Mount McConnel
Katie and I are trying to get in shape for a fourteener so we made a goal to hike just about every weekend. I even created a nifty site that has all of our adventurous hiking goals on it for us to be able to pick out hikes quickly. We really wanted to do Storm Mountain, but reports of other hikers said that it was still pretty snowy and cold, so we opted to go up the Poudre again, this time just a few miles East of the trail we hiked last week. I was a little worried that this trail would be so similar to Dadd Gulch due to the proximity, but this hike was completely different. This hike was surprisingly perfect. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous (in the kind of way that a burn area can be), was short in distance (but not too short), and challenging in elevation (online resources lied about the elevation gain, claiming it was in the 1,400 feet of elevation gain, where it was actually over 1,700).
There were two things that could have been better. First I wish there were bluer skies in the North. I guess I can't complain though because the overcast skies made for pretty perfect lighting during the entire hike. Second would have been less wind. But when you hike to the top of something, it's kind of expected to be windy.
There was a pretty treacherous spot along the trail as we were coming down that made it seem like we weren't on the trail at all for a good mile of the descent. There were also a few good spots where we were hiking pretty close to dropoffs, as well as hiking on the snow and nearly sliding off the dropoffs. Despite this trail trying to kill us, we survived the 5.2 mile hike with over 1,700 feet of elevation gain in just under 3 hours.
5.19 mi
2.9 hrs
8,026 ft
1,739 ft
Burnt Sticks
The trees were dense in this area when the high Park Fire hit this area in 2012. Some 8 years later and the mountain still looks barren. But if you look closely, you'll see small saplings bringing the mountain slowly back to life.
Almost Burned Through
There were some pretty unique trees with all the different burn marks on them. Some just had some char on their bark (while still completely dead), other's were like this one that had sections that were almost completely burned through.
Completely Gone
This tree managed to burn nearly all the way through before breaking off.
Black
You can see that this tree had just a little bit left that didn't get burned through. It must have broken off when it got too thin and taken the fire with it.
Windy Overlook
We turned a corner into a wall of wind. About 50 feet in front of us was this view. I quickly took a panorama and we kept hiking to try and find some coverage from the wind.
Almost Died
This was the worst spot on the trail. It might not look like it, but there was a pretty good drop off to the right of this photo. Combined with the snow, we barely made it past this section of the trail.
Tall Rocks
We came to a spot with some gorgeous rock cliffs. Not too tall but tall enough to be cool and impressive.
Some Life
Dead Hillside
This hill was completely wiped out, like many other's in this area, by the 2012 High Park Fire.
Summit Ahead
There was a short distance off the loop that you had to walk if you wanted to get the the summit.
Summit Panorama
It was pretty windy at the summit of Mount McConnel so we didn't stop for long. Just enough to get a few photos and head down to a less windy spot to eat our lunch.
Mummy Range
The white capped mountain range in the distance is the Mummy Range. It's accessible though Rocky Mountain National park for some good hiking.
Goofball Katie
As I was taking photos of the mountains at the summit, Katie decided to be a goofball and wait for me to turn around.
Broken
What trees weren't burned seemed to be broken.
In the Mountains
This is the spot where we stopped and ate lunch. While I was waiting for Katie to finish her sandwich, I took some Instagram-worthy photos of my feet.
Prairie Crocus
The trail had several of these Eastern Pasque wild flowers (also know as the Prairie Crocus). It was the most colorful thing on the hike.
On the Path
There were lots of fallen trees covering the path. This was probably the worst offender, and Katie decided to rest on it while I was taking pictures of wild flowers.
Cache La Poudre
The hike had good views of the Cache La Poudre river and highway 14.
