by Derek Griffiths - Colorado Runner

Hit The Dirt...
sponsored by
Herman’s
Gulch
by Derek Griffiths

I
woke up on Sunday morning in late July and finally decided it was time to hit the high country for
altitude training. With most of my training partners getting ready for the Leadville Trail 100, I knew
it would be easy to drag a few of them along with me. But, with all of our busy schedules, I knew I had
to find something close. I chose Herman’s Gulch.
Derek Griffiths / Colorado Runner
Just a short drive up Interstate 70, this high altitude
paradise is an easy 60 minute drive from Denver, but a world
away. We pulled into the trailhead parking lot at 7:00 a.m.
and found only two other cars. Soon we were off.
Starting out at 10,200 feet, my lungs began to sizzle as soon as
my feet started moving. The first two miles were an uphill grind. Luckily
for me, we were going for a three hour run, so we did a lot of walking in
the beginning.
As we climbed up the forested trail, the howl of the freeway
was slowly replaced by the gushing water coming down from the mountain
runoff. In some places, we had to hop a creek and in others we high
stepped through the tree roots. Amazingly, the trail was wet in some places,
as if the snow had just melted.
After about a mile of climbing, we rose above the tree line and
into a wide, grassy meadow, displaying our first views of the towering
mountains around us. The kaleidoscope of wildflowers made this view
even more inspiring, and I accidentally picked up the pace. Luckily, I was
running with two ultrarunners who were having no problems with either
the altitude or the climbing.
As we made our way through the meadow, I marveled at the yellow,
purple, white and red wildflowers, with a few baby blue Columbines
thrown in for good measure. The flowers were all over the place and it was
hard to look at both them and the mountains.
After two miles of climbing, we came to a sign that told us the
Continental Divide Trail veered to the right towards Jones Pass, while
Herman’s Lake was straight ahead. I looked at my watch and found we
were at 11,800 feet. We had climbed 1,600’ in two miles. That explains
why my quads were on fire!
We decided to continue on the CDT towards Jones Pass. As
soon as we made the turn, the trail became a true high mountain single
track, not nearly as heavily traveled as the Herman’s Gulch Trail. I was
surprised to find that this trail actually leveled out and went down a bit
before cresting a saddle and dropping down the other side. At this point
I had to stop and just soak in the view. Standing on this saddle at 12,000’
we could see Torreys Peak to our south and Long’s Peak to our north. We
also took in the breathtaking views of the valley below before continuing
down the trail, over a creek and back up the other side.
At this point, the climbing started again. Once we got to the
second saddle of the day, the trail turned right and began to travel across
the ridge line towards Jones Pass. Up on the ridge I was glad I had brought
a jacket because the wind was really howling. We stopped at a huge rock
pile on the top of one of the peaks to sign in. The book inside the glass jar
said we were on Hassell Peak at 13,215 feet. It had taken us one hour and
40 minutes to get to here. Standing on top of this beast, we could see Torreys
Peak, Mt. Evans, Mt. Bierstadt, and Long’s Peak – four of Colorado’s
famed “14ers.”
At this point we decided to head back towards the car, taking a
side trip up to Herman’s Lake on the way back. As we traveled down the
Herman’s Gulch trail, we must have passed 40 hikers coming up to the
lake. Many gave us weird looks as we went flying by them on the steep
trail. Back at the parking lot, every single space was full.
As we drove back to Denver, all I could think about were the
wildflowers, the lake and the wonderful mountain vistas we had just left.
It is hard to believe that this paradise is so close the city.
Editors Note: The trail distance from the trailhead to Herman’s Lake is two and a half miles one way, with an elevation gain of 2,000 feet, with a maximum
of 12,400 feet. To get to Herman’s Gulch, exit I-70 at exit 218. The parking lot is on the north side of the freeway.
September/October 2006 coloradorunnermag.com 69