Bald Mountain Gulch
We were wrapping up our extended weekend in Buena Vista and we checked out of the KOA to meet at the gas station in Johnson Village. It looked like it was going to be a fantastic day. We had two more trails in the Fourmile Area to see before we drove back to Denver. It was a quick and easy trip to get to the Ruby Mountain Campground where we stopped to check out the kiosk and find the trailhead. We talked about airing down but then we decided to see how long we could take it with aired-up tires. Everyone was tired of airing up and down, so we waited.
The first part of the trail was easy sand, so it seemed like staying aired up would work out. Then we decided to take forest service road 300.C to see where it went. It ended up being a highlight of our morning as it took us on a little-used track through the trees. It was eroded in spots and all fun, and we talked again about airing down. We stopped at a campfire ring and wide spot to take in the views and decided to wait it out a bit longer.
Surprisingly, the spur popped us back out on 300 and in the midst of a group of cows we had passed earlier. We turned left and then we were back in the Ruby Mountain Campground. After a short discussion we decided to air down, finally, and that ended up being a good decision later on Bald Mountain Loop.
We started back into the trail again, and then we drove by the Bald Mountain Loop trailhead. We did that trail and came right back, and then kept heading north. The trail was nice and relaxing, with good scenery and mellow sections. It reminded us of the wash on Chinaman Gulch.
When we got to Arnold Gulch we decided to save that spur for another day. It looked pretty mellow. We continued on and each of us drove by the chert quarry sign to read it. Interesting, but no one got out to explore.
Soon after, we stopped at a wide campsite for lunch. It was windy, but the sunshine was nice. Even after four days of wheeling we didn't have enough of the Colorado sunshine we all loved so much.
After lunch, the trail got bumpier and a bit more interesting, but it wasn't difficult. It wasn't long, though, before we were at the other end. We aired up there and got ready to head back, and then we made our way along the easy dirt roads to the highway.
The trip home along highway 285 was very, very slow. We think that a festival had slowed things down. Either way, we had sunshine to enjoy so it wasn't all bad. It was a great way to end a fun weekend.
