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Chasing Summer
Four Hot Destinations
For Fall
By Monique Cole
Fall is here. The dog days of summer are a mere memory and
snow looms on the horizon, but that's no reason to give up your
favorite summer sports. By heading south or west, you can find
places where the weather is still hot and where you can hike,
bike, rock climb, and even river raft through the end of October.
Buena Vista
With 300 average days of sunshine
and less than 12 inches of rain annually, Buena Vista lives up
to its "banana belt" claim. Chaffee County has the
most 14,000-foot peaks of any county in the state. The Collegiate
Peaks west of Buena Vista create a weather speed bump as storms
coming from the west hit the peaks and bounce over the Arkansas
Valley. Traditionally the first snow is around Halloween, but
the white stuff does not start to stick until late November.
While the temperatures may get crisp in the evenings, you can
always warm up at the Princeton or Cottonwood hot springs. And
the region is close to Denver, only two to three hours by car.
Empty trails, incredible scenery, and
knobby-friendly weather make for great mountain biking in the
14ers region. The Old Midland Railroad Grade starts right in
Buena Vista with a rideable switch back up the east bank of the
Arkansas River, then continues with rolling single track to Trout
Creek Pass. A number of intersecting jeep roads can be connected
to make a loop back to town. More sedate riding is found on the
Buena Vista River Road and the Salida Trail. Portions of the
Rainbow Trail from Bear Creek to Methodist Mountain become the
course for the Banana Belt Loop Race in Salida September 15 (719-539-2068).
Rifle hunting season in the national forest runs through most
of October, so wear bright colors or stay away from the more
heavily traveled jeep roads.
Gold, orange, and red aspen leaves against
an azure sky - this scene is why Chaffee County hosts workshops
each fall for a number of nationally known outdoor photographers.
The third weekend in September is prime viewing time and hikes
near Marshall, Monarch and Cottonwood passes or the old ghost
town of St. Elmo yield great views. As if the colors weren't
exciting enough, look out for Bighorn sheep, Rocky Mountain goats
and a 1,000-head herd of elk. Over 80 percent of the county is
public land, so hiking trails and camp sites abound. Try some
of the most challenging sections of the famed Colorado Trail
or trek through the three ranges - the Buffalo, Collegiate and
Sangre de Cristo peaks - that surround the county. You can pick
up the pace by entering the Cottonwood Pass Color Run (5K/10K)
on September 20.
Thanks to good snow pack, this year's
rafting season may extend well into October on the Arkansas River,
says kayak and raft outfitter Bill Dvorak. No water is let out
of the dam at Clear Creek Reservoir after August, so the Arkansas
is fed only by natural precipitation and snow melt. The slower
than usual water in fall is perfect for learning to kayak, taking
a float trip or fly fishing. For more information on events
and activities, call the Chaffee County Visitors Bureau at 800-831-8594.
San Luis Valley
Just over Poncha Pass from
Chaffee County, the San Luis Valley offers more outdoor opportunities
in a unique geographical setting. Despite receiving less than
10 inches of rainfall per year, the region is verdant thanks
to agricultural fields irrigated by the Rio Grande River. The
valley stretches up to 50 miles across between the San Juan and
Sangre de Cristo mountains and 100 miles long from Poncha Pass
into New Mexico.
Autumn is prime climbing time at Penitente
Canyon two miles west of La Garita. Nestled amongst pinyon pine
and juniper are these steep, 25- to 75-foot walls. Most of the
well-bolted sport routes tend toward the short side and fall
between 5.11 and 5.13, but there are a select few climbs in the
5.6 - 5.10 range. The dark, porous volcanic rock offers great
friction and unique hueco finger and foot pockets. Penitente
and neighboring climbing areas Rock Garden, Sidewinder Canyon,
Witches Canyon, Eagle Rock Boulders, Elephant Rocks and South
Fork Canyon are found in Bob D'Antonio's "San Luis Rock
Climbing and Bouldering Guide" from Chockstone Press.
Farther south the Great Sand Dunes National
Monument is an other-worldly landscape where some of the largest
inland dunes in the world butt up against a backdrop of high
peaks. Visitors can take their winter toys to the sand and ski,
snowboard or snowshoe on the dunes or just hike and "dune
jump." If you still are not hot enough, you can soak in
a natural hot springs near Hooper.
Great single track mountain biking is
found outside of Monte Vista. Limekiln, west of the town on Highway
160 is a series of loops that can be connected to make a 25-mile
ride passing petroglyphs and abandoned kilns once used to extract
lime. One of the best single track descents in the state is found
in Cat Creek just south of Monte Vista. And since the San Luis
Valley is so under-populated there is no tension between mountain
bikers and other trail users. Call Kristi Mountain Sports 719-589-9759
for maps and more local scoop on rides. For information on
other activities, contact the South Central Colorado Tourism
Region at 800-568-8340.
Grand Junction
Four hours west of Denver,
the high desert of Grand Junction makes a great base camp for
backpacking, cycling, and river rafting. At 4,600 feet the area
boasts summer-like weather when the Front Range is blanketed
in snow.
As if a section of Arches National Park
was dropped a few miles from Grand Junction, the Colorado National
Monument is a 20,000-acre maze of colorful canyons, arched windows,
rock spires and natural monoliths. Hikers can enjoy many short
trails leading to spectacular overlooks or delve deeper into
the canyon's secrets on backpacking trips. Backcountry camping
is permitted almost anywhere within park boundaries and campsites
are available first-come, first-served at the Saddlehorn Campground
near the visitor center. Call 970-858-3617 for more info.
Walking tours popular with kids reveal
the paleontologist's playground that is Grand Valley. Once home
to the largest and smallest dinosaurs to roam the earth, the
valley has the greatest diversity of prehistoric bones ever found.
Check out Brachiosaurus remains on Riggs Hill, or walk into a
huge impression of an exposed Diplodocus femur at Dinosaur Hill,
which also offers other points of geological interest and views
of the Colorado National Monument. Hikers can observe a working
dinosaur quarry and view an area rich in fossils on the 1.5-mile
tour at Rabbit Valley called the "Walk Through Time."
Mountain bikers will enjoy the abundant
single track near Grand Junction and the two long-distance trails
that begin there. Kokopelli's Trail runs 142 miles to Moab, Utah,
and the 144-mile Tabeguache Trail crosses the Uncompahgre Plateau
to Montrose. The recently completed 100-mile Paradox Trail connects
the two other trails from Montrose to Moab creating the "Grand
Loop." For a taste of Kokopelli's Trail, Mary's Loop and
Lion's Loop are two favorite morsels near Fruita.
Rising above the valley floor east of
Grand Junction is the 10,500-foot-high Grand Mesa with its meadows,
forests and over 200 lakes. At 360,000 acres it is one of the
largest mesas in the world. Mountain bikers can enjoy cooler
temperatures on the jeep trails and single tracks that criss-cross
the mesa, but should be prepared for inclement weather. Hearty
road cyclists can pedal up the Grand Mesa on the scenic byway,
zoom down its south side into Delta and head back to Grand Junction
for a 150-mile loop. Or for a bacchanalian twist, ride in the
Tour of the Vineyards back down in Grand Junction on September
14 (970-242-7802).
You can still have the thrill of class
III rapids through the end of September by running Westwater
Canyon. Located between Grand Junction and Moab, Utah, this section
of the Colorado River is the best whitewater in the state at
that time of year. For more information on rafting and other
activities in Grand Junction, call the visitor center at 970-244-1480.
Moab, Utah
Good old Moab. Aside from
the obvious - mountain biking on the Slickrock Trail - the Moab
area also offers great trail running, rock climbing, and rafting.
With Arches National Park to the north, Canyonlands National
Park to the west and BLM land almost everywhere else, Moab is
a desert playground surrounded by spectacular sandstone rock
formations and dramatic canyons carved out by the Colorado River
and its tributaries. Autumn days are generally warm and dry,
with highs from 73 to 87 degrees F.
In fall, you can't swing a dead cat
in Moab without hitting a mountain biker (who may smell worse
than the dead cat). Stay away from the Slickrock Trail on weekends
when some of the steep descents have a queue 10 people deep.
Instead, do a section of Kokopelli's Trail or try the long but
rewarding Hurrah Pass to Amasa Back loop that includes a steep
hike-a-bike section straight up a canyon wall.
Since bikes are not allowed off road
in the national parks, the best way to get more scenery per hour
is to run the trails in Arches and Canyonlands. The soft packed
sand is a joy to your joints. The three-mile Delicate Arch trail
in Arches is a quick rolling jaunt over sand and wavy slickrock.
If the heat gets to you, Hunters Canyon off of Kane Creek Canyon
Road is a cooler 4-mile round trip. You can nurse sore muscles
by taking a raft trip that floats down the Colorado River providing
trout's eye views of Fisher Towers and Castle Valley.
Desert rock climbers are like kids in
a candy store in Moab. Everywhere you look there are sandstone
walls and towers to climb in the national parks and BLM land.
Perhaps the incredible views of the La Sal mountains and fine
crack climbs are what makes Castleton Tower the most popular
tower in the Moab Area. If the soft sandstone makes you too nervous
to traditional climb, try the bolted routes in the Wall Street
area. "Desert Rock: Rock Climbs in the National Parks"
by Eric Bjorstad is the Moab climber's bible. For more information
on activities in and near Moab, call 800-635-6622.
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