After above average temperatures throughout the month of August, no rain-fall, and a smoky valley from the Pine Gulch Fire, we decided we needed a short escape from the heat. We loaded up the car on a Friday evening after work and drove up the Colbran side of the Grand Mesa, making our way to the Big Creek Campground near the top, with hopes to climb Leon Peak the next day.
Normally we take the turn at Colbran onto 58.5 Rd to head up to the National Forest, however we decided to turn at Plateau Valley, a mile earlier. This route allowed us to see a field of domestic elk from the Plateau Valley Elk Ranch, settling in for the night just as the sun was starting to set. As we made our way to Big Creek, the sun had just passed the horizon, offering a beautiful view of the lake surrounded by pink clouds. Having arrived at our campsite at nightfall, we were surprised to see that much of the campground was muddy and that it was only 47 degrees. This was quite a change driving a little over an hour from Grand Junction, where it was 90 degrees and very dry.
During the night it rained on and off and we woke up to more mud and a light drizzle. It was wonderful to finally see rain in Mesa County, but the rain and mud deterred us from attempting our original plan to summit Leon Peak. There was a break between storms, offering enough time to take the pups for a short walk over the dam of Big Creek Reservoir. From the damn we could see another storm moving in and it began misting again. We headed back to the comforts of the camper and decided that it looked as though it may rain all day, and with that we pack up and decided to cut the trip short and head home.
After driving a few miles from Big Creek Reservoir the storm lifted and we saw the sun poke through the clouds. We decided to take a detour over to the Cottonwood Lakes to scout out the campground for future trips. Oddly, the road into Cottonwood Lakes was dry; the storm just missed this area the night before. Since the sun was shining and the roads were dry, we decided to hike the Lily Lake trail before heading home.
Parking at cottonwood Reservoir #4 we hiked across the damn over to the Lily Lake trail. The trail was nearly impassible with down trees covering every few feet. We hiked straight up the hillside and down to Lily Lake, then took the trail into the Cottonwood campground and looped back to the road to get back to the car; hiking just over a 2 mile loop. Walking through the Cottonwood campground, we noticed all the empty sites and the sun was still shining, so we decided to set up camp one more time and finish out the weekend.
Our campsite was peaceful as we were the only ones in our loop. We ate lunch and enjoyed the remainder of the afternoon basking in the sun, doing a little yoga, reading, and taking a walk over to Cottonwood Reservoir #1. Just as we were preparing to set up the grill and start cooking dinner, there was a clap of thunder and suddenly it was hailing. I had to move my car into a grove of trees at the neighboring site to try to avoid the hail damage. Soon it was a downpour of rain and more thunder. We harbored away in the camper until it was all clear to make dinner. In the meantime asking ourselves, “why did we decide to set up camp again?”
Finally the rain stopped and we warmed up with a hot meal; creamy mashed potatoes, beef Tri-Tip, and asparagus. On another note, my husband’s idea to keep my car out of the hail worked.
We topped off the day with a sunset hike over to Cottonwood Reservoir, which was roughly 1.5 miles round trip from our campsite. Looking across the lake we saw the ridge line of Crag Crest Trail, dusted with snow that was brought in from the pre-dinner storm. There was a chill in the air, a sign that fall has finally arrived. With the low snow-pack from last winter and a long drought, I welcome an early winter in the mountains and may Mother Nature bring a heavy snow fall to replenish our rivers, lakes, and streams next season.
