Miles in this segment: 16.6 miles. (one way)
Miles so far: 57.1 miles
Campsite
Friday: 39.32701651 -105.4465641
Saturday: 39.34670649 -105.59934316

Friday night was just any other night, we departed for the trailhead right after Bryan got done with work and we were excited. Any opportunities we get to be in the backcountry, we take it.

Trailhead at the start of segment 4

We drove to Wellington Lake Road Trailhead which was very accessible from 285 and had 1 turn off of a dirt road. The small parking lot had 2 cars when we arrived, which meant the trail was going to be quiet. yay! We started hiking, without packs, the last mile of segment 3 that we hadn’t done on our previous section hike. No weight on our back, and clear minds made for a very nice two miles. Once back at our vehicle, we loaded our packs and got started. We entered the Lost Creek Wilderness and were very happy to know that no bikes we allowed (sorry cyclists!).

Entering Lost Creek Wilderness

Most of the trail was on a single track on the way up then evened out in this beautiful valley. We passed a few herds of cows and the trail was covered in cow pies. Yum!! A very large amount of flies kept following us, some were the biting type too so I’d recommend long sleeve/pants for this section. The need for a headnet was not necessary. The Colorado trail was well maintained and easy to follow this entire section. High of 85° but a nice constant breeze kept us nice and cool for the entire Saturday’s hike.

Looking back after a few miles in the valley

We stopped 2 miles short of segment 5 and set up our camp. We rested for a few hours and took a simple bag and water so we could cover the last 2 miles and come back to our camp.

The last 2 miles of segment 2 was basically just a descent back to the trailhead. Segment 5 begins next to a very good water source. We turned around and headed back to our camp which was about 1,000ft elevation gain back up. I listened to an audiobook and the miles flew by quickly.

Cooking at elevation has been a slight issue. I was accustomed to boiling water and pouring it on regular noodles and waiting 20min for them to cook well enough. Being at 9,000, 10,000, 11,000ft has put an end to our easy noodle cooking method as they turn out very ‘gummy’ despite longer soaking time. Anyone have a favorite ziploc bag recipe they’d like to share with us for better cooking at higher elevation?

There was 3 other hikers that made camp next to ours but we didn’t get to meet them. Hiker’s midnight and all, we were in our sleeping bags and ready for bed early. Beautiful section for anyone who is looking for an overnight backpacking trip. The dirt road wasn’t too bad, and saw multiple sedan driving by.

Looking forward to our next segment!

Our Campsite on Saturday

Not very shy for a deer. Saw a few on the trail throughout the weekend