West Elk: Castle Pass and Sheep Lake

Gunnison National Forest

DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 | DAY 4 | DAY 5 | DAY 6

(green line, map link)

I was wondering if this loop might be a little front loaded with the good stuff as I started toward the tree covered Castle Pass that represents the highest point for the second half of the trip. I expected it to be easier, although the state of the Castle Pass Trail was unique in that it not only showed recent trail work, but more trees already down on it than had been removed. It got better as I got higher.

160: large camp site — The camp site I should have found the evening before. Admittedly, it is closer to the trail than it should be.

161: very wet meadow — A little of the view from near the camp. Water pools in the meadow, but flows as a small creek beside the trail.

163: spikes along the ridge — From further along the meadow, The Castles and other pillars along the ridge top can be seen.

I found a bit more water than advertised on the map along the trail. There was another, much smaller, camp by a collection of glacier lilies and a trickle of water. It still wasn't enough to get away from the mosquitoes.

164: yellow flower with a nodding head — One of a large scattering of glacier lilies.

165: gravel going down the mountain — This sudden gash of dark gravel just before Castle Pass provided a little bit of view.

The top of the pass was like a strait corridor cut through the trees. There were no views, but there was a sign to make sure I didn't get turned around. North Castle Creek back the way I'd come, Sheep Lake or Beckwith Pass if going onward. The corridor widened into a long meadow and the trail suddenly turned into the trees. I felt lucky to have noticed it, since the trail was so dim in the meadow that one could easily just continue along it.

166: tall trees — Castle Pass is covered in trees, just like the map says. The sign is on one on the left.

168: visible trail in the meadow — The trail is visible at the top of the meadow, but decays into a water rut at best.

169: butterfly with bright eye spots — A swallowtail butterfly partakes in a fading lousewort.

The trail passes near a couple ponds. One had more camp sites beside it. I had to visit it for the blooming lily pads floating on the water.

172: clouds reflected in the water between lily pads — The already clouding up sky reflected in the lily pad covered pond.

173: round yellow flower — Lily pads are strange plants with strange flowers. (Western yellow pond lily.)

174: ripples approaching a flower — A mosquito lays its eggs near another of these strange (semi) floating flowers.

Down I went along the ridge with aspens to my left and pines to my right. There was water, too, there to the right. I could hear it rushing downward much faster. I could see suggestions of impressive ridges beyond, but a real view had to wait.

175: rock with a rolled over top — A small window on the pine side.

177: mutiplicity — A thinning in the multiplicity of the aspens shows some rocks beyond.

It was the aspens that yielded their secrets first. The trail turns and cuts its switchbacking way down through the steep dirt hillside where perhaps an old fire opened up a much larger view.

178: dary rock ridge with points — A little bit of Storm Ridge to the south east.

180: red bracts with long green flowers sticking out — The paintbrush is getting to look a little seedy. (Wyoming paintbrush tends to look like that.)

181: hairy inside of a flower — Some beautiful mariposa lilies on the hillside.

The trail put me down next to a series of ponds to wander past in the sun. The wildflowers changed with the wetter environment. The blue bells looked a little different from the ones I'd been seeing.

182: blue flowers — The Jacob's ladder was particularly tall, too.

184: water full of weeds — The ponds were chocked with something other than lily pads.

I came to a big water crossing, which was unexpected given how near it was to its source. It's another wet food crossing unless you're feeling very confident on logs. I got across, then grabbed some water for the rest of the day and sat in the roar for some lunch.

185: roaring water — South Prong Cliff Creek, if I deciphered the half illegible sign correctly. Sheep Lake is the source about 2 miles up.

The trail multiplied through a meadow, but I must have picked the right one (at random) because I got to the signs for the junction. Decision time. My original plan was to head over to Little Robinson Creek and check out the cow camp (where the map shows two buildings), then pop over to Soap Creek. However, Sheep Lake was clearly a destination as signs had been pointing the way to it for a while. It would be about as long either way. I decided to go to the destination. Trail crew had been that way recently too, making a nice, clear path.

188: mountains between the trees — Suggestions of the view, now from the lower meadows.

189: eating flowers — This particular lupin had a couple of different beetles chomping away at the flowers. (Blister beetle and Judolia montivagans perhaps.)

The trail is illustrated as going right through the middle of the lake and that's what it did. Luckily, it was a dry lake. Unluckily, it goes across it in one direction, then, when it is most invisible, suddenly decides it'll actually go off that other way. I never saw why it does not simply go around the lake bed in the appropriate direction in the first place, but the hikers have kept to this wild route from what I can see. Then it's more climbing.

191: butterfly on the ground — A Fritillary with spotted eyes.

193: big ridges and bare mountain — East Beckwith Mountain through the gap between Storm Ridge (right) and Moseley Ridge (left). What was hidden by the pines.

194: tiny spotted flowers in red stem — One coralroot orchid still in bloom. Most are bulging into seed already.

195: layered peaks — More of Storm Ridge becomes visible as the trail rounds its way upward.

I popped over into some meadows with the map promising only slight rolling hills to go to the lake.

197: meadow and trees and peaks — Peaks poking up above the trees in the meadow.

199: canyon of sorts — A preview of Soap Creek.

I found mystery junctions in the meadow. OpenStreetMap was no help in this area. It seemed to be simply copied from the Forest Service map, which probably meand it matched USGS maps. It wouldn't be something I'd want. Continuing on, the meadows turned into some rather beetle killed forest with an expected junction marked only by a post, a tree clobbered sign with a mystery message, and finally the lake.

202: clobbered sign — "Sheep Lake Closure Area beyond this point" whatever that means. No campfires? Usually at least that. (Common, notice the rest of the sign! It's sitting right there on the ground!)

204: pretty lake under red cliffs — Sheep Lake is really quite pretty and the beetle kill not too bad in the right direction.

While I had in the back of my mind a desire for a shorter day, I hadn't actually meant to stay at Sheep Lake. I was headed for the junction of Soap Creek and Soap Basin about two miles further, but I got to talking with the couple already settled in to camp there a bit too long. It was pleasant enough except for the mosquitoes. They offered me the DEET they'd nearly forgotten and I had to admit I'd chosen not to bring any repellent because the bugs weren't bad down Soap Creek some 20+ miles. I also went searching for the Sheep Lake Trail 9551 (as opposed to the Sheep Lake Trail 8848 that I'd come up) which mysteriously comes to the lake without actually connecting with the Cutoff Trail 8855, which should be the one marked by a post and no sign. I found a bit of tread that wound its way over to the suspected cutoff, but didn't have any sign of work until a nearly rotted log a short way from where it intersects. Since I would expect them both to go off together and split, this seemed almost reasonable.

205: borer beetle — I also found one of the sawyer beetles that is killing the trees. They're bigger than you'd think.

And then I set up camp in a large site up the hill from the lake which looked quite nice with at least three big tent spots to choose from. This is unfortunate because I did find the rest of the sign the next morning and it did say "no campfires" as I expected. It added "no camping". There's actually a campable spot just outside the closer area on the cutoff. There would be mounds of camping in the meadows on the way. There's a well appointed site within a mile on the cutoff which has a lovely creek which looks much nicer than the outflow of Sheep Lake. (People still haven't figured out you need to take the water away from the lake or creek when you wash your dishes. You especially need to take it away if you're going to use soap. Yes, even "biodegradable" soap. It says it right on the bottle of Camp Suds, if you can find it among all the other stuff it says.) I rather suspect that would have been a more pleasant spot to stay, actually.

Continue on to the next day ⇒

*photo album*

©2022 Valerie Norton
Written 13 Aug 2022

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