Читать книгу Best Summit Hikes Denver to Vail - James Dziezynski - Страница 26

Have a friend driving back home from Winter Park? Have him or her meet you at vehicle two at the summit of Berthoud Pass. This tour starts out the same as the Eva–Witter Loop from Fall River Reservoir and (most likely) skips Witter—unless you want to snag it for a nice bonus summit. Walking along the Continental Divide entails easy, off-trail terrain among fields of crimson grass and wildflowers. Mount Flora (13,132’) is a scenic high point—an out-and-back east to Breckenridge Peak at 12,889 feet from Flora’s summit will add another 1.6 miles to your day. It’s a worthwhile visit if you have the energy and clear weather. Wrap up your adventure passing (or tagging) 12,493-foot Colorado Mines Peak and follow a broad dirt road to Berthoud Pass parking.

Notes

Breckenridge Peak from Mount Flora (1 mile each way) is an underrated tour; it’s worth a look. Another group of trails can access this area, specifically Breckenridge Peak, Mount Flora, and Flora–Witter saddle ridge from Bill Moore Lake. The reason that area only gets a brief mention here is that the roads to Bill Moore Lake are legit four-wheel-drive out of the town of Empire. I’ve driven to Bill Moore a few times, and the road tends to be muddy, rocky—a jeeper’s delight, but not great for SUVs and SUCs. If you love some off-roading, however, it’s a nice place to visit.

Fall River Reservoir and Chinns Lake have good car-camping opportunities at their trailheads.