I had been wanted to go to Crested Butte after seeing
somebody’s pictures. To me, it has all the elements I like, wildflowers, high
country scenes, historic buildings, active atmosphere etc. The only thing I was
not sure is the crowd. Well, it is such a charming town and is attracted to many
people. I guess it makes sense.
We started the trip on Thursday at around 6:30pm from Denver.
The route we took is I70 W->US-285 S ->US-50 W then CO-135 N. The traffic was ok over all except the big
trucks driving slowly on the one lane highway extended our travel time. In addition, the drive on US-50 was a
challenge during the night, especially the Monarch Pass. People without the
mountain driving experience need to be very carefully on the sharp turns. It
took us 4.5 hours to get to the hotel in Mt. Crested Butte.
If you are crazy about wildflowers as I am and not sure about hiking at the high altitude, I would highly recommend Deer Creek Trail. We actually didn't hike that trail because I was too busy taking pictures of flowers for about 1/4 miles before the trail head. That is a dirt road with a foot tall flowers both sides.
 |
| Deers were actually seen at Deer Creek Trail |
The real hike we did was at Copper Lake trail. At the trail head, it marks the length of the trail as 4 miles one way. The parking lot to the trail head is about half mile, I think. You can park closer if your car can handle the narrow, uneven dirt road. This trail will take you to the Judd falls at about 1/2 mile mark. Then you will find yourself walking in the forest. After passing a flower-covered meadow, you reach a point that requires you to cross the stream. A stick and a pair of water shoes are very helpful and you will need them again to cross another deeper stream.
I would rate this trail as moderate. The last 1/2 mile to get to the lake was pretty steep. We did total 9 miles with about 2,000 feet elevation gain.
There is another popular trail - West Maroon Trail in the area. This trail is considered as a classic and takes you to Aspen. It is about 12 miles but I have heard it is extremely beautiful and not too difficult. This will be the trail for me next time!
Crested Butte is also a heaven of mountain biking. Of course you can also ride around the town with these fancy bikes.
