Miles Today : 15.4
Total Miles : 15.4
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7/13 – Harvard Lake
Miles Today : 15.4 Total Miles : 15.4 |
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Life is great and Colorado (the state) is beautiful. We woke up this morning at the ungodly hour of 6:15 to get packed and on the road as early as possible. We were both dragging but managed to get moving north to the trailhead, about 15 minutes away. After a brief goodbye, Colorado headed for home while I headed south on the Colorado Trail.
The first big difference that I noticed out here is the trail markings – there are none! Well, that’s not entirely true but there are a lot less markings on the trail out here than there are on a typical trail back in the east. The trail itself, however, is in excellent condition and graded nicely for hiking with a heavy load. I, however, was not in good shape, between the lack of oxygen in the air and the lack of oxygen in my brain from the night before, I was sucking wind pretty good on even the mild uphills.
All day, the CT meandered along the base of several mountains in the Collegite Peaks Range. By far, the most impressive of the day were Harvard and Columbia – two 14,000 foot peaks standing magnificently side by side, still covered with snow. It is possible to climb these peaks from the CT, but given my weakened condition and the time of day when I passed by the side trail, I opted not to hike them. Due to frequent summer thunderstorms, it is highly recommended that you vacate the summits of any high peaks by 2 PM. I have first hand experience on how quickly a T-storm can develop out here, and I do not wish a repeat of that experience.
Anyway, the views were great from down low so I was perfectly content to stay off the upper slopes of the big mountains today. Another great thing about these mountains are the clear, cold streams running down from mountain springs or snowfield melt. I stopped several times at a few different streams and the water was pure, cold and delicious. There is nothing better than water that is this pure.
Well, after much walking I ended up here, at Harvard Lake. I am camped out almost on the shore of the lake with a great view of, surprise, Mt Harvard. That’s another great thing about the CT that I have noticed so far; there seem to be fantastic campsites just about everywhere that you would want one. Just look on the map, pick a place that looks good for camping and odds are that there is a flat spot in the area. So far, the CT has been backpacking at its best.
-Chomp