Backpacking is great, but every now and then you need to stick with just a day hike and be home in time for dinner and kitty snuggles. So we decided to hit a fairly popular day hike that promised sweeping alpine views despite a relatively short mileage.
Berthoud Pass is right along the continental divide at 11,307 ft. We took the trail from Berthoud Pass to Stanley Mountain, which is a roughly 3.7ish mile hike, one-way. The first mile or so is fairly steep, switching back through small pine and dry higher desert-looking terrain (interestingly reminded me a lot of Mt Lemmon in Tucson, AZ). The wildflowers were still out of course and in full bloom!
Dan being a responsible hiker
The views once you get up onto the ridge were amazing. Alpine hikes like this are my absolute favorite because you get to see all the mountains and the mountains behind those mountains.
Once you get onto the ridge-line portion of the trail it is fairly easy going. It was a bit windy so and at elevation, it can get chilly if you stay put for a bit. We stayed at Stanley Mountain for a few minutes and refreshed on food and water before heading back down. I did need my wind breaker!
The views from Stanley Mountain were amazing, with one exception. There appears to be a mine in full view just to the south west. Strange, because I thought all of this was National Forest land. Oh well. It was still a 5 star hike with views, hands down.
View from Stanley Mountain
We definitely want to do a longer trip on this trail because it is part of the Continental Divide Trail. We saw some backpackers on their way past Stanley Mountain. That’ll be us soon hopefully!
Sitting on Stanley Mountain
Rock garden on the way down from the ridge line.