The end of July was rapidly approaching, which meant summer was in full swing up in the mountains and wildflowers were at their peak. But, of course, so were the crowds. Especially on weekends.
Luckily, some friends and I were able to plan a mid-week hike.
The four of us departed bright and early, pulling into the parking area at Shrine Ridge Trailhead prior to our planned 8:00am arrival time, thanks to an easier-than-anticipated drive. This early in the morning, it was chilly; there was actually a bit of frost on some of the plants and the air temperature was barely above freezing.
Thankfully, it warmed up quickly.
The Shrine Ridge Trail begins by losing elevation, which is never my favorite thing since it means we’ll be ending with a climb. Thankfully, it’s not much elevation and it’s not steep. Also, there are some pretty views as the trail meanders along the edge of a meadow.
Eventually, the trail enters the trees and begins to climb. Initially it gains about 500 feet (150 m) over the course of 1 mile (1.6 km). Then, in a much more lung-busting ascent, it gains 400 feet (120 m) in just 0.6 miles (1 km) on the final climb to Shrine Ridge. Some sections of trail here are fairly slippery, with lots of pebbles atop hard-packed dirt.
Hiking poles were very helpful, especially on the descent.
It’s well worth the climb, though, because as the trail crests the ridge you’re met with nearly 360° views. To the north are the jagged peaks of the Gore Range. To the south and west, the peaks of the Sawatch. And to the east, against the backdrop of even more mountains, is a collection of red rock outcroppings.
From this point, the trail forks. To the left, the trail continues quite a distance up an adjacent ridgeline. We headed right, following Shrine Ridge to its north end.
Owing to the fact that it was a Wednesday and still fairly early in the day, there weren’t too many people up here. It was nice to have a leisurely snack and enjoy the semi-solitude for a while.
As you may have noticed from a few of those photos, though, the sky was beginning to look a little questionable. The forecast called for an earlier-than-normal start to afternoon storms – part of the reason for our early start. This meant we couldn’t linger too much longer without risking getting caught in the rain.
So down we went, very slowly and carefully on the steep section and then gradually accelerating as the terrain flattened out.
We stopped from time to time to admire the wildflowers and enjoy the last little bits of sunshine as the clouds closed in.
And then it was back to the Front Range on a blissfully traffic-free drive. There’s nothing worse than having a wonderful day in the mountains be ruined by awful traffic on the drive home. It’s something that seems to be happening with increasing frequency.
Thankfully, today was not one of those days!
Up next: a challenging but amazing hike in Rocky Mountain National Park
The Important Stuff:
- Getting there: the Shrine Ridge Trailhead is located about 2.2 miles (3.5 km) up Shrine Pass Road. From the Vail Pass exit on 1-70 westbound, cross the highway and continue onto the dirt road. We were in an SUV and saw mostly cars with some clearance at the trailhead, but I imagine a sedan could make it up the road with careful driving.
- Fees and passes: none.
- Hiking: roundtrip distance is about 4.4 miles (7 km) with 1050 feet (320 m) of elevation gain. Most of that gain is in the second half of the ascent.
- Where to stay: this can be done as a day hike from the Front Range (though it’s a bit of a drive), or anywhere in Summit, Clear Creek, or Eagle counties. If you want to make it an overnight, there are a handful of dispersed camping spots along Shrine Pass Road. Some were available on a weekday, but I imagine it can be difficult to find a spot on a weekend.
- Other: the ridge is very exposed, so be sure to keep an eye on the weather and give yourself plenty of time to descend back into the trees if a storm is approaching.
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