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Exciting News: THE VAIL HIKER, now
published in a revised, updated edition, has increased from forty to fifty trails for hikers,
cross-country skiers and snowshoers.
New hikes range from the challenging
Commando Run, established during World War II for training skiing soldiers from
Camp Hale, to the rewarding Village to Village trail on beautiful Beaver Creek
Mountain.
The brand-new revised and updated
version of the popular guidebook, THE VAIL HIKER,
is now available! Order today!
Note to Trail Users:
Avoid hiking trails in the lodgepole pine forest on windy days
due to possible falling trees. This includes trails in the Gore Range and trails
around Minturn, among others. Trees killed by the mountain pine beetle are
subject to blow-down. If wind comes up suddenly, retreat to a large open meadow
until the gusts subside.
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Find great trail ideas in the
new edition of THE VAIL
HIKER.
Trail of the Season: For
description and directions, click here.
High Altitude Hiking Tips:
click here
The Trail of the
Month
Mary Ellen Gilliland, author of THE
VAIL HIKER AND SKI TOURING GUIDE, offers you Eagle County's best trail based on local conditions. Where to go when the County is
crowded, finding the area's best wildflowers or wildlife viewing are issues we take seriously and we want to share
them with you.
MEADOW
MOUNTAIN
Time:
4-5 hours
Distance: 3.5 miles
Elevation gain: 1,920 feet
High point: 9,760 feet
Rating: Moderate
Usually open: June-September
Topo: USGS Minturn
Hikers, mountain bikers, cross-country skiers and
snowshoers love Meadow Mountain for its gentle terrain and mellow
beauty. Pastoral in summer with its aging ranch structures and
wildflowers, Meadow Mountain becomes a winter recreationists'
dream. Pick a powder day and get there early to beat the snowmobiles. A
shelter at 3.5 miles makes a good destination.
Drive
0.4 miles south from I-70 Dowd Junction exit 171 to the U.S. Forest
Service Minturn Ranger Station and park.
The
trail begins at the parking lot's south end on a closed road that
once served the ski area for lift construction and maintenance.
The route, which is road all the way to the rustic
shelter at top, switchbacks in a southwesterly direction up into the
sloping ranchlands. Meadow Mountain stands as a symbol of Eagle County's
rich ranching history. From here to Eagle, with the Vail valley
included, 1800s pioneers homesteaded 160-acre parcels, raising sheep,
cattle, hay and at one time, an abundance of crisp mountain lettuce.
Never rich but blessed nevertheless, they dined on wild raspberries and
fresh cream in summer and game in winter. They sent their children to
log schoolhouses, fished the trout streams and explored the wild
mountain country on horseback. They stocked firewood and supplies each
September and endured the long snowbound winters dreaming of spring.
Rising above the lower ranchlands, the trail begins
to offer long views. Hikers can see into the Game Creek drainage to the
east and later into Vail's green Game Creek ski bowl above. Reach a fork
in the trail and stay straight ahead (right). The left fork leads to a
devastated logging area and also intersects the West Grouse Creek Trail
(no. 19).
After the fork, the trail moves from aspen into
conifers, broken by big open meadows. The trail continues to switchback,
opening up views northeast to the Gore Range and its primitive Eagles
Nest Wilderness (trails no. 1-7). Ski runs of the Beaver Creek Ski Area
appear west as do great views of the Vail Ski Mountain back side.
Serenity reigns on these breeze-swept high meadows.
The one-room cabin at 9,760 feet is nicely
outfitted with bed, table and chairs. Though hikers share this trail
with mountain bikers, its width accommodates both. Nor does this
non-motorized vehicle use drive away the deer. Hikers can continue above
the line shack for glad-to-be-alive views.
The
Vail Hiker guidebook
is available at Vail Valley sporting goods, grocery and book stores,
plus The Tattered Cover in Denver. You can order on this website. Click
here.
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