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Highland Mary Lakes & Verde LakesHighland Mary Lakes & Verde Lakes

Highland Mary Lakes & Verde Lakes

Saturday & Sunday, June 9-10, 2018

This weekend Diane and I decided to go on a very early season backpacking trip into the high country near Silverton. During a normal year we wouldn’t even consider going on a backpacking trip into the mountains until later in June or early in July, but with the low snowpack this year we decided to give it a try much earlier to see how the conditions really were. Also, since it’s still early in the season, the monsoons haven’t started yet and we would be able to camp well above tree line without worrying about storms or lightning. Plus, with Highway 550 closed between Durango and Silverton because of the 416 Fire, we figured the mountains near Silverton wouldn’t be very busy right now and we hoped to find plenty of solitude.

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Last Dollar PeaksLast Dollar Peaks

Last Dollar Peaks

Whipple Mountain & Last Dollar Mountain
Independence Day | Tuesday, July 4, 2017

This year for Independence Day Diane and I woke up early and drove down to the west end of the Sneffels Range near Telluride to climb a couple of mountains just off the Last Dollar Road. We started out by hiking up the Whipple Trail to the summit of Whipple Mountain (11,922) which was about 1.5 miles in length with 1,500 feet of elevation gain. It was mostly up an easy trail lined with wildflowers and then the last section from the saddle to the summit was on a faint track through a forest where the mosquitoes were pretty terrible. We enjoyed the view from the summit over toward Wilson Peak, El Diente Peak, and Lizard Head for a little bit and then hiked back down to the trailhead.

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Independence Day Weekend in the Flat TopsIndependence Day Weekend in the Flat Tops

Independence Day Weekend in the Flat Tops

Saturday & Sunday, July 3-4, 2010

This weekend Amanda and I headed up into the Flat Tops to explore an area we hadn’t been to yet. We started in Dotsero and headed up Coffee Pot Road, following a number of side roads to see where they went. We made a large loop that brought us next to the Flat Tops Wilderness area and to Adam’s Lake, before making our way back to Heart Lake. We setup camp on the shore of Bison Lake for the night. The next morning we checked out the Grizzly Jeep Trail and then made our way down to Glenwood Springs via the Transfer Trail. Here’s a few photos from the weekend.

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