Wintery conditions exist above 7’000′ (where our trailer is), so mountain biking is limited to a few select locations. We’re sprinkling in some hiking around the Mancos, CO area. For those who don’t know, this is in SW Colorado and at high elevation. We have spent a lot of time in this area off and on over the years. In fact, during the height of COVID when we got kicked out of Texas, this is where we came for three months to get off the roads.
Derek and I hiked Sand Canyon one afternoon. Canyons of the Ancients National Monument was created to protect cultural and natural resources on a landscape scale. It is part of the Bureau of Land Management’s National Landscape Conservation System and includes almost 171,000 acres of public land. The Sand Canyon and Rock Creek Trails are open for hiking, mountain biking, or horseback riding on designated routes only. Most of the Monument is backcountry.
The hiking here is like a lot of SW hiking – dramatic canyons, slickrock slabs, sandstone layered mesas, juniper, pine, cacti, sagebrush and more. There are a few different hike/bike options here and we picked a loop that was around 4 miles. It gets hot here in the summer – I’ve ridden here when it was 97 degrees so this cooler day was welcomed! The backdrop of snowy Ute Mountain made the scenery even that much more special. We’ll be back here – there are a lot of alcoves and cliff dwellings to see.
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