Fort Collins Bicycle Trails: Poudre & Powerline

Not all days in Colorado and beautiful and sunny. I have to admit that on those not so beautiful days I usually stay home, catch up on blogging, or do stuff inside the house. But I’ve been trying to get in to riding my bicycle more so I figured today was a good day for that. The temperature was in the low 60’s but since it was cloudy, I couldn’t feel any warmth from above like on those days when it’s bright and sunny.



Cool kitty cat art along the Mason Trail



A duck pond along Spring Creek Trail



Poudre Trail and Cache la Poudre River (looking west)

I had no real plans as I took off from the house and rode down my side street to meet up with the Fossil Creek Trail that would take me to the Mason Trail heading north in to Fort Collins which took me to the Spring Creek Trail.



I took a nice short cut through the Prospect Ponds Natural Area



The dirt trail through Prospect Ponds Natural Area





Above pictures are of Prospect Ponds Natural Area



The water treatment facility across from Prospect Ponds Natural Area

This time I made a right and headed east after a while I arrived at the Poudre Trail. I decided to continue heading east and basically ride to the end of the Poudre Trail which ended on the far northeast side of Fort Collins.



A stop at the Poudre River



The dirt road that goes past the water treatment facility

The Poudre Trail ended at the Fort Collins water treatment facility. I went a bit further thought since there was a dirt road to ride on and I was curious where it went but then the pavement started again so I turned around and headed back taking a break at the Colorado State University Environmental Learning Center. There was a cool hanging bridge here. Since bikes were not allowed at the Environmental Learning Center and the trails I checked out the squeaky bridge and continued back on the Poudre Trail that took me back to Spring Creek Trail.



The Poudre Trail passes by the Colorado State University Environmental Learning Center



No bikes allowed beyond this sign at the Colorado State University Environmental Learning Center



I really like this bridge



This bridge hangs above the Poudre River

When I was heading the other way earlier in the day I saw a curious curvy path leading off to the side going up a slight hill, I decided to investigate this path. It turned out this was a short cut of some sorts to the other bicycle trail called the Power Trail. The Power trail runs along the power lines heading south. This trail was cool, there was a paved trail running adjacent to a dirt trail, being on a mountain bike I chose to ride in the dirt.



Back on the Spring Creek Trail, the short cut to the Power Trail starts here at this rail road underpass



Short cut to the Power Trail



The dirt and paved paths on the Power Trail



Back on the short cut from the Power Trail to the Spring Creek Trail



The short cut again, I really like this short cut

I was getting tired now so I only rode the Power Trail to the next intersection, then turned around and headed back to Spring Creek Trail, back to Mason Trail , back to Fossil Creek Trail and finally home. My legs felt like I worked them out pretty good today so I decided to go to my mapping software and see how far I went - 20 miles. That’s pretty good and I go to see more of Fort Collins too.



Poudre Trail and Power Trail signs

Snowshoeing: RMNP Glacier Gorge to Mills Lake

A beautiful 50 degrees in Fort Collins, upper 30’s at Rocky Mountain National Park. Today I headed out to snowshoe with a group again. The destination was Mills Lake. I have not been there yet, so I was excited to check it out. We headed out of the Glacier Gorge trailhead. Almost immediately we started climbing but the climbing was steep but short, then there would be a long flatter section, then a short steep section again.



Map posted at the trailhead (left), signs posted on the trail (right)

We passed by Alberta Falls, which I hiked to this past summer when I was visiting Colorado, I didn’t see the falls at all this time around, it must have been covered up by the snow. Up to this point the scenery has been nice, but having hiked and snowshoed in so many beautiful places already, I’m getting used to being around so much great scenery.



Starting the climb



More steep stuff



That's me climbing in this picture

Once we got close to Mills Lake, we followed Mills Creek up to the lake, it was frozen and we snowshoed right on top of it. I guess the actual summer trail is hard to find in the winter time. As we exited the creek bed, the amazing jaw-dropping scenery opened up in front of us. It was hard to look at the scenery and snowshoe at the same time so I had to stop and take it all in, as the others did as well. This may just be the most beautiful place I have seen on my snowshoes.





Very close to Mills Lake now



That's not where Mills Lake is at, but why not, climbing is fun



Posing with the awesome snow drifts



Looking back to where we came from

Mills Lake, frozen solid - glistening in the sun, surrounded on 3 sides by tall snow covered mountains. As I headed toward the lake I was told that the tall peak ahead of us, directly on the other side of the lake, was the back of Longs Peak.



Snowshoeing Mills Creek bed to Mills Lake



Almost at Mills Lake now



This is Mills Lake



Frozen Mills Lake with the Longs Peak behind it



Snowshoeing around the east shore of Mills Lake



This is my favorite picture of Mills Lake from this trip



Yep, the lake is pretty much frozen solid



Posing on top of Mills Lake



Heading back via Mills Creek bed

I have seen pictures of some of these high elevation mountain lakes in the summer time, they are beautiful, but in the winter time with all the snow and ice - they are just magical, like out of a fairy tale.



One more self-photo at Mills Lake



Too steep to snowshoe down the hill, sliding on our butts is easier

We continued to the other side of Mills Lake, took a break and headed back to the parking lot. Now that I've been to Mills Lake, I'm curious about the other lakes in the park. Are they equally beautiful in the winter? I guess I’ll have to find out.



High-lighted in yellow our route from Glacier Gorge to Mills Lake

Round Trip Distance (Glacier Gorge to Mills Lake): 5.6 miles
Beginning Elevation: 9,200 feet
Ending Elevation: 9,975 feet
Elevation Gain: 775 feet
Difficulty: Easy - Moderate

Estes Park: A Long Loop Around Lumpy Ridge

I’ve been hiking and snowshoeing a lot lately and I was ready to see if I could do a longer hike. There are a lot of hikes out hereon the Front Range that are 10-16 miles long. I’d like to be able to do those as a day hike.



The old Twin Owls Trailhead is closed now, the new Lumpy Ridge Trailhead with a large paved parking lot and pit toilets is located at Devil’s Gulch Road and Lumpy Ridge Road just 1/2 mile east of McGregor Ranch

After searching on the internet for possible longer hikes I found a really detailed hike report and I decided this would be the one. The hike would start at the Lumpy Ridge Trailhead just east of the Rocky Mountain National Park and north of Estes Park.



Black Canyon Trail and the views to the west



The tall peaks of the Rocky Mountains in the south viewed from the Black Canyon Trail

This hike would consist of multiple trails that would make a loop 11.1 miles long and with the total elevation gain of about 2100 feet. The Lumpy Ridge trailhead is located outside of Rocky Mountain National Park so no fees are required even though the actual trails travel inside the RMNP. Consistent with all the other trails that I have been on at the RMNP, the trails here were very well marked as well.



The big rock on the right is called the Twin Owls



Lots of open space on the Black Canyon Trail



I started out at 10AM and hiked west from the Lumpy Ridge Trailhead past the Twin Owls, a pair of gigantic rocks that look like two owls. Actually from the trail they don’t look like owls as much as from the corner of highway 7 and 36 in Estes Park especially when the sun gets low on the horizon.



Starting to climb on the Black Canyon Trail

Lumpy Ridge is better known as a rock climbing destination, but Lumpy Ridge is also a mountain toping out 10,068 feet in elevation. I’m sure these trails here get lots of visitors during the summer months but today it was rather chilly and windy, the temperature never got over 35 degrees, so the trails were mostly empty.



You have to enter through this gate to continue the hike, the sign behind the gate says "Entering Rocky Mountain National Park"



Lots of snow on the Dark Mountain Trail

The hike up the Black Canyon Trail was windy but sunny, as this part of the trail travels through an open area. Once this trail connected with the Dark Mountain Trail, I was in the shadows of the trees and there was quite a bit of snow on the ground. Not enough for snowshoes, so I‘m glad I didn‘t bring them. My feet did get a bit cold and I could have used a second pair of socks during this part of the hike. This is the highest part of the loop. Once I got on the Cow Creek Trail heading east, I was hiking in the sunshine again and there was no snow on the ground. On the Dark Mountain Trail I was heading down hill and the Cow Creek Trail was mostly level with some downhill. It was a nice break and I was making great time here.



The snow disappears toward the end of Dark Mountain Trail



The trail on the left is the Dark Mountain Trail where I came from (looking west), the trail on the right goes to Bridal Veil Falls



Finally turning on to the Gem Lake Trail



High on the Gem Lake Trail looking towards the northwest



Dark clouds chasing me on the Gem Lake Trail (looking north)

Once I turned on to the Gem Lake Trail it was uphill again and there was snow on the ground again. Parts of the trail was covered in ice, which slowed me down a bit. I have to admit that by the time I started hiking the Gem Lake Trail I was already kind of tired and having to climb back in elevation was even more tiring. I was so glad I had my trekking poles with me.

I was looking forward to getting to Gem Lake and finally stopping to take a break. My feet were cold again as I hiked in the shadows and in the snow and now there were dark clouds looming behind me and I would not have been surprised if it had started snowing.



After hours of hiking I finaly made it to Gem Lake (looking south)

Finally after so many hours I was relieved to see the sign for Gem Lake, although this meant I still had 1.7 miles to go, but at least it was all downhill from there.



Gem Lake - the north shore



Posing in front of Gem Lake

Gem Lake itself was beautiful. It‘s a very small lake, more of a pond really, it was frozen solid now. Surrounded by a wall of rocks of many different shapes and size on one side and a beach of loose sand on the other, it almost looked like it was man-made. The wind was blowing hard here and it was getting late so I decided not to take my long awaited break and pushed forward.



Neat looking rock formations on the Gem Lake Trail

The view from the Gem Trail all the way to the Lumpy Ridge Trailhead was amazing. At the higher elevation you could see the many mountain peaks in the south and west, now backlit by the setting sun. A bit lower on the trail there were a couple of places where you could see the whole town of Estes Park. I’d have to say that this part was the most scenic of the whole loop and unfortunately I was too tired to take many pictures, so I think I’ll have to come back here again just for the hike up to Gem Lake.



Looking south from the Gem Lake Trail



That's Estes Park down there

Just before 5PM I arrived in the parking lot, where I finally got to sit down and eat the lunch I bought with - which was now my dinner - a sandwich and a some warm green tea.

The hike was great, although I’m sure it would be a lot easier to hike the trails without all the snow. As I spent the evening lounging in my pajamas on the couch a bit sore from the hike, I was content with my new hiking record of 11.1 miles.



There were lots of signs to follow on this hike, but as long as you follow the signs and know where you want to go, it's very easy to navigate



My 11.1 mile route around the Lumpy Ridge: Lumpy ridge to Black Canyon to Dark Mountain to Cow Creek to Gem Lake Lake Trail

Trailhead elevation at Lumpy Ridge: 7,920 feet
Gem Lake elevation: 8,830 feet
Highest point on the trail: 9,139 feet
Total elevation gain: about 2,100 feet (there are two sections where you climb in elevation on this loop)
Distance: 11.1 miles
Difficulty: Moderate