Apex Park and Devils Head (May 2012)

Written by ceddammit

Aloha, from a state where no one says Aloha! Welcome to another ThrowBack Thursday edition of Voyages with Parkinson’s. Today, we travel back to May 2012 for a hike right at the edge of the Denver, Colorado metropolis, and a separate hike between Denver and Colorado Springs. Our first stop is Apex Park, a Jefferson County Open Space area just outside of Golden, Colorado. Strap on your boots and let’s get moving!

Heading up Apex Trail in Apex Park
The big, flattish, green area is South Table Mountain.
Looking northeast at North and South Table Mountains
SNAKE!!
Butter does NOT fly!
View from the top of Apex Trail, looking east.
Mount Morrison in the distance

Now that we’ve reached the apex of the Apex Trail in Apex Park (what is this, a commercial for ape repellant?), the only way to go is down. But rather than follow the same trail we just came up, we’ll head down the Enchanted Forest Trail. This is one of my favorite trails along the Front Range. Its vegetation gives it an appearance and peacefulness normally found only at much higher altitudes. There’s no sense of being right at the edge of a major metropolitan area, and the desert vegetation that is common on most “low altitude” trails is almost non-existent. Lend me your eyes:

Slightly unusual pine tree

Sadly, the Enchanted Forest does not extend all the way back down to the parking lot. We are forced to either get back on the Apex Trail or cross it to reach the Sluicebox Trail (not to be confused with Welch’s Juicebox Trail). And being a Rock Steady SluiceBoxer, I suggest the latter. So, here we go:

Young mullein (Verbascum thapsus) a.k.a. Indian Toilet Paper

Now we hop over to the last trail in this chain o’ trails: The Pick-N-Sledge Trail (not to be confused with the Pick-Yer-Nose Trail). We are most definitely no longer in the Enchanted Forest, as the Pick-N-Sledge has us back on dry, open mountainsides. But it does provide very nice views over the city of Denver. Check it out:

Flowering mullein
Green Mountain
View toward downtown Denver
Downtown Denver between the trees
“The Rock Cut”, where Interstate 70 enters the Rocky Mountains
Green Mountain and The Rock Cut

And now, folks, it’s time to step back into the time machine, and go back just a couple more weeks. We find ourselves a little further west (meaning a higher elevation), and a few dozen miles to the south. We are now on Rampart Range Road between Denver and Colorado Springs, at the start of Devil’s Head trail.

Devil’s Head Mountain is home to the last remaining forest fire lookout tower on the Colorado Front Range. It’s still in use for good reason. At 9,748 feet, it’s the tallest mountain around for quite aways, giving LONG views in all directions. As a bonus, there are lots of groovy rock formations and a beautiful aspen forest on the way up. So, let’s take a look at it…

A forest growing out of the rock
The forest fire lookout “tower” perched on the rocky peak
Looking south from the lookout tower, at the fabled Pikes Peak.
Sangre de Cristo mountain range (WAY down south) is barely visible.
Feels like you’re in the sky, doesn’t it?
One more look at Pikes Peak
Looking down from the top at the stairs that got ya there
Not sure if this rock reminds me more of an eel or a wrench
Another very odd rock
What’s with the curves?

That’s all for today, folks. Ya ain’t got to home, but ya got to get the Hell outta here. But come back next Thursday for another visit to the always awesome Colorado National Monument! Buh-bye, now.

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