About five years ago, Kenny and I decided to not give each other Christmas presents. However, on that Christmas Eve, I was surprised to see Kenny drop a pile of wrapped packages under the tree with my name on them. In a panic, I did what anyone would do, and I sewed a little felt pouch in the shape of a strawberry and tucked a handwritten coupon in it: "One trip to Strawberry Hot Springs. Merry Christmas!" We never went and I had been ridiculed about my last-minute gift until this day. But no more! Kenny finally cashed in his fake, thoughtless voucher and we made the trek north to Steamboat Springs for a couple of nights.
We needed a place to leave Annie while we went to the hot springs, so we did two things we don't often do: leave Annie behind for a few hours and rented a cabin at a KOA.
We needed a place to leave Annie while we went to the hot springs, so we did two things we don't often do: leave Annie behind for a few hours and rented a cabin at a KOA.
On our first afternoon in town, thunderstorms rolled in one right after the other. First we stopped at a dog park to let Annie stretch her legs, then we decided to go window shopping downtown. A cloud opened up right above us and the three of us waited under a store awning until it passed. After the rain turned to a drizzle, we decided to go across the street to get a beer at The BARley before heading back to the cabin.
The next morning, we headed out to hike Gilpin Lake from the Slavonia Trailhead. The trail is 8.5 miles roundtrip, with an option to make it an 11.20 mile trip called the "Zirkel Circle" or Zirkel Loop". This route requires going past the lake, up the pass, and down a parallel trail back to the parking lot. Unfortunately, we didn't realize the Zirkel Circle was an option until we were already at Gilpin Lake. There, we decided it was too late in the day to climb a pass and tack on three extra miles, so we stuck to our original plan.
The trail profile is pretty gentle, with a 2,000 foot elevation gain over the 4.25 miles to the lake. We frequently stopped to admire this unique time when late summer meets early fall, where the wildflowers are still vibrant, mushrooms are bursting out of the ground, and berries begin to ripen.
The next morning, we headed out to hike Gilpin Lake from the Slavonia Trailhead. The trail is 8.5 miles roundtrip, with an option to make it an 11.20 mile trip called the "Zirkel Circle" or Zirkel Loop". This route requires going past the lake, up the pass, and down a parallel trail back to the parking lot. Unfortunately, we didn't realize the Zirkel Circle was an option until we were already at Gilpin Lake. There, we decided it was too late in the day to climb a pass and tack on three extra miles, so we stuck to our original plan.
The trail profile is pretty gentle, with a 2,000 foot elevation gain over the 4.25 miles to the lake. We frequently stopped to admire this unique time when late summer meets early fall, where the wildflowers are still vibrant, mushrooms are bursting out of the ground, and berries begin to ripen.
Oh, and Gilpin Lake wasn't so bad either.
When we got back to the cabin that afternoon, it was only in the mid 60s - the perfect temperature to hit the hot springs. Strawberry Hot Springs is tucked high up on a steep, dirt road. The quaint stone co-ed changing room and private spa rooms scattered here and there look like hobbit houses tucked in the hillside. The pools are beautifully crafted into their surroundings and bright geraniums, hollyhocks, and cosmos cascade down from the walkway to the water. The pools range from a cool temperature that we only tested our toes in to a hot that was hard to sit still in.
We spent a relaxing few hours swimming around, standing under hot waterfalls, hopping from pool to pool. Then, an hour away from dusk, the rain came in and the demographic of the soakers shifted. Families left, and a middle-aged woman not so subtly pulled margarita mix out of her cooler and poured drinks for two older gentlemen. A couple got intimate. A white chick ceremoniously wrapped a white dude's dreadlocks in a tapestry. I remembered that used condom I spotted outside the pool wall. Did I mention it's clothing optional after dark? And we decided it was time to leave and went for pizza.
We spent a relaxing few hours swimming around, standing under hot waterfalls, hopping from pool to pool. Then, an hour away from dusk, the rain came in and the demographic of the soakers shifted. Families left, and a middle-aged woman not so subtly pulled margarita mix out of her cooler and poured drinks for two older gentlemen. A couple got intimate. A white chick ceremoniously wrapped a white dude's dreadlocks in a tapestry. I remembered that used condom I spotted outside the pool wall. Did I mention it's clothing optional after dark? And we decided it was time to leave and went for pizza.
The next morning we did something we don't often do - we split up! Annie and I decided to go for a hike before the long car ride home and Kenny wanted to checkout the Old Town Hot Springs public pool in downtown Steamboat. We dropped Kenny off with his pool bag and set off for the Fish Creek Falls trailhead just a few miles out of town.
Fish Creek Falls is one of the town's most popular trails, but it appears that if you go before 9:00 am on a weekday and intend to hike beyond the lower falls (which is only a 1/4 mile from the parking lot ), you'll have most of the trail to yourself. We turned around at the upper falls for a 4.6 mile hike, but you can continue on to Long Lake for a 11.7 mile trip.
Fish Creek Falls is one of the town's most popular trails, but it appears that if you go before 9:00 am on a weekday and intend to hike beyond the lower falls (which is only a 1/4 mile from the parking lot ), you'll have most of the trail to yourself. We turned around at the upper falls for a 4.6 mile hike, but you can continue on to Long Lake for a 11.7 mile trip.
We picked Kenny up from the pool. That germophobic lil fish was happy to report he had a great swim and had a new found appreciation for crystal clear public pools.
And then we filled our bellies full of gyros from Skull Creek Greek and headed home.
And then we filled our bellies full of gyros from Skull Creek Greek and headed home.