Alpine Loop recon trip questions
Posted by overwhatagain@reddit | overlanding | View on Reddit | 14 comments
Planning a short trip into unfamiliar territory this summer, to place some markers and return for a longer trip later. The original idea was to just start in Silverton, complete the Cinnamon Pass Trail (having spent some time hiking to Handies Peak), then spend the night at Lake City and return via Engineer Pass. Then I found out about Corkscrew Gulch and California Gulch, which I think would be a shame to miss. However, do I get it right that including them into the west-to-east leg of the trip will make it impossible to finish in one day? Along the same lines, will I be able to finish just the Cinnamon Pass Trail in one day if I don't want to hurry and want to take some quality time getting up to Handies Peak?
Any other advice for someone unfamiliar with Colorado in particular and the woods in general? (desert dweller here)
PS: map approximate, FunTreks GPS tracks, need to amend further
SurfPine@reddit
Something not mentioned is it is very well known about hiking at altitude, plan to do it early. It is extremely common for afternoon thundershowers to roll in and you don't want to be caught in it while hiking. That is the reason for always starting and ending high altitude hikes early.
Adorable_Swing_2150@reddit
Are you starting from Silverton at sunrise or more like midmorning? Cinnamon plus a full Handies hike sounds fine only if you're rolling early, once you add Corkscrew and California I'd wanna know how much photo and stopping time you're budgeting.
overwhatagain@reddit (OP)
The plan is to roll out at sunrise (6:55am on July 1st as a reference point) or even at dawn (5:21am), but see above - looks like I'll have to reshuffle the trails not to rush things, even though this is likely just the first recon run, I'm sure we'll come back for more.
Adorable_Swing_2150@reddit
Yeah sunrise gives you a shot. If you’re already talking about reshuffling so you don’t rush, I’d treat Corkscrew + California as day-two stuff and let Handies be the main time sink. Photo stops up there always eat more time than you expect.
overwhatagain@reddit (OP)
The FunTreks trail (at the beginning of the thread) contains the Wager Gulch side track, but doesn't contain the trip to American Basin. Going to the latter (and hiking) is a must-do item on the list, but I wonder if Wager Gulch adds much more to the experience or it's just more of the same and can be skipped if time runs short? How long does that branch take in just driving time?
Adorable_Swing_2150@reddit
From the way FunTreks lays it out, Wager Gulch feels like the first thing to cut if American Basin + the Handies hike is non-negotiable. More bonus scenery than its own must-do. I’d budget around an extra hour once you factor slow crawling and photo stops.
okienomads@reddit
Rushing the alpine loop is something that will always amaze me. Take your time and soak it in.
overwhatagain@reddit (OP)
That's the plan.
G00dSh0tJans0n@reddit
I did the loop counter clockwise in a day last year taking Cinnamon to Lake city from Silverton and Engineer pass coming back and barely had time to do it in one day, just stopping for lunch in Lake City. I wish I would have marked all the amazing campsites on my GPS app along the way because there were so many amazing ones. We left around 8:30 Am and got back just before 5PM
overwhatagain@reddit (OP)
Nope, not doing that. The plan is to start at the west end, then spend the night in Lake City, and return on the next day.
Zoleo box can help with marking spots - all it takes is to press a button to send a checkin message with GPS coordinates. Sure thing, you'll have to figure out what you meant by which checkin later, but that's a good start. If you have a navigator, then simply taking a photo of the location on the phone with GPS turned on will do even better job. Apologies for being obvious, I know how it goes - simple things get forgotten in excitement.
RichSweet1660@reddit
Cinnamon you can easily do in day. There’s a ton to do out there and you have a lot of choices. You can get better planning intel by going to trailsoffroad.com and then use their app when the field - they are from Colorado and tend to have the best info.
overwhatagain@reddit (OP)
Just the Cinnamon - clear. What about the other two, though? (Corkscrew and California) I'd figure that it's not too much but is there still enough time to go through the Cinnamon *and* hike to Handies Peak (which by itself is estimated to 5 hours)?
RichSweet1660@reddit
I don’t know your set up and skill, or how often you want to stop to soak up all the sights but sounds like to much with a 5 hour hike. Driving without much extra time for Corkscrew and California will take a minimum 2-3 hours. Cinnamon minimum 3-4 hours.
Perhaps plan more trails with Engineer.
overwhatagain@reddit (OP)
So, without hiking, that'll come to 7 hours of just driving, pessimistically.
Yeah, I had a suspicion that I'd probably want to do it the other way around - just Cinnamon and hiking, then back via Engineer, California, and finally Corkscrew.