In The Shadow of Longs Peak
Monday 11 August 2025
Overnight, the wind calms. The air is still this morning. We are up around 7; I make coffee and Gary cooks breakfast. We eat, get our stuff packed and are ready to go before 8:30. Jay and Jane have already left for the put-in. Leslie has arrived. Jud and David are ready. I walk down to Karla’s site. She, too, is ready.
We caravaned to the put-in, a ten-minute drive west along US 50, to the Dillion Pinnacles Trailhead. A rough road takes us the last ¼ mile to the water.
The wind is calm and the water still. We are ready to go, but first do introductions and a safety review, then off we go!
After yesterday’s wind, I am surprised and pleased by how calm the water is. The sun is out, and the sky is blue. Some haze in the distance from the Black Canyon fire.
We head west and it seems like in no time we are at the entrance to the West Elk Creek arm. This is the shorter of the two arms, so we decide to bypass it for now. We continue westward to the Soap Creek Arm and turn in.
The wind continues to be calm and the water still. At some point, David and I head to the far bank for a quick break. As we head over to join the others, we see that Jud has started back to the put-in to take advantage of the calm waters, as the wind is due to pick up in the early afternoon.
We begin to think about a short break or a lunch break. Jane finds a nice spot along a shallow bank, but we have not yet reached the end of this arm, so I continue. The arm continues to narrow and there are skeletons of cottonwoods along the way. After 10 minutes or so, I come to the end with an incoming flow from Soap Creek.
I turned back and see that Gary came on this additional adventure as well. Once back with the group, I get out for a quick stretch and a snack for lunch. Everyone is getting back in the boats and starting back. We try to outpace the wind that has started to pick up.
The trip out seems longer as it always does but we are back at the beginning of the arm and turn eastward. The wind has picked up some but, so far, is not too strong.
At the mouth to the West Elk Creek Arm, there is some discussion as to whether we should simply head back or explore this arm as well. Gary, Karla, Jay and I opt for the additional exploration. There is a remote camp setup on the west side, near the canyon mouth and it looks to be a good camping location, protected from the prevailing winds from the west and south.
Karla and Jay stop about halfway and start back.
It does not take long to get to the end, where Gary and I can see the flow from the West Elk Creek. We turn and start back. Almost immediately, there is a gust of wind that stops me in my tracks. Maybe this extra excursion is not such a good idea. But it turns out not to be sustained high wind, only a single gust, and we continue paddling.
Once out of the arm, we turn east. The wind is not quite at our back, coming from the southwest and we need to go east. We zig-zag, paddling across the waves then perpendicular to them. Progress is slow, but there is progress.
I am surprised at what seems like a short distance this morning is much longer on the return. We paddle past point after point. We can see the bridge. Our takeout is on this side of the bridge but is not in sight. We continue.
Suddenly cars at the access point come into sight! I breathe a sigh of relief but there seem so far away!
More zig-zagging. More paddling. We are making progress but still so much farther to go!
I look to my right to see Karla and Jay closer to the shore. I slow up to stay with them but staying further out in the lake to not crowd them.
And finally, we are all in the small cove at the access point. Karla and Jay take out. Gary is ahead and finding a place where he can get out of the boat. And finally, I stick the bow of my boat up on the gravel bank and get out.
Tiring for sure, but a good paddle!
Other folks have loaded their boats and now it is our turn. Gary runs up to get the truck.
Before leaving, Leslie asks about tomorrow and we decide that 8:30 at our camp will be the meeting time. And our destination will be the Cebolla Arm, starting at the Bay of Chickens, a day-use area,
Karla is only paddling today, so once loaded, she heads back home.
We load, tie everything down, and are on our way.
Back at camp, it’s pretty windy but our tent is in place. We organize paddling gear and get ready for tomorrow. Gary makes Chicken Cordone Bleu in the dutch oven, an easy supper and good choice after a full day of paddling.
Jud and David come over and we socialize. They will leave in the morning, which is too bad since David thought the Cebolla Arm looked like a good destination.
Once the sun sinks and it gets chilly, I crawl into the tent. It does not take long to fall asleep.
Tuesday 12 August 2025
Again, the wind calms overnight, and the air is still this morning. We are up around 7, make coffee and breakfast, eat, and are ready to go by 8:30. Jay and Jane have already left. Now, it’s only Leslie and us and we head over to Bay of Chickens, just west of the main Elk Creek area.
There is a wide beach here and only one other vehicle, so we have plenty of room to unload and get ready. We do move the truck further up the beach so as not to block water access for others.
Before long, we are ready and on our way. We paddle south across the lake and then down-lake for less than a mile. We approach the Cebolla Arm, turn in and follow it as it angles back southeast. The wind keeps kicking up as we head into it, and I wonder how strong it will get. We continue back. Once the arm narrows, there are a number of skeleton cottonwood trees, like those in the Soap Creek Arm yesterday. On one, is a large bird, perhaps an osprey. Gary sees a bald eagle.
We paddle on. It is not calm but also not very windy, and always in our face.
We can hear rapids in the distance and before long I see water flowing into the arm. I paddle up as close as I can, then turn around.
Now we are headed back, looking for a place to get out for lunch. We bypass a few, as they seem silty and muddy. Up ahead on the right is a patch that looks like a sandy beach, and we head over there. It looks like blue-green algae in the water, and we are careful to avoid that.
After lunch, we head back.
There is a duck swimming by us, perhaps a merganser.
The wind is still in our face. I wonder what the crossing will be like.
As we approach the opening, it does not seem to be too windy. The wind is at our back and we are pushed across.
Once there, I realize just how tired I am. We get out, quickly load up boats and drive back to camp.
I forgot to talk about paddling plans for the next day and I am not even sure how the plan was hatched, and Wednesday’s plan is to put in at the Willow access at 8:45, paddle down-lake to the area west of the campground then back. But we need to inform Leslie.
Once back at camp, I tried to text/email/call Leslie but found I did not have cell service. We went over to the visitor center, but they did not have wifi. Next, I wandered over to Jay and Jane’s camp. They did have cell service and emailed Leslie.
In the meantime, Gary started the coals and prepared the pizza for tonight’s supper. Very yummy. I think he should be in charge of pizza making.
As it turned out, Leslie drove over. Plans for the next day were shared and all was well.
Toward sunset, we walked down to the walk-in tent area. I took photos of the setting sun and its reflection across the water. It has been more hazy and smoky today so I was expecting quite a show of color. A few boats went by and I tried to capture their wake, but they were too far away. We’ll see how they come out.
Thursday 14 August 2025
Pack up and go home day!
Finally, we sleep till 8. Get up and make coffee and breakfast of sausages. We pack up and put away at a leisurely pace and drive away by 11 or so.
We stop in Poncha Springs to see Lori and her new home. She serves lunch and I feel like I really pig out! But I am sooooo hungry! We arrive back at my place at about 6. It takes about 30 minutes to unload everything then end the adventure with a cocktail and tray of cheese enchiladas that waited in the freezer for our return.
Wednesday 13 August 2025
Again, the wind calms overnight, and the air is still this morning. We are up around 7 to make coffee and breakfast. We eat and are ready to go by 8:30. Jay and Jane and Leslie are already there when we arrive.
I am taken by surprise by how tired I feel when I get out of the truck.
We unload and unpack and get ready to paddle. I take time to thank everyone for coming on this exploratory adventure.
Once on the water, we head west and down-lake. We pass high rock walls like those in Cebolla Canyon.
We are not that far from the marina, but I am wearing thin. Should I turn around? At the marina, I decide to get out and simply wait there for Gary to come and get me. But it is hot and the marina seems to have a population of men who like to cuss whoever is nearby.
After an hour, the group returns. I back on the water and paddle back. I am quite a bit slower but persevere.
It’d about 4 miles to the put-in and we are back in 90 minutes, load up the boats, and head back to camp.
It continues to be hot. We relax in the shade of the only tree at camp. Gary makes his chicken casserole for supper.
Toward sunset, we again walk down to the walk-in tent area but in a slightly different place where I can get closer to the water. I took more photos of the setting sun and its reflection across the water.
There is a ranger talk that we attended on the history of Gunnison, Blue Mesa, and Black Canyon of the Gunnison. There is a town west of the lake named Cimarron that has displays of the narrow-gauge railroad they tried to build thru the canyon.
Again, it has cooled and the wind has died down. We sleep well.
Blue Mesa Reservoir and Curecanti Recreation Area
10 August 2025 to 14 August 2025
A paddling outing with the Rocky Mountain Canoe Club to Blue Mesa / Curecanti Recreation Area. We are the trip organizers.
Impressions: Since we went during the week, there were not many other people. The ranger warned us that blue-green algae was present in the Iona Bay area. It was very hot during the day which was ok when on the water but made it too hot to think about hiking. The wind came up after noontime each day and was mostly out of the west / southwest. The water was clear, and access points were solid, so we launched each day without sinking in. The landscape reminds me of the Wyoming side of Flaming Gorge, except with more trees. There are only a handful of arms and coves for exploring but there may be more at higher water. Not many birds and waterfowl compared to Flaming Gorge. Lots of rock outcroppings, many seem to be layered and uplifted so the rock seams are perpendicular to the water.
Things to do different: Have the next days’ plan scoped out at the end of the previous paddle when we get out and talk about it before everyone takes off. Try to have a later start the last day but that is condition dependent. Have a potluck night after the first paddle in order to socialize. Stay at the Dry Gulch camp, a much nicer setting in a Grove of cottonwoods
Sunday 10 August 2025
Our go-to preplanning for out-of-town paddling trips begins with packing and loading boats and gear the day before, and this trip was no exception. So, on Sunday when Gary arrived around 10 AM, we only needed to load the coolers into the truck and my personal items.
After a quick stop at Wholefoods in Longmont for supper (sushi, of course) and were headed out of town just after 10:30 AM.
Our driving route took us to Boulder where we picked up CO 93 south to Golden, then C-470, then US 285 which we took southwest thru South Park and Johnson City to Poncha Springs. There, we turn onto US 50 west , over Monarch Pass, thru Gunnison and on to Blue Mesa Reservoir and the Curecanti Recreation Area where our reservation is for campsite (A37) in the Elk Creek Campground.
It's Sunday and there is lots of traffic headed back from the mountains to Denver on US 285 including an accident as we drive thru Bailey; we are lucky to be traveling in the opposite direction.
We arrived at Blue Mesa around 4 PM and began setting up camp. I spy Jay & Jane across the way in loop B. Soon David arrives then Jud and they work to get Jud’s camper setup.
Oh, somewhere along the way the wind starts in and continues to pick up as we go and it’s more than a bit windy by the time we arrive at camp. The Elk Creek campground is very open, without trees for cover. Gary is concerned about setting up the big tent. But we use the truck as a windbreak and set the tent up on the lee side.
Leslie arrived yesterday and is staying at a nearby cabin. Dennis had car problems, so ended up cancelling. Karla lives in Fruita, only a couple of hours away and later, I see her car a few sites down from us.
Soon, it’s suppertime. Afterward, folks wander over (Leslie drives over) and we discuss the mornings’ plan. We decided to start at the Dillion Pinnacles access point and paddle the two arms, Soap Creek and West Elk Creek. We’ll meet at our campsite at 9 AM though Jay and Jane will meet us at the putin.
It’s still windy when we go to bed. But, at least, it is not too hot and once the sun went down, and it’s cool enough to put on hats, slacks, and warm jackets.