Hiking Nellie Creek Rd - wet feet or dry feet?

[DavidK]

So I'm finally making plans to tackle some more of the San Juans this summer. For various reasons (I don't have much experience driving 4WD roads, I'm usually driving rentals, etc.), I prefer to hike the extra miles rather than drive 4WD roads. For Uncompahgre, I am planning on parking at or near the Henson Creek Rd turnoff and hiking up Nellie Creek Road. I'm planning on doing this around the first week of July. I realize that it depends on snowfall/conditions/etc. in any given year, but generally speaking, around early July, if I were to hike the length of Nellie Creek Road, what are the creek crossings like? I've researched the road, here and elsewhere, but I haven't found anything concrete. How wide and deep are the creek crossings? Are there ways to cross the creeks (with care) to keep feet basically dry, or should I expect to have wet feet and take spare shoes and socks for that purpose? Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

[DaveLanders]

I would plan on wet feet. I've driven the road several times but I haven't hiked it. The stream crossings tend to be wide and shallow because that's easier for vehicles than narrow and deep. You might luck out and have make shift foot bridges or rock stepping stones but I wouldn't count on that. I would take a pair of sandals if I was going to hike the road

[Sbenfield]

I walked the road in early July 2019, a year of large snowfall especially in the later part of winter. I didn’t have a problem getting wet on any of the road hike. I seem to recall pretty simple workarounds for potentially wet areas (at least when I hiked it)

[supranihilest]

A couple of options for this type of thing:

• Carry extra footwear and socks like you suggested. A bit of an annoying solution, but it's safe.
• Find ways across the creek crossings. The first crossing is harder than the second. I went up that road several times in November and for the first creek crossing had to rely on enough ice to walk (or crawl, once) over. You might be able to rock hop if there's exposed and DRY rock. Don't try to rock hop wet rocks of you'll probably end up in the creek. The second creek crossing had a couple of logs across it.
• Sandals like Dave suggested. They're probably lighter than a second pair of shoes or boots.
• Go barefoot, roll up your pants (or take them off depending on the creek depth, but it's unlikely Nellie will be deep enough to warrant going pantsless) and wade the crossings. Pretty miserable but saves you the trouble of carrying extra gear. I do this frequently. Just be careful not to fall down on slick rocks, since alpine creeks are usually ice cold and numb the feet, especially early season during the melt. Poles can help balance.
• Drive up (I know you said you didn't want to, but still an option), arrange a ride up with a fellow hiker, or hitch if someone is driving up while you're hiking.

For Nellie specifically neither creek crossing is particularly wide and there should be ways to cross. The road itself can be pretty wet if things are still melting, so keep that in mind as well. Sometimes there's just nothing you can do to keep your feet dry.

[Wentzl]

And you said,

Any thoughts appreciated.

Can I say, I dig your avitar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVyfj7-mHqs

But more to your point,

https://climate.colostate.edu/drought_info.html

Now my favorite line on this forum:

I have never hiked from the lower trailhead but I think. . .

By July, your feet will stay dry

[DavidK]

Can I say, I dig your avitar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVyfj7-mHqs

hahaha LOVE IT!!

[disentangled]

I hiked that road last July and had no difficulty navigating the creek crossings, even in the dark in the morning. All good.

[nyker]

Just looked at my notes for that hike, and also didn't encounter any issues with water along road that wasn't easily crossed, this was a July trip

[nmjameswilson]

I went down it early July last year and no issues with the shallow and wide creek crossing.

[JQDivide]

Can always try to hitchhike, lots of friendly people on these trails.
Joel