Herman Gulch Trail - Our Favorite of 2018
The Herman Gulch Trail up to Herman Lake was definitely our favorite hike of 2018. Herman Gulch Trail is part of the Continental Divide Trail (CDT). It was just over six miles and 1700 feet in elevation gain from the trailhead to Herman Lake and back. The Saturday in September that we went was the perfect combination of sunshine, autumn colors, wildlife and panoramic views.
The trailhead is at exit 218 on I-70, one of those exits that look like they don’t lead to anywhere, because they don’t; this one leads to just a handful of houses and the trailhead. The trail starts out in the woods and it takes a while to leave the traffic noise of the interstate behind. It is a steady climb up to the alpine lake, but the trail is not technical. Even though the trail is in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, the trail is not that rocky, but there was one section where we had to watch out for the tree roots which criss-crossed the trail in a maze. Once we were above tree line, there were gorgeous views in every direction.
Unbeknownst to us ahead of time, we chose to hike the trail on the same day as the Devil on the Divide 22k and 50k trail race. Our hike was against the flow of the race so we could usually see the runners coming at us with plenty of time for us to step off the trail and let them pass. By the time we descended back down the trail, all of the runners had already completed that section of the course so we didn't worry about a runner sneaking up on us from behind. We appreciated that they did not close the trail and we were able to hike it during the race. It was encouraging to see women and people close to our age keeping up with the young men at the front of the pack. However, we cannot picture ourselves ever trail running and especially at those distances. We find it challenging enough navigating 10k or so of mountain trails at a walking pace.
The beauty along the trail did not stop with the panoramic views. The aspen trees were turning their various shades of yellow and orange. Other plants were also dressed in their fall colors, lit up by the strong Colorado sunshine. Even though it was September, wild flowers still dotted the sides of the trail where bees and butterflies were collecting the last of the season’s pollen. Right Buddy (RB) caught a glimpse of an animal that she didn’t immediately recognize darting across the trail up ahead. So she quickly pulled out her camera and snapped off a couple of shots into the brush where she thought the animal entered, even though she couldn’t really see it in the shadows. However, she did manage to get a picture of it, although not a great picture, but good enough to identify it. It was a weasel! She had never seen a weasel in the wild before, so she was excited, even though she didn’t get a very good look at it.
Our lunch stop for the day was at Herman Lake, above tree line near the rocky Pettingell Peak. There were several other hikers there also enjoying the lake, but the lake is large enough that we felt the solitude and serenity of the mountains. The rocky walls surrounding the lake made a nice echo chamber. When a dog barked, there was a very distinct echo coming back a second later. Left Buddy (LB) tried to capture it in a video on his phone, but the echo sounded so much weaker in the video. As we sat in the sun on some rocks along the shore of the lake eating our lunch, we watched a pika darting in and out of the rocks, collecting green leaves for his lunch. At one time, it was thought that the pika will become extinct due to climate change because the species cannot survive hot or very cold temperatures and would become trapped on their mountain tops, unable to migrate to more favorable temperature conditions. However, there is a more recent study that give the fate of the pika a more favorable outcome. Let’s hope that future generations of hikers will be able to enjoy watching these cute little animals dart around the rocks.
We set aside the whole day for our hike, so we took full advantage of the time to enjoy the hike and our surroundings. LB patiently waited for RB to satisfy her need to photograph the beauty around us as she tried to restrain herself from going overboard. We didn’t set any trail records that day, but we stretched our legs, filled our lungs with fresh air, soaked in some sunshine, and refreshed our souls.
RB compiled a small fraction of the pictures she took into a YouTube video with more of the pictures from the hike set to music: Herman Gulch Trail.