Fort Collins - Dadd Gulch r2

Fort Collins - Dadd Gulch r2

I decided it was time to head up the Poudre to Cameron Pass and tackle a trail up there.  The drive is about 2 1/2 hours, so I needed to get an early start.  Unfortunately, about 15 miles from Cameron Pass, I found that Colorado 14 and Cameron Pass was closed.  I later learned that either an avalanche or the threat of an avalanche had closed the road.  Back down toward home I went, thinking about where I wanted to hike.  I settled on Lower Dadd Gulch.  I had hiked Lower Dadd Gulch last year in the summer, so it was not a new trail and I knew what to expect terrain wise.  What I didn't know was what winter trail conditions would be like.

All started well with the trail being packed and marked with plenty of people and dog tracks.  A bit more than a mile into the hike, my right snowshoe failed.  The brad that holds the harness to the frame had failed.  I rummaged through my pack looking for something to jury-rig the shoe, but didn't find anything that would reliably work, so I strapped the shoes to my pack, put on my YakTrax and continued on the the hill.  I knew that all would be fine as long as I didn't encounter heavy snow or drifts.

The trail is not very scenic so there isn't much to take pictures of until you get to the top.  There you are able to look over the mountains toward Comanche Peak and the Mummy Range.  However, I didn't make it that far.  About a quarter-mile from the top, I ran into many snow drifts that were knee deep.  I didn't want to posthole the rest of the way, so I sat down ate a snack and headed back down.

On my way down, I met up with about 12 people and 5 dogs on their way up.  All of them were Cameron Pass refugees too.  While the target hike for the day was a bust, I was still out and about in the mountains.

Lunch break

Overall Track Statistics for Ft. Collins - Dadd Gulch r2,    767 data points

 Length 5.985 miles  :  Garmin Length 6.508 miles

 Start Elevation - 7034.78 feet

 Maximum Elevation - 8334.97 feet

 Minimum Elevation - 6964.86 feet

 Date of Hike - Jan 18, 2016

 Start Time - 09:43 AM

 End Time - 12:58 PM

 Total Duration -     3:14 hours:min

 Total Ascent - 1459.02 feet

 Total Descent - 1528.94 feet

 Net Ascent - -69.91 feet

 Maximum Grade - 14.30%

 Average Speed -  1.84 mph :  Garmin Average Speed  1.98 mph

 Maximum Ascent over Mile - 552.40 feet

 Maximum Speed over Mile -  2.99 mph

 Maximum Gain over Mile (%) - 10.10%