Ever since Mike and I went to Crested Butte earlier this summer, we've wanted to go back and hike over Schofield Pass, an old wagon road between mining towns that has come a legend of a road among ATVers and other four-wheelers.
On Saturday we're doing the hike with my Uncle Ren, aka Mr. Hiker/Athlete/I'm Up for Anything Outdoors. We're not really sure how long the hike will be, although we're guessing 12-15 miles. We'll hike from just outside Crested Butte to Marble. In Marble my Aunt Jan will pick us up in a car so we don't have to make another 15-mile trek back to Crested Butte, where we'll be staying. If you look at a map of Colorado, you'll see that Crested Butte and Marble aren't very far apart -- maybe 20 miles at the most -- but there's no paved road to get there. In a regular car you have go drive around by way of Kebler Pass and McClure Pass-- that translates into a two- or three-hour drive.
Of course it will take us a lot longer than two or three hours to hike the most direct route, but we'll pass the former town site of Schofield (a former mining camp) and the Crystal Mill, one of the most photographed old buildings in Colorado. Mike and I have become what I call ghost town junkies during the past few summers. This summer, especially, we've spent several weekends exploring some little-known places in Colorado, most of them old mining towns now abandoned with nothing left but a handful of old cabins, and driving on back roads we never knew existed. We've done all of this in Mike's little Nissan Sentra. (I think his car, aka the Silver Bullet, is going to need its shocks replaced before long.) It's been fun, though. We've learned about Colorado history along the way, seen some incredible scenery and gotten to know our beautiful state beyond the typical tourist areas.
When we found out about the road over Schofield Pass, we were instantly interested in hiking it. Four-wheel drives can navigate the route (click here for a description of the journey), but we wanted to get there on our own two feet. Most of the stuff you read about Schofield says it's a pretty dangerous road even for a four-wheel drive. People have died driving the route; the most notorious tragedy was in 1970 when a jeep full of people plunged into a point along the road called the Devil's Punch Bowl. Then again, we've read other accounts that say it's not nearly as dangerous as people make it out to be, and what's the big deal anyway?
I'm still a little nervous, though, mostly because I'm more of a 5-miles max kind of hiker, not a 15-mile kind of hiker. Mike and I both work out 4-5 days a week, but I still wonder if I'm up for this. And we're going with my Uncle Ren, an exercise nut who's an Ironman triathlete and is now hiking Colorado 14-ers. (I don't have much interest in hiking 14ers. I've done two of them in my life, and that's enough. A lot of people make a hobby of hiking Colorado's 54 14,000-plus-foot peaks. I'd rather do hikes like Schofield Pass; they're more off the beaten path.)
As I write this I realize I sound like I'm about 50 years old, not 35. We're still young, and we've been looking forward to this all summer long. I'll write about it when we get back and post some photos.
No comments:
Post a Comment