Grass Creek Trail

A fairly short post for a fairly short hike -- Grass Creek Trail in the Mount Evans State Wildlife Area near Evergreen.

I was just looking for a quick stretch of the legs that wasn't too much of a drive, but still got me up out of the Denver heat a bit.  The Grass Creek Trail fit the bill on all counts -- four miles out and back, just 45 minutes from home and at 8,714 feet in elevation it was a solid 10 degrees cooler.

The view along the trail is classic front range -- aspen groves, evergreens, wildflower meadows and big blue skies.

The wildflowers aren't going to be with us much longer, though.  I loved the explosion of this thistle already gone to seed.

I think every orange-and-black butterfly is a fritillary.  So this is a fritillary, until my friends at BAMONA tell me otherwise.  EDIT: Mike Fisher with BAMONA confirmed its fritillariness -- a Northwestern Fritillary, to be precise.

The end of the trail does provide a nice view of Mount Evans to the northwest ...

... which is what the residents of this property got to wake up to every morning.  When I see ruins of old homesteads like these I often find myself wondering about the people who built them -- the effort that must have been involved, how much enjoyment they were able to get out of living in such a beautiful area, and what led to the structure eventually falling into disrepair.  I hope they had more good times than bad.

There's not much elevation gain over this hike -- between 400 and 600 feet, depending on which guide you believe.  I was able bang it out in less than two hours, even with a leisurely break at the turnaround to munch a Clif bar.  Definitely one to keep in mind when you have out-of-town guests!