chasing the hardrock 100 // ADVENTR.co

Howard Fork: Blixt Trail to Oscars Pass

Telluride Trails | Friday – Saturday, September 18-19, 2026

I was originally planning to spend this entire weekend celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Dominguez – Escalante Expedition, but when the weather forecast for Saturday was looking too wet for some of the backcountry roads I would need to drive, I decided at the last minute to delay my journey by a day and took Monday off from work. Surprisingly, the weather forecast was looking drier on Saturday morning in the San Juan Mountains, so I decided to squeeze in another high-country hike this season while I still could and planned to hike up the Blixt Trail from the Howard Fork to Oscars Pass and a little beyond. I left from work on Friday afternoon and made my way over the Dallas Divide and up the San Miguel River to the Ophir Pass Road in the Howard Fork where I found a campsite for the night.

1 Comment

Ice Lake Basin: Island Lake Loop to Fuller Lake

San Juan Triangle | Saturday, September 12, 2026

I didn’t have anything planned in advance for this weekend since Diane was going to be having her second brain surgery earlier this month and we didn’t know how long we were going to be in Wisconsin. Thankfully, things went a lot better this time than they did last year and we made it back home less than a week after her surgery, so I thought it would be nice to get out for a day hike into the San Juan Mountains on Saturday before the mountain season comes to an end. While I had hiked up into Ice Lake Basin over 14 years ago on my very first solo backpacking trip, I didn’t make it to Island Lake and Fuller Lake on that trip and this area has become so ridiculously popular and busy since then that I thought I might never return, but I decided to take my chances and give it another try, hoping that it wouldn’t be quite as busy after Labor Day.

1 Comment

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.

Mountains of Minerals: Denver Pass to Grouse Gulch

San Juan Triangle | Sunday & Monday, August 31 – September 1, 2025

After staying home to attend a concert on Saturday evening, I was up early on Sunday morning and headed down to the San Juan Mountains so I could spend the remainder of the holiday weekend hiking and camping in the San Juan Triangle, which is one of my favorite areas to explore in the mountains. After making it over Red Mountain Pass to Silverton, I followed the Animas River to Animas Forks and then continued up the North Fork to Denver Lake. I parked nearby and then started my first hike of the day up the old mining track to Denver Pass. Although I have already hiked most of the peaks in this area and driven all the open roads, I had neglected to hike up to this pass before and was looking forward to finally checking it out!

1 Comment

Mountains of Minerals: Rocky Gulch & Maggie Gulch

San Juan Triangle | Friday – Sunday, July 14-16, 2023

To escape the rising temperatures in the lower valleys this weekend, I decided to head up into the San Juan Mountains near Silverton so I could spend some time exploring and hiking in Rocky Gulch and Maggie Gulch which are both situated along the Continental Divide. I left from work on Friday afternoon and made my way south over Red Mountain Pass to Silverton and then headed up Cunningham Gulch and Rocky Gulch where I followed the steep Jeep road all the way up to over 13,000 feet. From the overlook at the end of the road I stopped to eat dinner and enjoyed the expansive alpine views.

1 Comment

Tag: chasing the hardrock 100

Howard Fork: Blixt Trail to Oscars Pass

Ice Lake Basin: Island Lake Loop to Fuller Lake

Ten Years Later: Ouray Perimeter Trail 2026

Mountains of Minerals: Denver Pass to Grouse Gulch

Mountains of Minerals: Rocky Gulch & Maggie Gulch