On this trip we camped in the South Rim Campground in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and spent a good deal of time exploring that Park. In between, we did get in some short hikes in Curecanti National Recreation Area, along with a bit of sightseeing. Here are our notes.

East Portal Road

2:14 p.m.
From our campground in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, we are going to drive down the East Portal Road to visit the Crystal Dam and the East Portal Diversion Dam. The thermometer in the trailer says that it is 99 degrees inside. There are a few thunderheads building up along the horizons, but they are not as dark as they were yesterday.

2:27 p.m.
The paved road down to the East Portal leaves the Park just inside of the Park boundary near the entrance station. And right away we got stuck behind a Park ranger who was herding cattle along the road from inside of his government vehicle. He was using the PA system to make noises that kept the cattle moving. But they didn't want to move off of the road. They must have gotten into the park and he was moving them back to open range. Eventually they moved off to the side and we were able to pass through them.

3:13 p.m.
After the steep descent down the twisting 16% grade we looked around near the East Portal.

Crystal Dam

Access to the Crystal Dam was closed (no doubt because of the terrorist threat), so we could only get so far. The canyon is narrow and the Gunnison River is running blue and fast, making a considerable amount of noise. But the setting is pretty and we spend some time in a little park-like area down near the river.

Gunnison Diversion Dam

Then we drove down to near the Gunnison Diversion Dam where the East Portal of the Gunnison Tunnel sucks up water for irrigation over in the Uncompahgre Valley.

East Portal Campground

We also checked out the campground there, which is set down under some tall trees, but still seems pretty exposed in some areas. It would be hard to get even a small trailer down the 16% grades along the paved road, so the campground is mostly for tent campers. There is water, and there are restrooms. Because of the proximity of the river and the diversion dam, the area is pretty noisy. This might be a great place to camp in the cooler months, especially the fall.

After that we headed on back up the narrow, steep road, where we encountered more cattle along the road. This time they moved over a bit faster, but checked us out pretty intently as we moved by.

Dillon Pinnacles Trail

8:26 a.m.
We’re at the Dillon Pinnacles Hiking Trail and Picnic Area. It is just on the east side of the bridge over the lake, on the left side, going east. There are picnic tables and a restroom, but no drinking water, and no shade. We're going to hike the four mile round trip Dillon Pinnacles Trail.

The trail parallels the lake for about .75 miles, then curves to the north and heads back toward the pinnacles, which are visible for most of the hike. This portion of the trail is exposed and fairly flat. Eventually the trail drops down into a shallow gulch that has more vegetation and is a bit buggy. The trail then begins to climb with the slope of the gulch through a stand of trees. There is a nice shady bench for a quick rest (if needed).

9:12 a.m.
Once the trail climbs out of the gulch there is a Y in the trail, with a sign, indicating that the right route is closed during certain seasons due to the breading of some of the wild critters in the area. We took the fork to the left, toward the pinnacles. The trail then crosses more open country, over rolling hills below the ever closer pinnacles. Eventually the trail cuts down through another wash, then climbs out the other side to emerge on top of a plateau, where the trail then turns away from the pinnacles.

9:34 a.m.
Near the end there is a short loop around a high point that features the only stand of trees in the area. There are informative markers at several points along the trail, describing the geology, history, and nature that can be observed. There is also a weathered bench at the "end point" which overlooks the reservoir below, with the pinnacles to your back.

10:18 a.m.
By the time we got back to the truck it was getting pretty hot out. The trail is exposed for most of its length, and I would rate it as easy to moderate. The stretch up the gulch is the most difficult. The path is mostly packed soil, with some rocky areas and some loose rocks along some stretches.

After a short rest and a snack we drove on to the east to see the rest of the Recreation Area.

Gunnison, Colorado

11:09 a.m.
We drove on through to Gunnison, which is about five miles east of the Recreation Area's east entrance. We stopped at a Safeway to pick up some charcoal and some chips. We’re heading back to a picnic area called Neversink, where there is also a nature trail. It is 75 degrees outside.

Neversink Trail

12:23 p.m.
We hiked the little 1.5 mile (round trip) Neversink Trail. It is overgrown and so a bit weedy and buggy, and a bit muggy on this day. The Gunnison River is fast flowing and muddy looking at this point, above the reservoirs. Along the way in and out we spotted a muskrat swimming around in a beaver pond.

Then we had lunch in the picnic area, under the tall cottonwood trees.

Morrow Point Dam

1:59 p.m.
We drove down along the Cimarron River to the Morrow Point Dam and Mesa Creek Trailhead. There is also an old train sitting on the remnants of an old trestle down there. There were a few people working on restoring it.

Down along the river we were able to walk to a point just below the dam, but, again, it was fenced off. Back near the parking are, the Mesa Creek Trail drops down along the Cimarron River, then just above the confluence, it crossed the Gunnison River over a new foot bridge. It looks like an interesting, high impact sort of hike that we plan to do on a future visit.

Cimarron, Colorado

8:18 a.m.
On this day we were headed to the North Rim of the Black Canyon. We stopped in Cimarron, at the Pleasant Valley gas station, and paid $3.40 per gallon for 90 octane gas. The temperature is 60 degrees.

Marmots

8:31 a.m.
We drove up the highway east of Cimarron, at mile post 25, where we spotted four marmots all laid out on an exposed rock outcrop, just sunning themselves and watching us tourist passing by.

Lake Fork Blue Mesa Dam

8:37 a.m.
We’re approaching Lake Fork Blue Mesa Dam, 41 miles south of Crawford, on highway 92. We’re going to stop at the dam and take a quick look around. There is a small parking area and restrooms. This is a earthen dam, so we walked out across the top for a short way, so that we could look downstream at the power plant below. There were several people fishing below the outlet, which is illegal, and we watched as a Park Ranger chased them off. Then we continued on up the road.

Pioneer Point Scenic Overlook

9:33 a.m.
The Pioneer Point Scenic Overlook and Hiking Trails is also the trailhead for the Curecanti Creek Trail. This location has great views down into the canyon and overlooks the Curecanti Needle. From one of the overlooks you can see most of the trail as it passes across the plateau, then cuts down into a side canyon and makes its way along Curecanti Creek. It's a nice scenic area, with lots of visual impact, and definitely a trail that we’ll want to hike in the future. The stop also has restrooms and picnic tables.

Hermits Rest Trail Scenic Overlook

10:05 a.m.
Stopped at the Hermits Rest Trail Scenic Overlook, which looks down on Morrow Lake. Very nice views. Restrooms and picnic tables. This trail seems to drop down through tall scrub oak to the reservoir below. It's a pretty steep drop. And, of course, the descent would be fine. It's the climb back out that would be the leg burner.

Crystal Overlook

10:16 a.m.
We’re at the Crystal Overlook where the Crystal Springs Trail takes off. This one is a 2.5 miles one way to a couple of overlooks. It's not too steep for most of its length, but on this day it seemed just too hot to venture out this late in the day. We'll save it for a future visit to this area.

From here we continued on to the North Rim of the Black Canyon.