Peak to Peak Scenic Byway (June-July 2012)

Written by ceddammit

Given everything you’ve seen on this blog to date, I’m sure you’d all agree that Colorado is a very scenic place. Thus, it should come as no surprise to learn the state government has designated some of Colorado’s roads as official Colorado Scenic Byways. The first to be designated was the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway, which was established clear back in 1918. It runs from Black Hawk in the south to Estes Park in the north, a distance of some 55 miles. The state Department of Transportation calls this an 80-minute drive. But I’m not a normal human being; I spent four days exploring the Peak to Peak route, and only covered about half of it. Why did it take me so long? Well, first and most obviously, I made a lot of stops to take a lot of pictures. But the big factor here was history. As noted above, this byway was designated in 1918. And there are some big differences between mountain roads built in the 1910’s and mountain highways built during my lifetime. So, not surprisingly, there have been multiple construction projects over the years aimed at converting the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway to modern state highway specifications. As a result, there are many, many old alignments of the Peak to Peak Byway that have been converted to parking / overlooks, reclassified as municipal roads, or completely abandoned. These old stretches of the road have always fascinated me, so in June of 2012, I set out on a mission of discovery to walk or drive as much of the former roadway as possible. I started at Nederland, Colorado (west of Boulder) and slowly worked my way north on state highway 72. Let’s have a look at what I saw…

Looking through the trees towards Barker Reservoir.
Remnants of a mine just outside of Nederland, Colorado
Old cable sticking up out th’ ground at an old mine site
Piece of china at an old mine site
Recent beaver activity
Series of beaver dams paralleling a stretch of Colorado Hwy 72
Looking up a series of beaver dams
Old silver (?) mine a couple miles north of Nederland
You can see an old boiler and other stuff on top of the tailings pile.
Old mine adit (horizontal entrance)
Mine structures a couple miles north of Nederland
Mine structures a couple miles north of Nederland
Mine structures a couple miles north of Nederland
Mine structures a couple miles north of Nederland
Mine structures a couple miles north of Nederland
Mine structure a couple miles north of Nederland
This appears to be an old homestead and/or ranch house.
This stands next to a county road just off the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway
Welcome to…ummm…Cedric’s car?
Peak to Peak Scenic Byway near Nederland, Colorado (Photographed June 8, 2012)

That’s the end of Day One. But fear not! I returned a mere two days later, to pick up where I had left off. And just where had I left off? Thanks for asking! I had left off just before what I consider to be the most scenic stretch of the road itself. (There are overlooks near the road that are more scenic, but this stretch is the best scenery you’ll see without getting out of your car.) Check it out:

Look at that sky!
OK, I left the car for this one.
I didn’t notice the raven at the top as I was taking this picture.
Peak to Peak Scenic Byway, Colorado, U.S.A. (Photographed June 10, 2012)

And now we get to what I was really out here for: the stretches of pre-highway road that can still be explored. We start with what is one of the best-preserved sections, due largely to the fact that it is now a U.S. Forest Service road that leads to multiple camping sites. Let us explore this bit o’ history:

Here you see what appear to be 3 foundations for a guard rail.
Old guard rail foundation.
More old guard rail foundations
Looking down from the modern highway, you can see the old route.
old silver mine

Wasn’t that a lovely little jaunt? Oh, well…time to return to the modern highway…

An old mine right next to a modern highway cut
Someone picked an inopportune place to make a U-turn.
Abandoned stretch of pre-highway road, being reclaimed by the forest.
There are several places along the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway where the old route went out around an outcropping, and the modern road cuts through the outcropping instead. This is probably the most plainly visible example.

We now find ourselves directly across a small valley from a mountain known as Grassy Top. If the name Grassy Top sounds familiar, it may be because I’ve brought you here before. As you may and/or mayn’t recall, the slopes of Grassy Top once hosted part of the “Switzerland Trail” – a.k.a. the Colorado & Northwestern Railway, which ran from Boulder to Ward, Colorado. This railroad officially went out of business in 1920. As long as we’re here, let’s take another look at ol’ Grassy Top:

Looking down at a section of the old “Switzerland Trail” railroad
Another view of the C & NW grade as it winds around Grassy Top.
Looking up Grassy Top, just south of Ward, Colorado.
Looking up Grassy Top, just south of Ward, Colorado.
Mountain meadow on the south side of Grassy Top
Cool creepy trees
Grassy Top segment of C&NW looking into a rock cut
Never seen rocks like this in a rock cut, nor rocks like…
…this petrified accordion.
Looking from the lower rock cut towards the upper rock cut.
More of the old railroad grade on the opposite side of the valley
Cool rock formation on the left, gold mine on the right
The upper rock cut. 110 years ago, trains were rolling through here.
Grassy Top, near Ward, Colorado (photographed June 10, 2012)

Thus endeth Day Two of my exploration of the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway. And I did not return until nearly a month later. The weather when I returned was a rare type in Colorado: an overcast and rainy day. But a drive along the Peak to Peak looks good in nearly any weather. See for yourself:

The clouds are eating the mountain!
Another stretch of the old road
Grassy Top again. This area looks to have undergone re-vegetation.
The peak of Grassy Top
An old bridge along an abandoned section of the old road
Another old stretch of the road, with clouds eating the forest
The old gold mining town of Ward, Colorado, seen from Peak to Peak
Mine in the mist
One of two rainfalls that I enjoyed from inside the car
This thing stands at the entrance to someone’s driveway along Boulder County Road 100.

My next stop was at one of the many places where the current highway cuts into a mountain as it rounds a bend. I walked down the embankment, hoping to find another small stretch of old alignment. What I found was the most primitive (and thus I assume oldest) bit o’ road I had yet found along the Peak to Peak. I would bet this road predates the 1918 designation of the scenic byway. I followed this long-abandoned road, and it led me to a whole new world of mystery! Well, OK. It wasn’t THAT big. More like a small neighborhood of mystery. But check it all out:

It’s hard to tell from this pic, but this is what remains of a VERY old road…
…and this is what remains of a very old can…
…and this is what remains of a not-quite-as-old Budweiser can.
The many shades of tree death
What was this? My best guess is an elaborate garden? Maybe?
More mystery structures!
The ancient road led me to a less aged road, but mystery continued.
This appears to have been a roadside garden/springs-related attraction…
…and it appears to be under renovation by Boulder County.
Splash!

I escaped the neighborhood of mystery and made my way back to my car. Continuing along the modern highway led to still more encounters with excellent scenery and/or interesting history:

Another old bridge along another abandoned stretch of the old road.
I think this is a petrified Manta Ray making a Mr. Bill face.
This was taken right after the second rainfall that I sat out.
Check out the mini-clouds scattered around the forest.
According to a marker on it, this bridge was built in 1927.
Nearly 7 PM and FINALLY some blue sky for the first time all day.
The angle of the setting sun makes for some interesting lighting.
Time has not been kind to this stretch of former highway.
Rain water still clinging to pine needles, glistening in waning light
Rain water still clinging to pine needles, glistening in waning light.

That’s all I’ve got for the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway, and there’s plenty more of it left to explore. Maybe I should try to complete it during a future visit, seeing as how I’m running out of places in Colorado that I haven’t been to yet.

NOTE: There will be no ThrowBack Thursday posts for the next two weeks (January 18th and 25th) because I will instead be posting NEW trip reports as I travel around the state of Mississippi, which many people mistakenly believe is a four-syllable name.

Leave a comment