IntrepidXJ
Explorer
Saturday & Sunday, June 23-24, 2012
The Original Trip Report on ADVENTR.CO
After spending a few hours in the morning at the Shavano Valley Petroglyph Park near Montrose, we continued driving into the San Juan Mountains to get out of the heat for the weekend. Shortly after crossing over Red Mountain Pass we turned down the road along the South Fork of Mineral Creek and found a campsite for the weekend. After setting up our camp we drove through Silverton and made our way up Cunningham Gulch to the trailhead for the Highland Mary Lakes. As soon as we passed through Silverton the valley started filling up with smoke, and by the time we reached the Cunningham Trailhead the smoke had become pretty thick and there was even a little ash falling from the sky. We would later learn this smoke was from a wildfire that had started near Mancos.
A view of the smoke in Cunningham Gulch from the trailhead.
Smoke in the Gulch by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Entering the Weminuche Wilderness.
Weminuche Wilderness by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Smoke fills the sky with a view of the trail below through some pine trees.
Trail Below, Smoke Above by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Unfortunately the smoke in the air was making it a bit difficult to breath and bothering Amanda pretty bad, so she had to stop and head back down to the trail. I continued up just a little further before turning around and joining her again. The Highland Mary Lakes will have to wait for another day...with all the smoke in the air I wouldn't have been able to take any good photos anyway.
I came across this cool waterfall along the trail before turning around.
Cunningham Creek Waterfall by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Another small cascade of the creek.
Small Twin Falls by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Since our planned hike for the day was now cancelled, we decided to drive up to Stony Pass to see if we could get up above the smoke.
Stony Pass by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Getting up this high did manage to get us above most of the smoke, so I ended up hiking part of the Continental Divide Trail while I was up there.
Continental Divide Trail by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Dappled light on the nearby Sheep Mountain.
Sheep Mountain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
There were a few wildflowers growing along the trail where there was running water including Marsh Marigolds and Rose Paintbrush.
Marsh Marigold by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Rose Paintbrush by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
A view from the turnaround point of my hike over the headwaters of the Rio Grande.
Rolling Hills by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Hiking back towards Sheep Mountain through the apline tundra.
CDT to Stony Pass by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The trail back towards Canby Mountain and Stony Pass.
Canby Mountain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Before reaching the road again I stopped to check out an old mine and cabin. These tracks were nearby.
Tracks to Nowhere by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
When I reached the Jeep it was time to drive back down to Silverton and grab some dinner. It was nice to see that much of the thick smoke had finally started to clear out and the sky could be seen again. After eating we still had some time before sunset, so we drove over to the Red Mountain Mining District to take a few more photos. With the smoke in the air, the light getting through was a much warmer tone than usual, so I thought I might try to get some nice photos of the Yankee Girl Mine.
After driving back over Red Mountain Pass, I stopped along the highway to take this photo of the Yankee Girl in the distance.
Yankee Girl Mine by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Then we continued to the mine for a closer look.
Yankee Girl Info by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Yankee Girl Sunset by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Yankee Girl by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The sun finally dips below the mountains on the other side of the valley.
Sun Behind the Mountain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Tram Sunset by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The Original Trip Report on ADVENTR.CO
After spending a few hours in the morning at the Shavano Valley Petroglyph Park near Montrose, we continued driving into the San Juan Mountains to get out of the heat for the weekend. Shortly after crossing over Red Mountain Pass we turned down the road along the South Fork of Mineral Creek and found a campsite for the weekend. After setting up our camp we drove through Silverton and made our way up Cunningham Gulch to the trailhead for the Highland Mary Lakes. As soon as we passed through Silverton the valley started filling up with smoke, and by the time we reached the Cunningham Trailhead the smoke had become pretty thick and there was even a little ash falling from the sky. We would later learn this smoke was from a wildfire that had started near Mancos.
A view of the smoke in Cunningham Gulch from the trailhead.
Smoke in the Gulch by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Entering the Weminuche Wilderness.
Weminuche Wilderness by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Smoke fills the sky with a view of the trail below through some pine trees.
Trail Below, Smoke Above by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Unfortunately the smoke in the air was making it a bit difficult to breath and bothering Amanda pretty bad, so she had to stop and head back down to the trail. I continued up just a little further before turning around and joining her again. The Highland Mary Lakes will have to wait for another day...with all the smoke in the air I wouldn't have been able to take any good photos anyway.
I came across this cool waterfall along the trail before turning around.
Cunningham Creek Waterfall by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Another small cascade of the creek.
Small Twin Falls by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Since our planned hike for the day was now cancelled, we decided to drive up to Stony Pass to see if we could get up above the smoke.
Stony Pass by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Getting up this high did manage to get us above most of the smoke, so I ended up hiking part of the Continental Divide Trail while I was up there.
Continental Divide Trail by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Dappled light on the nearby Sheep Mountain.
Sheep Mountain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
There were a few wildflowers growing along the trail where there was running water including Marsh Marigolds and Rose Paintbrush.
Marsh Marigold by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Rose Paintbrush by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
A view from the turnaround point of my hike over the headwaters of the Rio Grande.
Rolling Hills by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Hiking back towards Sheep Mountain through the apline tundra.
CDT to Stony Pass by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The trail back towards Canby Mountain and Stony Pass.
Canby Mountain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Before reaching the road again I stopped to check out an old mine and cabin. These tracks were nearby.
Tracks to Nowhere by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
When I reached the Jeep it was time to drive back down to Silverton and grab some dinner. It was nice to see that much of the thick smoke had finally started to clear out and the sky could be seen again. After eating we still had some time before sunset, so we drove over to the Red Mountain Mining District to take a few more photos. With the smoke in the air, the light getting through was a much warmer tone than usual, so I thought I might try to get some nice photos of the Yankee Girl Mine.
After driving back over Red Mountain Pass, I stopped along the highway to take this photo of the Yankee Girl in the distance.
Yankee Girl Mine by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Then we continued to the mine for a closer look.
Yankee Girl Info by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Yankee Girl Sunset by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Yankee Girl by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The sun finally dips below the mountains on the other side of the valley.
Sun Behind the Mountain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Tram Sunset by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
After packing up camp we stopped back in Silverton for breakfast at the Black Bear Cafe and then headed over Ophir Pass to Telluride.
