The weather forecast was for perfect weather, so I decided to tackle something a bit longer today. I figured with a dry and warm February many lower elevations trails would be dryer and have less snow than usual. I chose the Eldorado Canyon Trail in Eldorado Canyon State Park This would be about a 6.5-7 mile roundtrip. I would also add whatever amount of the Walker Ranch Loop I could get in from a time perspective. Overall I got 12.8 miles in today.
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| Eldorado Canyon Trailhead |
The trail started with a steep climb right out of the trailhead. Within the first mile, I had gained a bit more than 750 ft. Early on in the trail, a couple of twenty somethings passed me while I was taking a picture. I decided to see if they would pace me or I would be slower. I was a bit slower as they gained on me for about a quarter mile. They had to stop for a breather, but I kept going and never saw them again. I guess, I'm not doing too bad for a fifty something.
About two miles into the hike I encountered five of the biggest rocks I have ever seen. Each one was a big as a small house. All were stacked up one behind the other with the first one right next to the trail. In looking at them it seemed to me that a couple of good rainstorms or a small temblor and rocks would go sailing down the canyon rim. The pictures don't do the sight justice.
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| First of five stacked Boulders, seemingly held by just the tree |
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| There are three more equal sized boulder behind these |
Then trail continued to climb out of the Eldorado Canyon till about the 2.5 mile point. Here I was on the top of the canyon ridge and began a steep descent to South Boulder Creek in the Walker Ranch Open Space. This was about 600 feet in three-quarters of a mile.
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| Top of ridge looking east to the entrance to Eldorado Canyon |
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| If you look carefully, you can see the Denver skyline |
Once I reached South Boulder Creek I was on a trail I had been on before, in May 2014. Hard to realize it had been that long.
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| South Boulder Creek |
Last time, this section of the trail followed an old ranch road up about a mile before heading west along north of the creek. Now the trail has been rerouted to quickly move off the road and follow the south side of the creek. This makes for a more scenic route, as well as, being a bit less strenuous.
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| Walker Ranch TH |
I ate lunch at the Walker Loop trailhead and headed back. On the way back I spent a few minutes at South Boulder Creek admiring the river and also psyched myself up for the climb I was about to tackle. After a bit more than nine miles, the climb was every bit as challenging as I had led myself to believe. Once at the top, I headed back down, encounter many twenty- and thirty-something couples and there dogs. Many looked tired and several stopped and asked; "how much further is it?". I also talked to a couple of guys who were headed up the trail to climb one of the many cliffs that are along the route.
All in all it was a good day, but man was I tired when I got home. Here are a few miscellaneous pictures.
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| BNSF rail on the south rim |
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| Lower Eldorado Canyon |
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| Typical landscape on canyon rim |
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| Upper Eldorado Canyon (1) |
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| Upper Eldorado Canyon (2) |
Overall Track Statistics for Boulder-EldoradoWalker, 1785 data points
Length 11.924 miles : Garmin Length 12.848 miles
Start Elevation - 6103.51 feet
Maximum Elevation - 7288.48 feet
Minimum Elevation - 6003.71 feet
Date of Hike - Mar 11, 2016
Start Time - 09:31 AM
End Time - 03:37 PM
Total Duration - 6:05 hours:min
Total Ascent - 3496.59 feet
Total Descent - 3596.39 feet
Net Ascent - -99.80 feet
Maximum Grade - 21.31%
Average Speed - 1.96 mph : Garmin Average Speed 2.10 mph
Maximum Ascent over Mile - 807.68 feet
Maximum Speed over Mile - 2.96 mph
Maximum Gain over Mile (%) - 14.56%
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