. More mountain goats as I leave the Twins Lake area. Our dehydrated meals said they were tested at 5,000-foot elevation, and to double the cook time for every additional 5,000 feet. It worked perfectly. After 3 hours, we were finally back in Durango. It is a fairly difficult hike, but not one that isn't doable. I took it out of its stuff sack and unrolled it and the looks on their faces were just priceless. Campsite in Chicago Basin for nights 4 and 5. Before you head out into the wilderness, make sure you know where youre going! Go figure, good weather on the last day. A very convenient spot for an abandoned shack to be located. (We didnt see any, but we heard they were plentiful.). Any and all kinds of weather! One guy stopped and said Whoa, what are you doing going up that? I dont know which to trust, but it was a long day regardless. Our backpack would take us on a horseshoe loop from Elk. I hung out up here a while longer before deciding to head down around 10am. With about five minutes to go before arriving at Elk Park, one of conductors gather all of the backpackers and ask you to head to the front of the train. To exit we kept walking all the way to Purgatory. Done over 5 nights and 6 days. The train ride out of Durango and through the Rockwood Cut was quite enjoyable. This looks more like some of the pictures Id seen of the San Juans before our trip. Awesome, thanks! We heard later that there was a porcupine in the area chewing on things, so it couldve been the culprit. Thats for water drainage, and maybe goats. I laughed and told him how I lost the trail before it headed up. Lisa really wanted a fire, and although I knew we could get one going, but I didnt want to go through the effort of gathering wood only to have it rain again . Columbine Pass and Chicago Basin probably were the highlights of the trip -- incredibly high and scenic alpine country. These guys didnt seem as threatening though. The Elk Park to Needleton backpacking loop near Silverton, Colorado, covers over 40 miles and features stunning mountain vistas. Youre hiking at high elevation in a very sunny spot, so protecting your eyes is important. Where did you get the map? The four debris fields we crossed we scary enough. I highly recommend it. The bridge at Vallecito Creek, near Johnson Creek, is still good. Great hike! With no campfire, stars to gaze at, or any other reason to remain awake, we went to bed as the sun went down. Required fields are marked *. I headed up and made good time moving through here as it was pretty easy. It sounds funny, but for some reason hey turned and ran when I did that and never came back. Todays hike was all uphill, but it wasnt too strenuous. Some of the rocks were covered in ice making them extremely slippery too, so I had to be very careful once I neared the top. Past that meadow, the trail begins to climb past the treeline. One of the things that makes this loop so special is that the trailheads can both be reached via the Silverton-Durango Narrow Gauge Railroad, a tourist train pulled by a steam locomotive that has been used in dozens of . But, thats another story for another trip report. Although it was monsoon season during our trip, we were told that the coal cinders often start forest fires. Looking for a 40-60 mile, week trip. I chose my path through the first boulder field above the lake and started moving. 09-23-2015, 12:45 #12. Not cheap by any means, but it was a cool way to enter and leave the wilderness. Finally, the weather is cooperating! Today was going to be almost all uphill, heading over Columbine Pass and down into Chicago Basin. I proceeded downhill now alongside the edge of this. We passed many more campsites along the trail shortly after leaving our camp this morning. We also packed an MSR PocketRocket Deluxe backpacking stove to boil water for all our freeze-dried meals, our hand-pump espresso machine, and a lightweight hatchet multitool to help with campfires. FIND YOUR WAY OUTSIDE is a trademark of AllTrails, LLC. Today we slept in to 6am. What a place for a cabin though! Its easy to explore the Colorado wilderness from the Durango train. Route Chicago Basin to Needleton train stop. Most of our clothing was wet, including our backpacks and other gear, so we finally had a chance to dry them out some. Soul Rider. Absolutely stunning! None of them seemed very dry though. Weminuche Wilderness, CO Elk Park/Needleton Loop Hike. The Weminuche Loop is a classic 40-50 mile horseshoe hike that starts at Elk Park and ends at Needleton. It was incredible to see the clouds taking over the area! The final approach of Columbine Pass was pretty steep, but manageable. Route Elk Park train stop to camp along Elk Creek at ~10,300ft. It seems that most people in Chicago Basin came from the Needleton stop, hiked here, and turned around and went back the way they came. Share Followers 0. In fact, there wasnt a single cloud in sight now, just a beautiful deep blue sky in all directions. You can download the GPX file here: http://metalbackpacker.com/wp-content/uploads/gpx/WeminucheRouteHiked.gpx. There are a lot of down trees and we had rain and some route finding to cross streams. There is no road access to either the Elk Park or Needleton trail access points. Learn more about this exciting opportunity for outdoor recreation youll find only in Durango. Once we reached a flat area around 11,650, there were a good amount of campsites scattered about. Some hikers we met said that it sleeted on them one evening (when it had only rained on us). Coming down Columbine Pass into Chicago Basin? I climbed up to the top of this ridge for some truly amazing views of the Weminuche Wilderness, Beautiful views of Eldorado Lake during the best weather of the afternoon, Awesome views from an unnamed high point above Eldorado Lake. To reach this trail on foot, some hikers make a longer loop from the Molas Trail (about four miles). At that point, one of our trek members sustained a significant ankle injury. After lunch, the trail had gained enough elevation to start giving us some better views as it passed alongside some cliffs. The trail wasnt too steep most of the way up this morning. Soon enough, wed be overtaken by the unavoidable fog. The weather started clearing up after about mile 4. Hello, solitude. . The skies were fairly clear when I woke up at 5:30 this morning, but Ive grown weary of the weather in the Weminuche Wilderness at this point. To my amazement, the sky was 100% clear when I woke up at 5:30 this morning. Enjoy the hike, its a good one! This was my first hike of more than five miles. Passing through a colorful meadow on the morning of day 2, Nearing the treeline, the views start improving. Dogs are also able to. Early morning often leaves thick fog in valleys, only to be burnt away later by the sun. So much for being packed. However, the clouds were building now and threatened to block the sun for the first time today. In good weather it should not be a problem. By the time we were leaving the treeline behind, foul weather had returned. Check out my AWESOME DIY stealth camper van build project! Im taking a group on essentially this same trip in a couple weeks, and your pictures and story are very inspiring. Once I gained a few hundred feet in elevation, I could see that there wasnt any threat of getting soaked and I took off the extra layers. I guess thats good, because that was less people we saw on the other days. So, they suggested to take train from Needleton to Silverton, wait for 1.5h and then return back to Elk Park for the price of full ticket Durango-Silverton . From the drainage area, it was easy to cross to the other side of the lake. The trail leading down to Kite Lake from the CDT, View of Kite Lake, before it disappeared in the growing fog. Whitewater trips for more experienced adventurers. They can be a lifesaver on a long hike. We stayed up a little later tonight due to the fire, and ended up going to bed around 11pm. Go to the print button at the top and choose print to pdf. Fortunately it was all downhill, so we could cover some serious ground, which I assumed would be at the expense of my knees. Its relatively easy to walk over/around them, but be patient and expect a slight delay. The fire burned quite well once established, despite the soggy wood. Generally considered a challenging route, it takes an average of 5 h 9 min to complete. At 36 miles in length, this trip would likely span four or five days for average hikers, and it offers the unique ability to ride the Durango-Silverton train to access the trail. I like having dry gear! Were planning to do this trip in September 2022 and Ive got a couple of questions for you. Everything was still pretty wet from the rains overnight, and it was cold. Required fields are marked *. After leaving Chicago Basin, the trail was actually kind of boring compared to the rest of our hike. The food issue didnt bother me much, I was mainly worried about the rodents chewing on our sweaty gear. If I were to do it again, I wouldve done a few more miles the first day - theres a nice campsite before the first peak. There was a lot of toilet paper and poop laying around near some of the campsites though, evidence of heavy usage. It was eerie and mesmerizing at the same time. Overall a pretty remote and isolated trail with beautiful scenery, clean water everywhere and pristine nature. I can use train but according to DSNGRR schedule, their trains stops EITHER in Needlton OR in Elk Park, but not in BOTH. Our most reliable digital map was from Garmin, within the Garmin Explore app on my phone. The train follows the overall route of the Animas River northward from Durango and stops at Silverton, however, we werent going that far. Food takes longer to cook at high altitudes. There was another meadow a mile or so past our camp that would have been a nice place to spend the night. We only had to wait 30 minutes before suiting up. My breakfast today was a very hearty helping of granola and almonds (about 800 calories worth), and some dried strawberries. Of course, this is contingent on cooperating weather. Some streams had a lot of flash flood debris jammed up in certain points, more so than wed seen in other areas. Down to Eldorado. You can purchase a ticket to or from Elk Park onboard as long as space is availableno reservations are taken for this flag stop. It moved away pretty quickly, but I could tell it was not a rattlesnake. I'm a traveler who loves to eat. Prepare to not have a cell signal. Looking back, I wish I had checked it out. After setting up the tent in light rain, I decided to take shelter in the tent as the rain continued. Yet another day we found ourselves traversing a pass in bad weather. I couldnt see the mountains behind me at all now, they were lost in the clouds. As we gained elevation, the Animas River became more and more impressive. Continental Divide Trail At the Divide, the trail connects with the Continental Divide Trail. Besides that, she was very happy to have a day off to rest. You have to make the backpacker train reservations by phone, not online. On this section of the trail, the views were mostly obstructed by trees until we reached the beaver pond at mile 3. Happy trails! Ran I to some bad weather that chased us out on the 2nd day but we saw a few moose on this trail. The fourth day we hiked from Chicago basin to the needleton train stop, which was an easy ~7 miles downhill. We used a Sawyer Squeeze water filter. A full train schedule is available on the Durango Train website. Apparently, they felt more threatened by that than the rocks whizzing by their heads. hartford public schools staff directory,
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