Beautiful Alpine Lake
Columbine Lake Trail
- 8/22/2026
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 7.53 Miles
Duration: 5 hours, 11 minutes
Getting to the trailhead is the first adventure. I did it in my AWD SUV, but it's more suited to a 4x4 vehicle. The trail is an immediate 30 degree switchbacked incline from the beginning and doesn't relent until 2 miles in. Quite the workout. Above treeline, the landscape becomes incredibly beautiful with Columbine Lake being the big pay off. The water in this turquoise lake is amazingly clear. Not easy to get to, but well worth the effort!
Fitness Walk
Animas Trail System & Oxbow Preserve
- 8/21/2026
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 4.43 Miles
Duration: 1 hour, 46 minutes
I dropped my wife off at the Durango Airport and decided to take a stroll from Animas City Park out into the Oxbow Preserve. The hike & bike path is ADA accessible until you get to the Oxbow Preserve, then it become a single track trial. Not a great hike, but a good place to get some exercise.
Treasure Creek Trail and CDT to Summit Peak and beyond
Summit Peak
- 8/10/2026
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 10.08 Miles
Duration: 7 hours, 27 minutes
Slipped in a hike before the rains come for the next few days. I hope the rains help with the wildfires and smoke air quality.
I hiked up the Treasure Creek Trail to the CDT. The first 1/2 mile was uphill and then it leveled off in a beautiful valley for the next 1/2 mile. It then was another 2 miles uphill where the trail merged onto the CDT. I hiked about 1/2 mile on the CDT until I found a route to climb up the backside of Summit Peak (13,304 ft). The peak was rated as a Class 2 climb, but the route I took was a Class 1 walk-up, albeit a difficult one. The views on top overlooked the cliffy northface and were awesome.
I was feeling good so I decided to traverse over to an unnamed adjacent peak about 1/4 mile away. It was somewhere in the 13000-1300 ft elevation range. It was also a Class 1 walk-up, but a little more challenging than Summit Peak.
After descending, I decided to explore some unnamed ponds and lakes off-trail. It was a good day and I was happy to bag two 13ers.
Revenge on Montezuma
Montezuma Peak
- 8/4/2026
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 9.40 Miles
Duration: 6 hours, 4 minutes
I took a hike out past Long Trek Mt to Montezuma Peak since it was the same set of trails I hiked the other day, only Montezuma Peak was a little further in. Montezuma Peak looked doable from a distance, but once I got close to it I realized it was going to be harder than I thought. After departing the CDT to begin the frontal assault ascent, there was a lot of loose gravel on an incline that was about 40 degrees so it made footing tricky. Two steps forward, one step back. Near the top, it became steeper, so I opted to scramble up the rocks instead making it a Class 2 (arguably Class 3 since I had to use all 4 hands and feet) climb. The views from the top were beautiful, but smoke from wildfires all around the area made visibility poor for things in the distance. Coming down was tricky since it was so loose, so trekking poles defeinitely helped keep my balance. Another 13er (13,158 ft elevation) bagged!
Another Peak Bagged
Long Trek Mountain
- 7/31/2026
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 6.03 Miles
Duration: 3 hours, 48 minutes
I hiked to the top of Long Trek Mountain and back. I started on the Crater Lake trail, but at about 2 miles, I branched south onto the CDT. At 2.7 miles, I left the CDT to begin the easy Class 1 ascent of about 400 feet to the the top of the mountain. Long Trek is only 12,831 ft high, but it affords great 360 views of Crater Lake below and the surrounding area. I thought about descending and ascending the nearby Montezuma Peak (a 13 er), but clouds were moving in and I did not want to get caught in rain and lightning. It turned out to be the right call not to bag Montezuma because the rain started on my way back to the trailhead and thunderstorms soon followed.