Hiking around Durango, Colorado can be as diverse and magnificent as the landscape itself. From a short
day hike taking only a few hours, to an adventurous backpacking trip taking a few days, there is something
for everyone. Enjoy desert hikes with ancient Anasazi ruins or summit high mountain peaks with
spectacular views, all within a few hours drive of Durango. For the purposes of this site hiking has been
divided into 3 main categories of day hikes, backpacking, and 14ers. If you enjoy hiking and have never
visited the southwestern region of Colorado, you are truly missing out on experiences and breathtaking
beauty that can last for a lifetime!
Day hikes, including any hike that can be accomplished easily within a day.
This could be an adventure that takes up a major portion of the day or
merely a couple hours. In Colorado it is always best to be prepared,
even for a day hike that will only take an hour or two. It is a good idea to
let someone know where you are going, take water, and bring layers of
clothing with rain gear.
Below is a list of some of the popular trails around Durango that are
great for taking a day hike, a few of the trails are also good for longer
adventures if you have the time!
Few Hours Drive
Boggy Draw
Canyon of the Ancients
Highland Mary Lakes
Arrastra Gulch to Silver Lake
Handies Peak
Hope Lake
Backpacking trips, including any hiking trip where you carry all
your camping gear in a pack to stay for an over night trip in
the great outdoors. This could be a single night, returning
back to the comfort of you home after two days or...
possibly an adventure where you are planning to spend
several nights camping outside in the wilderness.
This kind of hiking trip takes more planning, preparation
and time. It requires you to be in better physical shape,
especially endurance wise. More gear is also needed.
A few thing I personally would never go on a
backpacking trip without include: a few bottles of water,
a lighter/matches, rain gear, a good compass,
comfortable broke-in hiking boots, warm clothing, and a
water filter. These items are far from the only things that I
would be packing with me, but those are a few of the
essentials.
If you have never done a backpacking trip or are new to the area I
would STRONGLY advise going with someone who has, for safety
and self preservation. I would also recommend planning a trip like
this in mid to late summer. This IS Colorado and it is not that
uncommon for it to snow in the mountains even in mid and late
summer. Although I do love my day hikes, backpack trips are by far
one of my favorite types of hiking trips to do! It is always an amazing
adventure and a great way to get in shape.
In this region of Colorado the amount of trails available for backpacking
is virtually limitless! Below is a list of some popular trails for backpacking
trips around the Durango area of Colorado.
In the southwest region of Colorado, there are some mountain summits that span above 14,000 feet near
Durango. “A land of endless mountains... NO other range in the contiguous United States contains as
much land above 10,00 feet as do the San Juan Mountains (Borneman and Lyndon1992).” Below is a list
of the mountain peaks that reach over 14,000 feet in the San Juan Mountain Range.
14ers in the
San Juans
Windom Peak (14,082 ft)
Mount Eolus (14,083 ft)
Sunlight Peak (14,059 ft)
Mount Wilson (14,246 ft)
Wilson Peak (14,017 ft)
El Diente Peak (14,159 ft)
Sunshine Peak (14,001 ft)
Redcloud Peak (14,0034 ft)
Handies Peak (14,048 ft)
Mount Sneffels (14,150 ft)
Uncompahgre Peak (14,309 ft)
Wetterhorn Peak (14,015 ft)
San Luis Peak (14,014 ft)
Near Town
Few Hours Drive
Continental Divide Trail
Fourmile Lake Loop
Vallecito Creek Trail
View San Juan Mountains 14ers in a larger map
Windom Peak: 14,082 feet
Sunlight Peak: 14,059 feet
Mount Eolus: 14,083 feet
Three fourteeners are found in the rugged, craggy Needle
Mountains: Windom Peak, Sunlight Peak, and Mount Eolus.
Although these fourteeners are the closest to Durango, they
are also the most isolated in terms of trying to reach. These
peaks are seldom viewed by the causal tourist being
accessible only by long hiking trails in the Weminuche
Wilderness. Believe it or not, the most commonly used and
practical approach for climbing these fourteeners begins with
a ride on the Durango to Silverton Narrow Gauge train! This
approach cuts off miles of long, long hiking from trail heads
that can be reached by roads. With proper planning it is
possible to climb all three of these 14ners in the same trip.
Needle Mountains Fourteeners
The Needle Mountains
Photographer: James Hobby
Lizard Head Wilderness Fourteeners
Mount Wilson: 14,246 feet
El Diente Peak: 14,159 feet
Wilson Peak: 14,017 feet
There are 3 fourteeners found within the Lizard Head
Wilderness southwest of Telluride and are all in very close
proximity to each other: Mount Wilson (14,246 feet), El Diente
(14,159 feet), and Wilson Peak (14,017 feet). These 3
fourteeners are far from being an easy ascent, rating very
high on the difficulty and danger levels. In fact, both Mount
Wilson and El Diente rate within the top 10 most difficult
14ners in all of Colorado! Mount Wilson and El Diente Peak
are joined by a connecting ridge making it possible to summit
both of these 14ners together, which makes for a very long
day due to the difficult terrain. Wilson Peak is located just
North of the El Diente - Mount Wilson ridge. Summiting
Wilson Peak is a shorter accent if starting from the Sliver Pick
Mine, making it roughly a 2 mile hike, with a 3,000 foot ascent.
View of Mount Wilson & Wilson Peak
Photo taken between 1907-1910
Hinsdale County Fourteeners
Sunshine Peak: 14,001 feet
Redcloud Peak: 14,034 feet
Handies Peak: 14,048 feet
There are 3 fourteeners found in Hinsdale county just
southwest of Lake City: Sunshine Peak, Redcloud Peak
and Handies Peak. The Sunshine and Redcloud Peaks are
only about a mile and a half apart. Sunshine is the
southern 14ner while Redcloud is the northern 14ner
running along the same ridge line. Handies Peak is roughly
5 miles to the west of Sunshine Peak. Ascents of Sunshine
and Redcloud can be done in the same day. Handies is far
enough away from these 2 peaks to require a separate trip
or day to summit. Traditionally the ascent of Redcloud and
Sunshine begins at Silver Creek trailhead, 6 miles past Mill
Creek Campground, near Lake City. To climb Handies
Peak the regular approach begins on the American Basin’s
West slope, roughly 23 miles from Lake City.
View of Mount Redcloud Peak
Photo by: Colorado Parks & Wildlife
Mount Sneffels Fourteener
Mount Sneffels: 14,150 feet
Mount Sneffels is one of the most photographed mountain peaks
in all of Colorado. It can be seen while driving over Dallas Divide
on highway 62. The peak is located about 5 miles West of Ouray,
Colorado. The most common ascent of this fourteener begins a
few miles past the Camp Bird Mine, at the townsite of Sneffels
where the trail leads into the Yankee Boy Basin. The hike from
the town of Sneffels to the summit is roughly 3 1/2 miles with a
gain of 3,500 feet. If snow, please note: during the ascent of this
peak it is important to survey for avalanche danger. Mount
Sneffels was named after Mount Snaefell, described in Jules
Verne’s book, Journey to the Center of the Earth (a large volcano
located in Iceland).
View of Mount Sneffels
Photo by: Debivort @ wikipedia
Uncompahgre & Wetterhorn Fourteeners
Uncompahgre Peak: 14,309 feet
Wetterhorn Peak: 14,015 feet
Uncompahgre and Wetterhorn peaks are less and 3 miles apart
and located Northwest of Lake City, Colorado. Uncompahgre is a
Ute word meaning “hot water spring.” The Uncompahgre Peak is
the tallest fourteener in the San Jaun Mountains and the 6th
highest peak in all of Colorado. Despite its size the
Uncompahgre is a much simpler ascent than Wetterhorn due to
terrain. Many people come to summit the Uncompahgre peak
alone approaching from the Nellie Creek drainage at the
beginning of Big Blue Wilderness boundary. Uncompahgre can
be summited from this approach in 3 miles with an ascent of
2,900 feet. It is possible to summit both of these fourteeners
within the same trip approaching from Matterhorn Creek
drainage, making for a very long day at 13 miles round trip and
an elevation gain of 7,450 feet.
View of Uncompahgre Peak
Photo from wikipedia
San Luis Peak Fourteener
San Luis Peak: 14,014 feet
The San Luis Peak is a lone fourteener that lies about 10 miles North of Creede, Colorado. This
fourteener is located in the La Garita Wilderness of the Rio Grande National Forest. The San Luis Peak
is noted as one of the hardest fourteeners to get to in
Colorado, the climb itself is fairly straight forward with mild
terrain compared to many others, but it is resting in an area 2
hours from the nearest paved road. The hardest part of this
fourteener is reaching the trail head. When approaching from
the Gunnison side it is over a 60 mile trip in a vehicle on
unpaved non-maintained roads. This approach allows for a
summit in single day without the need for backpacking. From
the Stewart Creek trailhead to the summit is roughly 6 miles
with a gain of 3,500 feet in elevation. Another approach can
be taken from the Lake City side. This cuts down driving time
immensely but will require more hiking, making it a better
backpacking trip than a day hike. From the trailhead at Spring
Creek to the summit is about 9 miles with a gain of 5,000 feet.
View from San Luis Peak
Photo from wikipedia
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