Muddy Buddy Thursday on the Piedra River trail

[Thursday photos]

We've continued to get the daily "monsoon" rainfall here in Pagosa Springs and in the high country to the north.  This makes the hiking trails a little soggy to say the least.

Our chosen hike for today was the Piedra River - which is one that we've done before several times in varying degrees.  Amy and Matt have hiked the whole thing from end to end (they says it's 11 miles) from the First Fork trailhead to the Piedra River trailhead.  But typically we start at the Piedra River trailhead and do an "out and back" hike where we stop at some point in the middle and come back.

It's a fantastically diverse trail with something to please (and potentially make nervous) everyone. On this trail you get to...

• walk right along the rushing rapids of the Piedra River - even dip your toes in if you are so inclined
• hike hundreds of feet above the River on narrow cuts into the hillside
• make your way across big wildflower meadows alive with insects and birds
• walk/scamper over huge rocks
• make your way through boulders as big as a house
• cross rushing rivers on iron bridges that had to be helicoptered in
• explore rock formations of all different colors and types
• make your way through mushy marshy bits
• tiptoe through thistle gardens
• climb up to amazing heights and amazing views

Unlike some other hikes this one doesn't have any specific "reward" that awaits you (like a waterfall or lake or rock formation).  But in its place it has all the wonderful nuggets mentioned above.  You hike this trail just for the joy of discovering what's "just up ahead".  

Even though they call it an easy hike - you need to have the proper footwear and clothing.  As you make your way across the variety of terrain you'll encounter gravel, sand, mud, loose rocks, big rocks, grass, thistles, plants taller than you.  There are several spots where it's "one lane" and you should be prepared to meet other hikers or allow faster folks to pass you by.  You'll have to step up, down or off the trail to do this.

We got going about 8 AM and hit the trailhead about 8:30 or so.

But enough background stuff...we decide to hike Trail 596 from the Piedra River trailhead to what we're calling the "Switchbacks".  It's a cliff where you wind your way down to a metal bridge that crosses the Weimenuche Creek (which empties into the Piedra River).  It's the point at which Trail 595 branches off to the north.  To get there you drop down into the Piedra River Valley and basically keep the river on your left.

As you drop into the valley you encounter almost all of the items I mention in the list above.  Then you encounter a metal bridge where Williams Creek empties into the Piedra.  That's a favorite turnaround point for many (a 3.5 mile round trip) so the trail beyond is less used (but still very visible).

We continued on past the first bridge across a marshy meadow and had some fun cliff-hugging bits that caused us to tread carefully on the narrow path.  We encountered a healthy thistle forest that made us wish we wore long pants.  Though the sun and beautiful mostly sunny sky made us happy we opted for the shorts.  What's a few scratches between friends?  

A stock trail called Trail 583 branches off to the north and parallels our 596 trail for a bit.  The thistle blooms and butterflies and bees were particularly active along this stretch and provided plenty of photo opportunities.

The 596 and 583 trail have a "Y" and the 583 goes off to the left and crosses the Piedra River on a metal bridge.  We opted for the 596 trail and came across some dramatic black rock formations and some more cliff-hugging.

Eventually we topped the ridge and found our switchbacks.  We hiked out to the end of the promontory and snapped some photos to show that we reached our destination.  It was also time to empty the shoes and try to dislodge some of the mud we'd picked up on the way.  We're not sure but this looks like it's about 4.5 miles from the trailhead - so this definitely is our longest (though not most strenuous) hike of this trip.

With our footwear loads thusly lightened and a little rest - we headed back the way we came and checked out all the scenery that was in our rear-view mirror on the way in (figuratively speaking).  Once again we were thankful that the Lord led us to make an early start - because the summer sun was kicking in by then (about noon).  We met a lot of people coming into the trail (and passed some heading out).

We returned and had lunch - and looked out the window to see dark blue over that area.  I hope everyone had their rain gear because I'm sure they were getting another downpour.