Two weeks in Lake City, Colorado…
Lake City sits at 9,000 feet in the San Juan Mountains. It has the old west feel and charm shared by many mountain towns in this region. Its population of 400 likely triples during the summer as folks visit from all over, but Texas plates outnumber all others! There are hundreds of miles of trails and numerous streams and lakes. We’d gladly spend a month or even an entire summer exploring the Lake City area!
The campground was small and peaceful. The owners go out of their way to make everyone feel welcome and host social events a couple of times a week. Turnover is low as most folks spend a month here each summer. The camp sites were a bit close, but we were comfortable. We had full hook-ups, very clean laundry facilities, good wi-fi, and even cable TV if we wanted it.
- Checking out the town and the area
We spent our first day checking out the area. The Lake City museum is very well maintained and has a bunch of good exhibits. The old modes of transportation and Dr Benjamin Cummings’ history were especially interesting. The good doctor served as Lake City’s physician from 1897 to 1933; 36 years! Years after his death in 1957, his three children donated all of his tools, medicines, kits, chairs, sled, buggy, and other items to the museum. It was easy to visualize the doctor grabbing his bag, hopping on his sled, and traveling miles through the snow to help deliver a baby.
After enjoying some great pizza and nachos, we drove to the top of 11,530 foot high Slumgullion Pass. The views of Lake San Cristobal, Red Mountain, and the Slumgullion earth flow were amazing.
The old west downtown of Lake City
This refurbished caboose was really cool The doctor’s buggy and sled
Lake San Cristobal, Colorado’s second largest Red Mountain, elevation 12,826ft, one of
natural lake our favorite mountains
Fishing
- Lake Fork of the Gunnison round 1
I’ve read good things about the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River so my expectations were a bit high. The river is beautiful! It averages 20-40 feet wide and has a good mix of runs, pools, and riffles. You can carefully cross the river in spots and position yourself for good presentations. It’s fly and lure only water and you can keep two brown trout over 16 inches. All rainbow trout must be released.
We stopped at one of Lake City’s two fly-fishing shops to get the latest info and tips on where to fish. We hit the Lake Fork where they suggested and worked our way upstream. We hit likely spots for fish, and weren’t getting anything. And then, tight against a rock wall, in a deep hole, a fat 18 inch rainbow trout hit my size 16 gold-ribbed hares ear! It might be the heaviest trout I’ve caught this summer. I was able to coax three or four nice trout from this pretty section of river.
Fishing the beautiful Lake Fork of the Gunnison River A hefty 18 inch rainbow trout
- Lake Fork of the Gunnison round 2
I woke up early one morning to explore and fish another section of the Lake Fork. The sun took its time getting above the mountains and the lifting stratus was pretty in the low light. This stretch of public water is only 900 yards long, but that 900 yards has some great water. I think it’s also short enough, that if somebody sees a car parked there, they move on to the next section. I had it all to myself and it was glorious!
The results…I fished hard for about two hours. I didn’t see any risers, but managed to catch two rainbows and three browns that were all 14-15 inches long. I had a few other bites, but couldn’t connect. They hit either a gold-ribbed hares ear or a size 10 black and olive lake leach drifted deep in the holes. I am sure that those holes are loaded with nice trout. I can imagine a big insect hatch and a feeding frenzy! I’d gladly get to know this short stretch of river intimately.
- Upper and Lower Powderhorn Lakes
Research indicated that upper Powderhorn Lake may have 20 inch trophy cutthroat and that lower Powderhorn Lake may have big brook trout to 16 inches long. However, the lakes are prone to winterkill. The local fly-fishing shop didn’t have any recent reports, but we gave it a shot.
It took us nearly an hour and a half to get to the trailhead. The 10 miles of County Road 58 is narrow with few pullouts, winding, and barely considered a two-wheel drive road. It was rough! Thankfully the road tops at 11,000 feet making the climb to the lakes very pleasant. The first mile or so of trail is fairly steep, but pops out at 11,500 feet at a big beautiful meadow, or “park” to Coloradoans. From the meadow, the trail undulates up and down for three more miles to the lower lake. We headed another mile to the upper lake with hopes of catching beautiful cutthroat trout. Our hopes were dashed! We walked another mile around the large alpine lake, often traversing rock slides, and only saw five or six small fish. There were no risers and no other fish cruising the banks like we’ve seen at most alpine lakes this summer. Either the lake experienced winterkill or the fish were sitting motionless on the bottom. Sadly, I think the lake was nearly dead.
We headed back down to the lower lake that clearly was not dead…there were quite a few rising trout! By now we had hiked about eight miles and time was getting short, but we fished for about 45 minutes. I broke one off and had one other good bite, but ended up 0-2. Unfortunately, the rises were sporadic and out of my reach. The only other fisherman up there caught two large 16 inch brook trout on Power Bait…cheater! The one brook trout may be the biggest I have ever seen (not on a wall or in a picture). Too bad it won’t be around to make babies when they spawn this fall. The guy kept him for dinner. I was tempted to give the lower lake another shot before we left Lake City, but we had plenty of other things to do. Plus neither of us wanted to experience 20 miles of County Road 58 again!
I walked around the meadow on the way back and found 1-2 pounds of meadow mushrooms and puff balls…yum yum! Thunder was booming and getting closer. We made it back to the truck and escaped yet another thunderstorm.
The meadow or “park” at 11,500 feet Arleen on one of the rock slides at the upper lake
- Big Blue Creek, round 1
The word on Big Blue Creek was mixed and inconsistent…a mystery. Some said there was good cutthroat fishing, others said there were a bunch of small brook trout, and there were reports of something in between. Either way it sounded like a nice skinny water creek flowing through a pretty valley and we wanted to check it out.
The drive up and over Alpine Plateau was on a narrow winding dirt road with good views. Thankfully the road was in decent shape. We dropped into the Big Blue Creek valley and I thought it looked perfect!
We hiked one mile downstream and fished our way back up. Nearly every run, rock pool, undercut bank, etc had a willing trout or two. We caught about 40 small, but colorful brook trout. They averaged four to six inches, with the biggest being eight inches. We caught nearly all of them on dry flies. I don’t think it mattered what we threw at them as long as we didn’t spook them first. We’d make a few casts in each hole and move on. It was very enjoyable fishing. We had resolved part of the Big Blue Creek mystery. But, naturally I wondered what was further downstream and upstream. Perhaps we needed to make another trip!
Arleen fighting a monster 4 incher on pretty little Big Blue Creek
- Continental Reservoir
It was time to get the kayaks on the water, plus we wanted to check out the two passes between Lake City and Creede.
First we went to Brown Lakes State Wildlife Area. The lakes lived up to their name and were very brown. Apparently they have brown, cutthroat, brook, and rainbow trout, but we couldn’t find much more information. There were a couple of people fishing and they said it was slow, but one of them recommended Continental Reservoir just up the road.
Continental Reservoir is a large, over two miles long, irrigation impoundment that experiences large water level fluctuations. The reports all say that if the water is up, then the fishing is good. There is only one short, but narrow and steep access road near the dam with minimal parking. Limited access on a large lake, might mean great fishing.
It was nearly 11:00am, sunny and warm…not good conditions to fish for trout. There were seven or eight folks fishing along the bank and it looked slow. We launched anyway and noticed the algae right away. The lake was experiencing a big algae bloom but I thought that if we could get our flies under it, we might have a shot at some fish. Besides, the guy at Brown Lakes said he had been doing real well at Continental all week. First we fished along the north bank and the algae got thicker and thicker as we progressed. I even hit two rocks, invisible in the muck, as I paddled along. We shot over to the south bank just as the winds picked up. We beached the kayaks, got out, stretched and had a snack. The algae was less thick so I fished from a point while Arleen trolled along the bank. Finally, I got a hit and missed it. I paddled down to the next point and tried it again. I got another hit and missed it! Arleen caught up to me and looked like she had a problem. There was something “stuck in her net”. Sure enough, she had caught a nice 16 inch rainbow! It went on the stringer. We continued…I paddled to the next point, got out and fished from the bank while Arleen trolled just off shore. This time I got a hit and reeled in a nice 15 inch rainbow. It also went on the stringer. We had each caught our dinner! On the way back, we each had a few more opportunities but couldn’t connect. While we are in Creede, we may go back to Continental once or twice, though it will be early or late in the day.
With the kayaks loaded, we started back home. We checked out Rito Hondo Reservoir, just a few miles from Continental. It looked great so we may fish it in the future. Rito Hondo sits in an open bowl surrounded by meadow. Sure enough, we spotted meadow mushrooms and hunted a bit for more. We ended up with about two pounds of fresh shrooms! We stopped a couple of more times along the highway to search for more shrooms. At one stop we found some really nice aspen boletes and filled the other basket.
On the home stretch as we descended Slumgullion Pass to Lake City, we saw two dark, lanky four-legged critters in a meadow…moose…Our first in Colorado! It looked like a momma with a young bull. They even played together before disappearing into the brush. What a great day!
When we got home we did more research on the aspen bolete (Leccinum Insigne) mushrooms. Our book said they are edible and taste good, but an online article from 2009 mentioned that the Rocky Mountain Poison Control Center had "noticed a great many cases of GI distress caused by members of the Leccinum scabrum/insigne group". Similar things popped up elsewhere online so we spread the pretty aspen boletes in the woods near the campground and won’t pick anymore. Too bad…they are popping up in all the aspen groves!
- Cataract Lake
When asking where to shroom hunt, Cataract Gulch was mentioned the most. Research also indicated that there were two pretty waterfalls, an alpine lake with brook trout, and a good chance to see wildlife. There was no way we could pass up this one!
The trail starts steeply with a roughly 800 foot elevation gain each of the first two miles. We spotted all kinds of mushrooms on the way up in the lush vegetation. However, they weren’t shrooms we could identify and we certainly wouldn’t eat. At the two mile point we rested in a pretty valley loaded with flowers, a tumbling stream, dramatic cliffs, and a great view of 14,001 foot high Sunshine Peak. Then, on the other side of the small valley, across the creek, three bull moose emerged out of the brush! We watched them for 15-20 minutes and took a bunch of pictures. It was really cool to watch them feed and interact with each other. I wonder how these bachelors will be when the rut starts in a couple of months!
We walked up past the pretty waterfalls. The trail leveled a bit, but got rocky. We finally got above timberline and the trail undulated up and down through the grassy tundra. Five miles and nearly 3,000 feet from the start, we made it to Cataract Lake. The best place to fish appeared to be a big beaver dam on the other side of the lake. I got on the dam and noticed a trail of air bubbles leading away. About a hundred a feet out, the big beaver popped up and smacked his tail to let me know that he was not happy! The beaver voiced his displeasure a few more times so I left his house after a dozen or so fruitless casts.
We continued around the lake, stopped to fish a a couple of times, and looked for signs of life…nothing. The lake looked dead…winterkill?
We had hiked six tough miles and it was time to head back. First, I scampered up to the Continental Divide (CD) for a look…it was beautiful! I ran into two backpackers that had been on the CD Trail for nearly a month and they still had a week to go! And I thought that we were having the ultimate adventure.
On the way down, I found about two pounds of meadow mushrooms above timberline. The prized chanterelles and king boletes continue to elude us.
We got back to the truck as it started to sprinkle and thunder boomed. It was a tough 11 mile day with about 3,700 feet of climbing…we were worn out!
On the way home, we saw two momma deer with two fawns each. One of the families posed for a few pictures as they slowly walked across a river gravel bar.
Wild flowers and Sunshine Peak in Cataract Gulch
Cataract Lake
Three bull moose
- Big Blue Creek, round 2
Big Blue may have tremendous trout fishing if the rumors are true. But where? We caught a bunch of small brook trout within a mile of the first parking area. Maybe it was better further downstream…or perhaps way upstream? This round we walked three miles downstream to check it out. The creek picks up a little speed as the valley narrows, but it was still a joy to fish. The water was a little high and off color due recent thunderstorms, but that didn’t effect the fishing much. We caught about 40 brook trout and 10 rainbow trout. The average brookie was 4-6 inches and the rainbows were a little bigger, 6-10 inches. We fished with a hopper and hares ear and caught 90% of them on the hares ear. I think the higher, cloudy water had something to do with that. So the mystery has been solved for the lower creek…how about the upper creek?
Make a note…our luck with the weather ran out on 2 August! When the thunder started booming, I was over two miles from the truck and had nowhere to hide. Arleen was about a mile upstream of me and thought she could beat the thunderstorm back to the truck…she was wrong and got soaked! With the first few big rain drops and loud cracks of thunder, I put on my rain suit, stashed my 9 foot long lightning rod (fishing pole) under a bush and hunkered down between two other bushes to wait it out. For about 20 minutes it fluctuated between a deluge and small hail. I just sat there on the ground enjoying a snack and drink, but one deafening boom almost made me pee my pants! I didn’t see where the lightning hit. I just saw a bright flash and heard a loud, instantaneous explosion…it was close! As is often the case with these high country thunderstorms, it didn’t last long and the sun was shining within 45 minutes. I started working my way back upstream towards the truck and ran into a gentlemen that asked if I was Shawn. He relayed Arleen’s message that she had gone back to the truck. I knew that she’d be worried so I headed back too. But first I made a quick detour or two to hunt for mushrooms…Jackpot! I found our first two king boletes in Colorado. Also known as Porcinis, they are arguably the most prized mushroom to find in this region. We hope to find many more before the season ends when fall’s chill is too much for them.
Hunting for shrooms in a mixed forest King bolete on the left and aspen boletes on the right
- Waterdog Lake
Our luck with high alpine lakes in the Lake City had not been good, but we wanted to try another one: Waterdog Lake. This is our second Waterdog Lake this summer. The first was near Monarch Pass. It was beautiful and we caught fish. Hopefully this lake would be similar.
The tough hike starts on the north edge of town and climbs about 1,600 feet in the first two miles…it was relentless. On the traipse up, we met Bob and Jan of Lake City. They shared a lot if advice about places to visit and things to see in the local area. One of our favorite things about our life style is meeting folks like Bob and Jan. The second mile traverses a beautiful mature aspen grove. We liked it so much we nearly forget how tough the hike was! Then we popped out of the aspen grove in a high meadow with an excellent view of the San Juans. We still had two miles of mainly uphill to the lake. It was still tough, but a bit easier than the first half.
The pretty lake sat in a small bowl with half surrounded by trees and the other half open with rock slides. Fly-fishermen need room behind them to make good casts, so we headed straight to the rocks. At first the lake seemed dead, but soon a good fish broke the surface, and 10 minutes later it happened again. We might have a shot! I fished over two hours and got one weak bite. Fish, a couple of them big, rose sporadically but ignored my flies. Our timing at these alpine lakes is bad…To catch trout in the middle of summer, you fish early or late, not during the brightest, warmest part of the day. Oh well. Soon things will tilt more in our favor during the glorious Rocky Mountain Fall when the trout will stay active through the day.
Edible & pretty Hawk Wing mushrooms
View of Lake City, Lake Fork, & San Juans near start We were in this aspen grove for about a mile…
At the meadow, around 10,500 feet Fishing Waterdog Lake from the rock slide
- Alpine Loop drive
This was spectacular! The campground rented Jeeps for a reasonable price so we decided to check out the Alpine Loop. Most of this primarily four-wheel drive route is above timberline. It connects Lake City to Silverton and has multiple spurs, one leads to Ouray.
Right away we saw 15 big horn sheep as we headed up Cinnamon Pass. The view from each of the four passes was incredible. We had a great lunch in Silverton and miraculously avoided thunderstorms all day. Sections of the route were really rough and definitely four-wheel drive only. There were quite a few other people traversing the passes including a bunch of ATVs. Things flowed smoothly as drivers yielded in precarious spots to let others pass. We topped on California Pass at 12,960 feet and scrambled up the nearby peak to make it to 13,000 feet…our highest yet.
This was a great way to spend the day…it was totally worth it!
Headed up to Cinnamon Pass
Cinnamon Pass at 12,640 feet A pretty waterfall near Silverton
Silverton
Hurricane Pass at 12,730 feet and Lake Como
California Pass at 12,960 feet Posing at 13,000 feet
Storm clouds over Mount Sneffels and the Uncompahgre Valley from Engineer Pass
- Campground hike
The campground had a trail that steeply switchbacks up the mountain. I wanted some exercise and made a goal to get 1,000 feet above the campground. Arleen had a nasty blister on her heel so she couldn’t join me. Thunderstorms had been hitting us all day, but I thought I could make it during a break. I thought right! The numerous distant rumbles were cool…thankfully they stayed distant. There were gnomes spread along the trail…they made me smile. The view over Lake San Cristobal was outstanding! Too bad I didn’t have more time and make it higher. I’ll bet there were tons of mushrooms up there!
Hummingbird Report
Like many RVers, we have hummingbird feeders. This summer we have been keeping track of the kinds of hummingbirds we’ve seen and posting pictures. Here is “Hummingbird Report” number three:
- Number of types: 3
- Black Chinned, Broad-tailed, Rufous
Male Rufous hummingbird Female and male Rufous
- Story Time!
The Rogue Deer…Early one morning, my four-legged friend and I walked down to the lake. It’s only about a 1/4 mile and 50 feet lower than the campground and is a pleasant walk. I took my fly rod and made two dozen or so fruitless casts. We headed back across the street and started up the steep gravel road towards the campground. A very pretty, fairly large doe was 30-40 feet away and we slowly strolled on by as we have with many deer. My hund was excited but stayed quiet and right next to me. The deer started following us. Maybe we had a new friend that would follow us home…cute! The deer slowly crept closer, even more so when I turned my back. She got within 10-15 feet and I didn’t think it was cute anymore! I faced her, waved my hands, and told her to leave. She stood her ground and was clearly agitated. I threw a couple of rocks at her feet and she didn’t budge…she was focused on my hund. So now I’m on edge, my dog is on edge, and the deer is on edge…it’s a dangerous situation. I yelled at her to leave and almost poked her a couple of times with my 9 foot fly rod to no avail. Then I bounced a rock off her side and she shot about 20 feet into the woods and came charging back! At that point, my dog slipped out of his collar and chased the deer about a hundred yards up the road where the deer made a 90 degree left turn and scampered up the steep hill. I was running towards them but way behind and yelling my dog’s name over and over. My dog decided not to chase the deer up the hill and started running back towards me…Thank God! That deer dropped back down to the road and started coming after us again! Now there was some space between us so I got my dog’s collar back on and started running away from the deer across the bridge to some cabins. That freakin’ deer followed us across the bridge! It stopped at the driveway and just stared at us. After five minutes or so, the deer slowly walked back across the bridge. My only route back was right towards the crazy deer. I stayed by the cabins for a good 15 minutes, my nerves were frazzled. Occasionally I could see the deer wondering around on the other side of the lake and I did not want another confrontation. Finally, I noticed a guy sitting on his deck looking out at the lake. He witnessed the entire event and said he had never seen anything like it. I barrowed his phone and called Arleen for a ride home.
I know male deer, moose, and other hooved critters can be dangerous during the rut. But females can also be dangerous if they think their little ones are threatened. My guess is that the very pretty, very healthy doe had fawns nearby and considered us, especially my dog, a threat. Odds of a confrontation are minimal but I think I’ll carry pepper spray from now on!
Next we will spend five weeks near Creede, Colorado. By the time we leave, we will know the upper Rio Grande intimately.
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