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Ten Years Later: Ouray Perimeter Trail 2026Ten Years Later: Ouray Perimeter Trail 2026

Ten Years Later: Ouray Perimeter Trail 2026

Ouray Trails | Sunday, May 31, 2026

I recently realized that it has been almost ten years since I last hiked the Ouray Perimeter Trail, and at that time the entire loop was not even fully completed yet. Although I have hiked all the newly created segments since then, I had not hiked the entire loop in one shot again and was interested in finally doing that. Plus, since Ouray is celebrating its 150th birthday this year I though that this would be a great way for me to partake in the sesquicentennial celebration in my own way! So after spending the night just outside of Montrose I was up well before sunrise and made my way into Ouray so I could get an early start hiking the Perimeter Trail around town.

CONTINUE READINGTen Years Later: Ouray Perimeter Trail 2026
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Ouray Trails: Portland Trail & Old Horsethief TrailOuray Trails: Portland Trail & Old Horsethief Trail

Ouray Trails: Portland Trail & Old Horsethief Trail

Ouray Trails on Memorial Day | Sunday – Monday, May 24-25, 2026

After leaving the Paradox Valley on Sunday afternoon, I went for a scenic drive across the Uncompahgre Plateau to Montrose and then headed south to Ouray so I could start off my summer hiking season in the San Juan Mountains since the snow is melting out early this year. I arrived with plenty of time to get in a late afternoon hike near town, so I started from the Baby Bathtubs Trailhead just below the Amphitheater Campground and planned to hike a loop up the Portland Trail, since it’s one of the few trails near Ouray that I had never hiked before.

CONTINUE READINGOuray Trails: Portland Trail & Old Horsethief Trail
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Fringes of the Raggeds: Yule Pass to Daisy PassFringes of the Raggeds: Yule Pass to Daisy Pass

Fringes of the Raggeds: Yule Pass to Daisy Pass

Raggeds Wilderness | Friday – Sunday, September 5-7, 2025

This weekend I returned to the Elk Mountains near Crested Butte so I could hike up to two passes in the Ruby Range that have been on my to-do list for far too long, both of which are found along the fringes of the Raggeds Wilderness above the Slate River Valley. Even though I didn’t have the best experience trying to find a campsite near Crested Butte back in July, there are still a lot of places in the area that I want to hike and explore so I decided to give it another shot after Labor Day weekend, which seemed to work out much better this time. As usual, I left from work on Friday afternoon, stopped for a quick dinner in Delta and then took the Kebler Pass Road over into Crested Butte and followed the Slate River up to the Paradise Divide where I found a campsite for the night. It started to rain on and off while I was driving over Kebler Pass which would keep up throughout the rest of the evening. Once I was settled in at camp I spent the remainder of the evening wandering around Paradise Divide when it wasn’t raining.

CONTINUE READINGFringes of the Raggeds: Yule Pass to Daisy Pass
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Ouray Trails: Silvershield Trail & Oak Creek TrailOuray Trails: Silvershield Trail & Oak Creek Trail

Ouray Trails: Silvershield Trail & Oak Creek Trail

San Juan Triangle | Monday – Tuesday, June 23-24, 2025

I wasn’t able to get out hiking on Juneteenth last Thursday like I had hoped since I was trying to figure out what was going on with my Jeep most of last week, so to make up for it I decided to take a day off from work this week and head on down to Ouray to hike a few of the trails closer to town. The weather forecast for Tuesday was looking like the best conditions of the week, so I left after work on Monday and made my way down to Ouray. After a quick stop for dinner in Delta and gas in Montrose, I continued on to the parking lot at the Ouray Hot Springs Pool so I could hike the last segment of the Ouray Perimeter Trail that was not yet built when Diane and I hiked the loop over nine years ago. Although it was a bit warm in Ouray this evening, most of the trail that I hiked this evening was already in the shade and there was a nice breeze.

CONTINUE READINGOuray Trails: Silvershield Trail & Oak Creek Trail
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Rabbit Ears Range: Parkview Mountain Fire LookoutRabbit Ears Range: Parkview Mountain Fire Lookout

Rabbit Ears Range: Parkview Mountain Fire Lookout

Fire Lookouts Extravaganza | Thursday, September 1, 2022

After visiting a couple Fire Lookouts in the morning, I made my way back to North Park in the afternoon via the Cache La Poudre River and Cameron Pass and then headed south over Willow Creek Pass. Just on the other side of the pass I drove up the switchbacks of an old mining road that joined up with the Continental Divide Trail on the southern flank of Parkview Mountain, which at 12,296 feet is the highest point in the Rabbit Ears Range. On top of Parkview Mountain is the final Fire Lookout that I planned to visit on this trip and it’s also the second highest lookout in the United States after the one on top of Fairview Peak in the Sawatch Range. I was originally planning to camp near the end of the road and then hike to the summit in the morning, but since there were still three hours until sunset and the weather was looking good, I decided to hike up this evening.

CONTINUE READINGRabbit Ears Range: Parkview Mountain Fire Lookout
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