20 May 2008
Horseshoe Mountain / Dewey Trail
Posted by kris under: Trails .
Name of Trial: Horseshoe Mountain / Dewey Trail
Total Distance: ~ 6 miles
Elevation Gain: 1600 feet
Difficulty: Moderate to Hard
Hike Type: Out and back
Starting Location: The intersection of Ute Pass Ave and Hondo Ave just off Hwy 24
We took Green Mountain Falls Rd off of Hwy 24 and parked our car at the intersection of Ute Pass Ave and Hondo Ave. From there we hiked up Belvidere Ave about a quarter of a mile until we reached a trail on the right that went between two houses. The whole first section takes you through a ravine up the side of the mountain. It is pretty sandy along the way and there are a lot of bushes that are encroaching on the trail. The terrain was very sandy and open as we climbed. After about a mile of hiking up the ravine, we come to a flat section and a T intersection with another trail. We went left at this T and started to hike in more of a forested area.
We continue to go up and moved in and out of the trees. The incline was steep at parts but the shade of the trees was nice. When the trees did open up we had a great view of the valley bellow. At the crest of the mountain there was a rock outcropping that gave us a great view of the valley and of the mountains to the west.
We continued along the trail back into the forest along the ridge until we saw the North Catamount Reservoir. This was not a very hard section and there was good traction along this section. Once we reached the reservoir we stopped and headed back the way we came.
The ravine hiking was a little hard and there were not as many nice things to see but the top portion was a better hike and we were able to see some great views. At one point we ever saw a red fox along just 20 feet off of the trail. Go see my Photo Gallery for some pictures I took while on the trail.
