Colorado Trail Day 16. Thursday, August 14, 2025.
We camped at a low elevation of 2,570 meters (8,432 ft), and the temperature was 18°C (64°F) when it got dark yesterday. It was a warm night, and the temperature didn’t drop below 14°C (57°F).
There were only two tents at the campground we stayed at, which had a bear-resistant metal locker where we stored our food for the night.
We started hiking at 6:30 a.m. Since we camped in a valley, the hike always begins with an ascent. This one was only 270 meters (886 ft), but unlike previous cool mornings, it was warm from the start. We were really hot by the time we reached a viewpoint and the trail flattened out.
The trail now passed through an open and airy pine forest, likely Ponderosa pine, which we’ve hiked through before on the Arizona Trail. This type of forest offers better views and often has small, open clearings.
There was a lot of gray and black dust on the trail, and we could see that flames had once scorched many trees black near the ground. This area had been part of a controlled burn of the undergrowth, a method used to manage the forest. Flammable material on the ground is burned in a controlled manner to reduce the risk of future wildfires. A sign on the trail told us we were entering such an area.
Today, for the first time on the hike, we saw cows. We first heard their mooing, then saw cow manure on the ground, and finally, we came across these black cows and their calves. They were spread out over an area of many kilometers (miles). Luckily, there were no angry bulls among them.
We also saw falcons and two grouse today. We see squirrels all the time, of many different types. Today, we saw a large black squirrel with a huge bushy tail. It reminded me of a cat as it ran wide-legged across the trail in front of us and darted behind a pine trunk, before its curious black head popped out to look at us. Yesterday we saw a rabbit, and the day before that, a hare.
Today’s trail was rolling, going up and down without any really long climbs, but we still gained over 1,000 meters (3,281 ft) of elevation.
In this warm weather—it was 28°C (82°F)—we expected a thunderstorm. We were right. We heard it ahead and to our left around midday. It passed us, and we only got a few drops of rain. We were lucky to avoid it, and the positive side was that the temperature dropped to a more pleasant 21°C (70°F).
We had planned to reach the Angel of Shavano Campground as our goal for the day. It’s located, of course, in a valley, and a dusty gravel road leads up to it for cars. This particular campground was staffed, and we got an area all to ourselves. Thru-hikers on the Colorado Trail and Continental Divide Trail can stay here for free.
The campground has no sanitation facilities other than toilets, and there is no electricity or running water. It’s quite different from a typical European «camping site.»
It got a bit cooler during the thunderstorm, but when we descended into the valley to the campground, it got really hot again.
Today’s hike was 25 km (about 15.5 miles) with 1,020 meters (3,346 ft) of elevation gain.
We are now camping at 2,800 meters (9,186 ft).