The Weninuche Wilderness to be precise, and the walk was more like a hike. This adventure took me into the wilderness along the Vallecito River. I only had a few hours to get as far in and back out as I could, as this was a last minute decision.
The trail takes you up very quickly along switchbacks on the west side of the mountain.
The trail circles round to the east side of the mountain with more switchbacks and then on a more gradual decent towards the river. The river from here is still 500' down this Cliffside.
The first view of my elusive prey.
Once at the river, the trail follows pretty close along it's banks. I followed it for a mile or so in hopes of finding a waterfall, but alas none were to be found. However, what I did find was a wild and beautiful Rocky Mountain River.
I stopped at various spots along the river to photograph it.
Some were a easy step off the trail to the rivers edge and some were a scramble down a 50' ledge.
But after all the shots were taken, I was able to just kick back on a boulder in the middle of the river and enjoy the scenic beauty for a bit before heading back out.
The Weninuche wilderness is approx. 500,000 acres in the southern San Juan Mountains of Colorado. I must say the area is beautiful and very rugged as you would expect. The trail was quite rough and almost did me in, and that was only a 6 or so mile hike. I guess the fact that I haven't really hiked a trail like this one in almost 7 years and just being a tad (or more) out of shape didn't help matters any. However, it was well worth the physical struggle to see such an amazing place!!!
Thanks for taking the time to visit and we'll see you here again.
