MAD Hippies Life
Colorado Trail Segment 25 of 28
There was a sense of harmony in this place. We needed to pass through it, but didn't want to disturb the energy. Peacefully we made our way across, absorbing it's beauty and leaving no trace of ourselves.
Colorado Trail Segment 25 of 28
Start: Molas Pass
End: Bolam Pass Road
Distance: 20.9 miles
After a quick overnight stop in Silverton for our resupply, we were back on trail early the next morning. The Molas Pass area, as much segment 25 itself, was a real surprise. We flirted with treeline and had commanding views in every direction. The picturesque landscape was simply spectacular! Looking out in any direction it was just eye catching scenery, back-dropped with a half dozen or so 13ers and near 13ers, Twin Sisters (13,432′ & 13,374′), Rolling Mountain (13,693′), Grizzly Peak (13,738′), Jura Knob (12,614′) and the prominently placed Engineer Mountain, (12,968′) that begged to be seen. The forest were lush, green and healthy, the creeks and waterfalls clear and cold, whereas the wildflowers seemed to be in their prime, full of vibrant colors blanketing the hillsides and lining the trail. The mountain valleys were deep, rocky and mystical as each corner of the trail welcomed us to further and unexpected views. There were a couple mountain passes that we would have to climb up and over that would leave us speechless at the top. We were completely caught off guard by these surroundings and shocked by the beauty of this segment. It seemed to us to be a culmination of every segment we had hiked to this point.
We were climbing again leaving treeline behind and into unknown territory. Perhaps it was the earlier segments, 21 through 23 that had ruined us, not fully knowing if there was much wow factor left on the CT. We were wrong. Honestly, it was not even comparable, this place held its own unique beauty. Wide open, massive valleys guarded by towering jagged mountains in varying color displays of rusty reds and shades of emerald green. We had not seen anything like this on the trail yet. The climb up had us pass through fields of wildflowers, fields of snow and fields of rock. The welcome mat to the high pass was laid out and we humbly accepted the invitation. The decent into the adjacent valley, utterly jaw-dropping. We were simply unprepared to witness such a beautiful place.
We were hiking at an excited pace, not only because it was to be our last few days on trail until Durango, but because the beauty just seemed to grow as we went on; we were eager to get to the next corner, the next crest, and down into the next valley. Our campsite that night would be surreal. We found a great spot near Cascade Creek and several waterfalls that would send us off to a quick sleep. We ate dinner, explored a bit and called it a day. The following morning we would be on trail early, chasing the sun, once again, to get warm. The nights were definitely getting colder, the morning as much. Getting out of a warm tent and sleeping quilt was no easy task, especially when you could see your breath. Suffice it to say, at some point we knew we would have to emerge. We continued in and out of treeline, eventually finding ourselves in an incredible meadow surrounded by peaks and ridges and full of wildlife. There was a sense of harmony in this place. We needed to pass through it, but didn't want to disturb the energy. Peacefully, we made our way across, absorbing it's beauty and leaving no trace of ourselves.
We emerged from the meadow, still in awe of everything we had seen in this gem of a segment, wondering how we were so surprised by what we had just experienced. The segment would come to an end at Celebration Lake, a name that has the hiker wondering how it came to be. Durango is still in front, three segments away, but what was just traversed and traveled, well that would certainly be cause for celebration. The Colorado Trail was not done with us yet, apparent from this section and the ones to come. Time was speeding up as we neared Durango, and yet we were at ease, enjoying these last few days content, not only in our accomplishments, but also in the fact that the CT would continue to wow us some more. While the excitement of the finish was growing daily, we had to wonder, what comes next. What happens after the finish? Did we really want it to end? We had been on trail for a month, our minds and bodies had accepted the new reality. Sure, a break would be nice, but the lure of the Colorado Rocky Mountains does not fade, it just seems to intensify with each step forward and each new horizon crossed where new ridges and peaks are laid out in front calling the traveler to come explore.
Peace,
MAD
