Columbia info request

[moneymike Profile 14er Peak List (34) 14ers Skied (34)14ers in Winter (4)13er Peak List (11)Trip Reports]

I did Columbia on Sunday. I put in a nice skin track going up the east ridge, from 4 elk creek. The bushwacking was very easy since the forest was very open, and the route was direct. My car got vandalized by an angry property owner, though.

That is shocking. Where did you park and what did they do?

I parked at the end of the Wagon Trail road. I came back to my car to see that it had been moved down the street about 20 ft. The person who moved it took it out of 4wd, so perhaps just put it in neutral and coasted downhill. The windshield was broken. That person left an anonymous typed note saying that the road was private and that cars without a permit will be towed.

[Mike Cormier Profile 14er Peak List (43) 14ers in Winter (9)]

How nice....

[Dex Profile 14er Peak List (11) 14ers in Winter (1)]

I did Columbia on Sunday. I put in a nice skin track going up the east ridge, from 4 elk creek. The bushwacking was very easy since the forest was very open, and the route was direct. My car got vandalized by an angry property owner, though.

That is shocking. Where did you park and what did they do?

I parked at the end of the Wagon Trail road. I came back to my car to see that it had been moved down the street about 20 ft. The person who moved it took it out of 4wd, so perhaps just put it in neutral and coasted downhill. The windshield was broken. That person left an anonymous typed note saying that the road was private and that cars without a permit will be towed.

That is uncalled for. If there was a sign stating that cars will be towed; that is all they should have done.

[14erFred Profile 14er Peak List (50)]

Is Wagon Trail Road marked as private property?

[moneymike Profile 14er Peak List (34) 14ers Skied (34)14ers in Winter (4)13er Peak List (11)Trip Reports]

Is Wagon Trail Road marked as private property?

I did not notice any signs indicating that. There was a homemade sign on someone's property (off of a county road) saying that there is no forest access in the area. I ignored it. Wagon trail road did not appear to be private and the land beyond the dead end was posted (on a tree) as national forest land.

[Rarefied Profile 14er Peak List Not Entered]

Wow! That's bad! On behalf of BV area residents, I'm sorry that happened to you. (I live miles from there so I can't offer any insight.) The one thing that crosses my mind is that since your vehicle was moved ~20' is it possible that you unknowingly blocked an access point to someone's property? It wouldn't necessarily have to be a driveway -- say a seldom used gate along a fence that you didn't notice.

mcormier -- I would speculate that the ongoing "Bahama" weather + your 4x4 Trooper + your skills will probably get you pretty far up the road. Just don't bother with a car wash beforehand and be sure to carry a shovel.

R

[Mike Cormier Profile 14er Peak List (43) 14ers in Winter (9)]

Thanks for your ongoing advice and efforts, Rarefied. I drove to BV this afternoon and did a little reconn myself. After reading janetlightburn's condition report and Roach's description of the East Ridge trail, I decided to try that route. I was able to drive to about 0.3 miles from the 3 Elk Creek TH. I also checked out the road to the going uphill, around a bend in some shaded spot N. Cottonwood Cr. TH and got the same impression as you relayed the other day. I parked at the Harvard Lakes TH and walked up the road about 1/4 mile and felt that I would have been able to drive it, at least that far. It's pretty slick, though and I could easily see myself sliding into a ditch or some other negative result going uphill, round a bend in a shady snow-covered spot. I'm going to spend the night here in BV and hit it in the morning.

[moneymike Profile 14er Peak List (34) 14ers Skied (34)14ers in Winter (4)13er Peak List (11)Trip Reports]

Thanks Rarefield. I certainly won't blame all nearby residents over an isolated incident like this (unlike a few other people on that Bross thread). My first thought was that I may have been blocking something (perhaps a trail buried under the snow), but there did not seem to be any tracks in the snow to suggest that was the case. There was a driveway on the opposite side of the road where I parked. I gave it lots of room. Maybe not enough for a large trailer to exit the property.

If I was blocking someone, and I was illegaly parked on a private road, then I could understand moving my car. And the broken windshield may have even been an accident. It's all just speculation, really.

[dehrlich101 Profile 14er Peak List (37) 14ers in Winter (2)13er Peak List (9)Trip Reports]

Does anyone know the current conditions for the Harvard Lakes TH? Last update was on 3/30. How much snow did this area get in the past few days?

Thanks in advance.

Daniel

[Rarefied Profile 14er Peak List Not Entered]

Barely a dusting over the weekend -- the 03-30 report should still be valid.

R

[RJansen77 Profile 14er Peak List (52) 14ers Skied (3)14ers in Winter (9)13er Peak List (5)Trip Reports]

Barely a dusting over the weekend -- the 03-30 report should still be valid.

R

Are you sure about this? Only a dusting around Harvard Lakes? I'm trying to figure out how much fell in/around the Collegiate Peaks, and this is what the CAIC is saying this morning:

Vail-Summit: 8-10" through most of zone.
Sawatch: 6-12" with deepest near Independence Pass.
Aspen: 15" Schofield Pass, 13" McClure Pass, 10-16" near and west of Independence Pass, 8-12" near Aspen.
Gunnison: 15" Irwin to Schofield Pass, lesser amounts elsewhere.

I'd be pretty excited if the Collegiates didn't get too much from this storm...

[Rarefied Profile 14er Peak List Not Entered]

RJansen77 -- 'Think we're talking about two different aspects here. My observation was in reference to dehrlich101's request about Harvard Lakes TH. Meanwhile, yes, as I look up higher I would say that CAIC's 6-12" number might be a good call. Two different things.

R