We like mountain lakes and on the map, this ride had a couple. Plus, it passes through yet more beautiful mountain scapes via high alpine riding. Our ride to Hancock Lake wasn’t very far but it was very challenging. 11.4 miles with 2468′ of climbing.
We started up by Monarch Pass and climbed FS 230 which is a 4wd gravel and rock road that climbs consistently right out of the gate. This ride starts at 9700′ and we topped out at Chalk Creek Pass at 12144′! We took it pretty easy and spun up the “road” until we connected with the Continental Divide Trail and took that singletrack up further. The trail was lush with green everything and flowers soaking up the sun. It’s a technical trail with plenty of rocks to make things almost impossible. Some hiking was involved and at the very top we were able to look down on Hancock Lake and back at the lakes we had just passed.
Thunderstorms rolled in as we turned around and blasted back down the way we had come. We got back to the truck just in time for a good old fashioned downpour.
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