DIRECTIONS:

From the Front Range, take I-70 to Copper Mountain just past Frisco, and turn south on Hwy 91 to Leadville. Just before you reach Leadville, follow the signs for Hwy 24 north towards Minturn. When you reach Tennessee Pass, turn right following signs for Ski Cooper. The Tennessee Pass Nordic Center is along the west end of the parking lot.

HIKE DESCRIPTION:

Here is a fun winter adventure that takes some advance planning but is well worth the effort. The Tennessee Pass Nordic Center at Ski Cooper has yurts that you can rent. You drop off your overnight gear and the friendly staff delivers it to your yurt. The yurts are very nice with bedding, water, cooking stoves, and kitchen basics like pots, pans, plates, etc… The yurts are heated by wood burning stoves. Most of the yurts sleep about 6 people. There is also a restaurant, the Cookhouse, that you can either make a reservation for or have food delivered to your yurt. In order to get to the yurts and the Cookhouse, you have to snowshoe or cross country ski about 1 mile from the Nordic Center. All of this together makes for a memorable winter weekend in the mountains.

You need to book the yurt far in advance and make Cookhouse reservations or delivery orders far in advance as well. If you don’t want to do the overnight trip, all of these trails can be snowshoed as a day trip as well. You can also do a day trip with lunch at the Cookhouse if you can get a reservation.

From the Nordic Center, take the snowshoe trail to the west. It starts out along the wide Cooper Loop Ski Trail but soon enters the dense and beautiful forest for the majority of the hike to the Cookhouse. Depending on snow conditions you may or may not need your snowshoes here. The trail is very pretty with a steady elevation gain and sporadic views of the Sawatch Range through the trees. As you near the Cookhouse the views open up and you rejoin the Cooper Loop. At the Cookhouse the Sawatch are on full display for an incredible mountain views. Homestake Peak and Galena Mountain are front and center with Mount Oklahoma and Mount Elbert dominating the southern viewshed. While this hike is technically in the Mosquito Range, the views are all of the Sawatch Range, best of both worlds… This is a terrific destination and if you just hike here and return, that would be a worthy trip.

If you lucky enough to be spending the night, then you continue up the trail, it’s well marked, to the yurt area. You’re bags should be ready for you. I highly suggest settling in and heading back to the cookhouse in the evening. Whether you are eating there or not, this is the best part of the yurt trip. Being able to safely and easily hike in the winter to an amazing view, maybe get a drink (hot or boozy) at the Cookhouse, and hang out by the fire pit as the sun sets before returning to your warm yurt, is pure Colorado joy. This is why we live and play here.

In the morning, pack up your things, the staff will pick them up, and head out on the trails. If you are snowshoeing, hike the Rocky’s Ridge Loop. At the Cookhouse, head left to the south to find the trail markers for the Rocky’s Ridge Snowshoe Trail. There are two trail markers, I suggest passing by the first one and taking the second to start off. The trail leads you through the forest and down a gulch to a great mountain view and meadow. You then turn back to the east and climb back up to the main trail system. Simple enough but a beautiful hike of a little more than 1 mile.

Back at the Cookhouse, try to find the snowshoe trail that heads down towards the Willa’s Way trail. There are various social trails here but head west from the Cookhouse, across the open meadow and you should find the snowshoe trail. If you hit the groomed Willa’s Way Trail you have missed it. Willa’s Way will also take you back to the Nordic Center, but the snowshoe trail is more scenic. The snowshoe trail takes you back through the forest and crosses some drainages with even more mountain views. After about 1 mile you return to the Nordic Center where your bags should be waiting.

This is basically an easy and luxury version of a classic Colorado winter hut trip. The Nordic Center makes it easy and whether you are doing this as a family trip (older kids should be able to handle it) or sharing a yurt with friends, you are in for a memorable experience in a stunning part of Colorado.