snowmass-capitol backpacking loop

[rdp32]

I am considering a possible 3-day (or maybe 4-day) backpacking loop in the maroon-snowmass area that goes roughly like this (possibly in the reverse direction):

Day 1: Maroon-Snowmass trailhead -> West Snowmass Creek Trail -> Capitol Creek Trail -> Capitol Lake

Day 2: Capitol Lake -> Capitol Pass -> East Avalanche Creek Trail (towards Silver Creek TH) -> Geneva Lake (off-trail either to the north or south of Meadow Mountain)

Day 3: Geneva Lake -> Trail Rider Pass -> Snowmass Lake -> Maroon Snowmass Trail -> Maroon Snowmass Trailhead (starting point)

I'd like to keep this to 3 days if possible, partly to motivate me to get in shape for it. I could possibly stretch it to 4 if needed, though (as a reference point, I did the 4-pass loop last year fairly comfortably in 3 days).

I have several questions:

1. How busy is Capitol Lake? Could I safely plan on arriving there late-ish and bagging a campsite? If it is even close to as busy as Snowmass Lake, I will aim to either camp there on a weeknight or camp elsewhere on day 1.

2. On Day 1, should I consider taking a "shortcut" by heading down to Moon Lake and up Daly Pass to Capitol Lake?

3. I have never been to any of these trails that do not overlap with the 4-pass loop. How are these other trails in terms of scenery? In terms of difficulty? I'm expecting the stretch from Capitol Lake to Geneval Lake will be awesome, but how are the long stretches of the East Snowmass Trail and the West Snowmass Trail? If they are just "walks in the woods" then I may re-consider my route.

4. Has anyone done the traverse by Meadow Mountain down into the Geneva Lake vicinity? If so, do you have any tips on the best place to do this traverse? Is this very do-able? (I don't want to deal with treacherously loose steep scree fields, treacherous permanent snow fields, etc.) I swear I read a trip report that did this traverse but I couldn't find it here.

5. Lastly, if anyone has any recommended modifications to this route (such as going CW instead of CCW), please let me know!

Thanks in advance for any tips. My "backpacking trip of the year" may just depend on you.

[SoCool]

Beware it can be a tough hike to Moon Lake with a heavy pack if unfamiliar with the area. There is a trail, but it's no longer maintained so there are many downed logs. Also it's hard to locate because it traverses high above the creek along the northwest side, some people end up just bushwhacking along the valley floor.

[painless4u2]

Beware it can be a tough hike to Moon Lake with a heavy pack if unfamiliar with the area. There is a trail, but it's no longer maintained so there are many downed logs. Also it's hard to locate because it traverses high above the creek along the northwest side, some people end up just bushwhacking along the valley floor.

Been there, done that. Had a very hard time locating a trail once we entered the wooded valley and ended up mired in fallen timber. Lost my nice BD ice axe in there somewhere. We did finally make it to Moon Lake (in the dark) however, and camped there for our ascent attempt up Capitol the next day.

[AlexeyD]

I can only speak to the first question. The answer is YES (very crowded), but, that said: there are usually decent campsites available in the mile or below the lake. Just make sure to obey any closure signs and wilderness regulations. Note: at least last year, bear activity was very high in that area.

[CO Native]

Question 2 - How were you planning on getting from West Snowmass Creek to Capitol Creek trail if you didn't intend to use Daly Pass?

Question 3 - You can see photos from these trails on the loop I did: http://www.hikingintherockies.com/fourt ... apmain.htm

Question 4 - Totally doable route without getting into treacherous terrain. There's nothing bad going up to the Mountain Meadow Saddle so long as you stay west of point 10136 in the valley instead of following the creek. From the saddle, follow a ridgeline SE from the little tarn on the east side of the saddle. Once on the bench with Snowfield lake head back north to snowfield lake before dropping into the valley.

[SoCool]

How were you planning on getting from West Snowmass Creek to Capitol Creek trail if you didn't intend to use Daly Pass?

Maybe he knows about the old trails that go over Haystack Pass. Haven't hiked it myself, but TallGrass went from west to east:
http://www.14ers.com/usercontent/trips/ ... 8_28_l.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[justiner]

Also echoing the Moon Lake difficulties. I descended from Capitol towards Moon Lake, which was for the most part very pleasant, but became quite difficult below tree line with all the downed trees, trail segments that would start/stop, and then locating a cow path to the main Snowmass Trail. It's beautiful country - the creek below Moon Lake has many waterfalls, and could be difficult to follow/cross in some areas. Lots of wet, boggy areas as well, which you should take into consideration, if you're looking at a topo to do some bushwhacking - if it's near water, it's most likely flooded. Didn't see a person all day.

[TallGrass]

Haystack: numbered (i.e. official) Class 1 trail except for the lower thicker wooded eastern part (C2, cattle, horses) above which Moon Lake forks off. Zero bushwhacking with occasional downed trees, many freshly cut and cleared when I was there (i.e. maintained). Bring water shoes and poles -- creeks to ford and irrigation ditches to jump. Note NG/TI trail appears to fork S-bound (possibly old trail) then run the ridge whereas the N-bound fork (what I took) stays in the valley and shows up better on satellite. Mickelson Creek trail (numbered) intercepts Haystack. NatGeo Trails Illustrated map is very handy, conceptual, but not exact.

Bear Creek: more obscure, harder to access. Cruxes: creek crossing(s), circumnavigating the falls, and navigation, none trivial. Adhere to even stricter LNT (water source distances, fragile grasses), and think there's a fire ban. WDC can hold snow well into summer. CO_Native's SnowCap Loop shows another pass exit from PL basin to the south. PLB is a talus moonscape with "chalky"-tasting water.

TR with more beta: Capitol Loop via Pierre Lakes, Wandering Dutchman Couloir & Haystack Pass

Daly topo: http://www.summitpost.org/daly-route-an ... tes/440112, compare to NG/TI map, TR, and posts.

[rdp32]

Thanks all for the input! I didn't even know that the "Haystack Pass trail" was an "old" trail; I just saw a trail (labeled the "West Snowmass Trail" on my map, the Sky Terrain Aspen trail map) that runs east-west from the Maroon Snowmass Trail (Snowmass Creek) to the Capitol Creek trail. The trail shown on my map appears to more or less coincide with the trail marked by TallGrass. If I do this loop, I suppose that is the route I would take, and save the difficult Daly Pass route for when I have more off-trail experience (although the off-trail photos look more spectacular).

CO Native, when you say, "stay west of point 10136", do you mean, "stay east of point 10136"?

[CO Native]

Nope, I mean west. The yellow highlighted route is good, following the creek through is bad (highlighted red).

10136.jpg (162.56 KiB) Viewed 633 times

[rdp32]

Hmmm... my trail map shows a different trail that runs north-south more than half a mile east of point 10136---it has you getting on this trail by taking the capitol creek trail south to the avalanche creek trail, then turning south-east at the avalanche creek trail, following that for a tiny bit (about a quarter of the way to Avalanche Lake), and then the north-south trail heads south from there, winding its way somewhat but heading south roughly between East Fork Creek and the mountains. Once again, it may be that my map shows some trails that are hardly there. In any case, thanks for the input; if I do this route, I'll look for the trail on my map, but if I don't find it, I'll likely follow the creek directly and then heed your advice.

[CO Native]

Ahh gotcha. Haven't been on that trail. Spotted it on Google earth though. Looks like a way better route.