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Jean, Kane and I snow-shoed in Royal Gorge Cross-Country Ski Resort.
The previous day we'd gone to Royal Gorge to cross-country ski.
This day, we decided to try something different -- snow-shoeing!
I'd never tried it before. Jean had tried it just once before,
and Kane had done it 0 or 1 times before. Still, I was looking
forward to the prospect of hiking in the snow. I haven't added
cross-country skiing sessions to my hiking page, but I think snow-shoeing
easily qualifies, since it really is just hiking in the snow.
As luck would have it, they were having a special show-shoe tour
at the resort -- a special price for rentals, trail pass, and
guided tour. Unfortunately, the tour went to the same place we
went skiing the day before, and it didn't look to be very long,
so we opted to go off on our own, instead.
Before we could get started, we had to try to get our snow-shoes
on. Which took quite an effort, and involved me breaking a nail
trying to get the stupid thing adjusted. Different brands have
different systems, of course, and you can be sure I won't be buying
that brand. In any case, after much effort, and some help from
a Royal Gorge employee, we managed to get the snow-shoes on. It
was only then that I complained that my feet seemed to be pointed
in the wrong direction. The person who was helping us told me
I had them on the wrong feet! We had all assumed that there was
no right and left, but that was not the case. As chance would
have it, Kane had his on the correct feet, but Jean's were reversed,
as well.
Finally, we got started up the Summit Connection trail. Show shoes,
for the uninitiated, are large platforms in which you attach your
normal shoes (preferably, some type of hiking boot). There's a
row of metal teeth on the bottom to grip the snow. The large platform
helps distribute the weight to prevent you from sinking into the
snow. We also used poles to assist us, as trekking poles would
be used in regular hiking.
I get the feeling Jean doesn't want her picture taken!
The trail immediate climbs, steeply but briefly. The trail then
parallels the parking lot before dropping down to road level.
In fact, we had to cross the road. Show shoes don't like asphalt,
but we carefully made our way across and back onto the trail on
the other side.
The weather was absolutely perfect, as it had been for weeks --
50's or 60's, clear blue sky, no wind. My attire consisted of
long, wicking underwear (top and bottom), snow pants, and a fleece
top which was at times too warm and others a bit too cold, but
never too uncomfortable. Adding an extra layer certainly would
have been too hot, especially on the uphills. I wore ski gloves
to give me padding when holding the poles. I probably could have
used thinner gloves, but then it wouldn't have been so easy to
make snow balls.
We continued onto the Switchback trail, which climbs and descends
for 2.1 kilometers. During our hike, we encountered occasional
skiers, and just one other snowshoer. We probably encountered
the fewest people while on the Switchback trail, just two skiers
who glided past us.
Then it was up, up, up the Overload trail. It climbs steeply to
a warming hut. We took out the radios at this point and split
up, meeting at the hut. Warming hut is an understatement. Sauna
would be more like it; there are giant windows which let in the
sun, and it's a tiny building with no outlet for the heat except
the door (which was closed when we got there). There are benches
to sit down on, a gas stove for boiling snow to make water, some
tea bags, cups, trail maps, tissues, and garbage can. Unfortunately,
there was no drinking water provided, but we had plenty of our
own. While we were stopped there for lunch, about a half dozen
people came and went.
Overload Warming Hut
After our break, we strapped our shoes back on and made the final
climb up to Lola's Lookout on Rowton Peak, elevation 7480 feet.
There were great views in all directions. Of what I couldn't tell
you, but the views definitely make the trip worthwhile. We snapped
a few pictures and continued along the Razorback trail, which
follows a ridge, all the while providing nice views to the right.
The view from Lola's Lookout
When we reached the Crow's Nest trail, Kane had spotted a mountain
in the distance, and decided he wanted to reach the top. It was
1:30pm, and we had to be back by 5pm (closing time). We probably
had plenty of time to make it, but Jean and I decided to continue
back and relax, while Kane hiked between the avalanche danger zones
off-trail to the peak.
Kane, off the trail near the Crow's Nest trail
Radios alert, we continued on our separate ways. Jean and I made
a right onto the Bogus Basin trail, and then down the Pine Marten
trail. The trails interconnecting those two trails are quite steep.
It would have been difficult hiking down them if it was dirt,
but the show-shoes made things much easier, as those row of teeth
gripped the snow, minimizing slippage.
For the first time ever, another group of people within range
was using the same code/channel as I was. We started to hear sporadic
radio spurts from this other group, which sounded like a mother,
father, and kid daughter doing some cross-country skiing. Despite
the extra chatter, we were able to hear when Kane reached the
summit at 7896 feet. Later, we would hear that he was safely back
on the trail and heading back toward us.
Meanwhile, we continued down the Timberline trail, and then retraced
our steps along the Summit Connection trail across the road and
back to the Royal Gorge station, at around 3:20. Kane arrived
about 45 minutes later while we were sipping hot chocolate (in
my case, anyway) in front of a fireplace in the lodge.
It was a nice hike with great views, some challenging uphills,
and pleasant scenery. It's nice to get away from the madness of
the downhill ski areas and walk out into the snow where few will
tread. And, I must say that I find hiking in the snow fun! Just
the simple crunch, crunch of snow shoes is a very soothing sound.
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