“I’ll pick you up at 5:15 tomorrow morning,” I told John on the phone. “We should be there by 6:30. Scott and Brian will meet us there. The plan is to go four hours.”
“Cool, I’ll see you then.”
That is how it started – my first real experience with the Colorado Trail, a 483-mile-long trail that connects Denver to Durango. Most of the trail is located in the rugged high mountains of Colorado. But the segment from Kenosha Pass to Gold Hill is one of the most runner friendly sections of the trail.
On this day, I was meeting three ultrarunners who were training for various 100 mile races during the summer. This left me wondering whether or not I would be able to keep up. But since we were planning an out and back run, I figured it was okay because I could just turn around and let them catch me on the way back.
As we drove out Highway 285 from Denver, we watched the temperature drop from 65 degrees to 39 degrees at the top of the pass. Located at an elevation of exactly 10,000 feet, Kenosha Pass is approximately an hour west of Denver and 15 minutes east of Fairplay. We arrived at the pass and parked on the west side of the road.
Kenosha Pass has a long and storied history. It was used by bands of Ute Indians to reach the hunting grounds of the South Park Valley. In the 19th century, it was traveled by trappers to traverse the Front Range. During the Gold Rush of the 1860s, Kenosha Pass was used by prospectors who were heading to the gold fields at the headwaters of the South Platte River near Fairplay. During the Silver Boom, the pass became one of the main routes traveled by immigrants eager to reach Leadville, Breckenridge, and Aspen. Kenosha Pass also became a rail route for the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad in the late 1800s, providing rail passage from Denver to Fairplay. The tracks over the pass were torn up in the 1930s after the DSP&P Railroad was sold in foreclosure to the Union Pacific Railroad Company.
As we headed west on the trail, I immediately noticed the elevation. The first mile of the trail took us up about 400 feet. Once we crested the first hill, the majesty of the Colorado Rockies was evident. The trail opened into a high alpine meadow, greeting us with views of the Continental Divide and 13,000 foot mountain peaks. Our pace kicked up a notch as we descended out of the meadow and through a small aspen grove, dropping to about 9,800 feet a couple of miles later.
I began to lose contact with my ultrarunning partners, so I decided to just take in the scenery and enjoy the peaceful trail, which flattened out a bit. I crested a small hill, passed through a gate, and then slowly descended to Jefferson Creek Road, which was six miles from our starting point. Just on the other side of this road, I crossed the bridge and climbed up to the Jefferson Creek Campground.
This was where the trail started a slow and gentle climb up to Georgia Pass, six miles and 1,800 feet away. After a sharp left turn off the deserted jeep trail, I began my trek up through the evergreens towards Georgia Pass. Because of the change in the nature of the forest, there was less sunlight reaching the trail. I was thankful, because the temperature stayed cool (especially on a day when it would reach a record high of 100 degrees in Denver). After running for a few more miles, the trail wrapped around a rock outcropping, which provided a view to the Jefferson Creek Valley below. I stopped to eat a bit of food and then continued on my way towards Georgia Pass.
A couple of miles later I finally reached treeline and could see Georgia Pass in front of me. I stopped again to look at the mountains, noticing 13,370 foot Mt. Guyot just to the left of the pass. At this point, I was two hours in, but still decided to press on until I saw the three others running back.
When I got to the Jefferson Creek Trail turnoff, I could see the others running in the distance, so I turned around. This was 11.7 miles from Kenosha Pass, meaning I was looking at a 23 mile run for the day. Scott, Brian and John caught up to me about a mile later and we continued on the six mile descent back to the Jefferson Creek Campground.
When we crossed back over the creek, there was a small climb up to the gate. I decided to take the section easy and enjoy the peaceful morning. I had only seen a few other people on the trail.
I passed through the gate, dropped down through the meadow and started the final climb of the day, 600 feet in about a mile and a half. When I finally passed the bench at the top of the hill, I ran back down to the trailhead, clicked my watch at 4:12.
We all agreed that this was one of the best high altitude runs we had done in a while. We enjoyed it mainly because the entire trail was runable and the overall elevation change was not too much that it took your wind away. On the drive home, I told John that this route might have just become my preferred high altitude long run location because of the ease of the trail, the close proximity to Denver, and the out and back nature allowing for varying distances to be covered.
The Colorado Trail
The route described in this article is just a small section of the Colorado Trail. The rugged path traverses some of the most scenic areas of the Rockies and serves as a living history lesson, sharing tales of previous inhabitants, from Indians to miners. From Denver to Durango, trail users experience six wilderness areas and eight mountain ranges topping out at 13,334 feet. The idea for the 483-mile trail was conceived in 1973, but it took until 1988 before the trail was completed. What is most impressive is that volunteers not only built the trail, but it is through their efforts that the trail is improved and maintained.
To get to Kenosha Pass, drive Highway 285 about an hour west from Denver. When you see the Kenosha Pass summit sign, pull off the side of the road. There is a dirt parking area on either side of the road. Do not park in the campground driveway, as there is a fee to use the campground. Free toilets are located at the campground on the opposite side of the highway from the Kenosha Pass sign. The trailhead is visible from the parking area. Carry plenty of water with you, as none is available on the trail.