Upper Elevation Snowpack is About Average Heading Into Memorial Day Weekend

The relatively mild winter could fool one into thinking that high country hiking and backpacking will be hazard-free, but late snows and cool temperatures in April and May brought the mountain snowpack levels up to the average (Aspen SkiCo is opening Ajax Mtn this weekend for skiing).

If you're going up high, or will be on north-facing or shaded trails, wear gaiters and be prepared to post-hole.  Also expect high water stream crossings, as the warm weather is accelerating the snow melt now.

To get up-to-date snowpack data, follow this link: SNOTEL

The ghost town of Independence

CDOT opened Independence Pass on Thursday, so Friday I drove up there to see the twenty foot walls of snow and take both photos and videos.

On the way down, I stopped at the ghost town of Independence.  You can see the snow is very deep.  Well above average snowpack at the higher elevations this year will either delay spring hikes or make them more challenging.  I was post-holing on top of the pass, where the wind prevents it from getting too deep (though it's very deep just below the top).

It's time to start looking at my favorite low-elevation and south-facing trails to see where I can get out and explore.  Or I can bring snowshoes, and check out the other trails...

Avalanche Creek - great early season hike

Once skiing is done, we in Colorado refer the next few weeks as "mud season."  Like the name implies, the retreating snows leave behind a lot of muddy trails.  One of my favorite early season hikes is Avalanche Creek.  It works well for a few reasons.  The first is its elevation.  The trailhead starts at 7,400 feet, which isn't too high.  By mid-April, that area is usually snow-free.  The east-west orientation of the valley also works toward its favor, as it gets sun all day long by then, and dried out quickly.

Because of the seasonal closure of the Avalanche Creek road (to protect the bighorn sheep), you might need to park at the gate and walk a couple miles to the trailhead.  The walk itself is pleasant enough.  Crossing Bulldog Creek is easy, and the first mile of the trail past the campground ought to be dry. 

In May, when higher elevation and northern-facing trails are still holding much snow, you can hike all the way past Duley Park (but not too much farther).

hidden falls

I call this the "hidden waterfall" because it's relatively unknown to most people in the area.  I lived here for eight years before exploring a trail by which I drove almost daily.  It's also a seasonal waterfall, fed by spring melt-off, and flows just a few weeks each year.  It's hard to capture in a photo, but that tiny sliver of water at the top of the frame is nearly a hundred feet above me.