Nature TV at Hartenstein Lake
Hartenstein Lake – Collegiate Peaks Wilderness, CO
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AUGUST, 2015
Most of these ‘stories’ I write have some sort of drama associated with them. That is usually what makes for a good ‘story,’ after all. The story of Hartenstein Lake, located in the Collegiate Peaks of Colorado, doesn’t have much drama. The night Christian and I spent there during our August 2015 Collegiate Peaks Wilderness hike simply provided some of the best ‘nature TV’ I have ever experienced in the backcountry.
2015 – An Epic Year of Backpacking
I haven’t been backpacking that long in relative terms. Sadly, I didn’t begin to explore my love of backpacking until I was 50 years old, in 2010. My early years of backpacking typically saw me take a couple of mainly local, midwest trips. The first ‘real’ Colorado trip that Christian and I took was to the South San Juan Wilderness in 2012. Around a campfire on that trip we made the decision to take a Glacier National Park trip in 2013. That outstanding trip led to our return visit to Glacier in 2014. I look at all those early trips as training for 2015. That year was an epic year of backpacking! 2015 saw my first Big South Fork trip, three different hikes in Colorado, and the season ending hike in the Sierra Nevada of California. To this day 2015 was the best year of ‘nature TV’ that I’ve witnessed.
‘Young’ and Dumb in 2015
2015 was a year where my backpacking confidence was very high and my fear was non-existent. In hindsight I recognize that is a dangerous combination. But the combination also allows you to do things that you wouldn’t, or couldn’t, otherwise do. We got lucky that year, pushing ‘the envelope’ on many trips and not having anything really go wrong. At the time I didn’t know any different, and it was great! Now that I’ve ‘matured’ and gained a ton more experience, I don’t think I could ever do another year like 2015. Too many ‘things’ have happened since then. I know – and fear – what can go wrong on trips. Call it prudence. Either way, it’s a bit sad. I miss those ‘good ‘ol days’ when nothing stood in the way.
“Oh, these vast, calm, measureless mountain days, days in whose light everything seems equally divine, opening a thousand windows to show us God.” John Muir
The Sangre de Cristo – Collegiate Peaks Trip
After the Amazing Four Pass Loop hike I did near Aspen, Colorado in July 2015 Christian, the dogs and I piled in the car to do another Colorado hike in August. As we drove west from Indiana on I-70 I didn’t have a specific destination in mind! That was the first time I’ve ever been that ‘loose’ on trip plans, and it was unsettling enough that I don’t ever intend to repeat it. There was a rough plan in my mind, with multiple potential hiking destinations. Specifically, I was planning/hoping to do hikes in the Lost Creek Wilderness, Sangre de Cristo Wilderness, and Collegiate Peaks Wilderness areas in Colorado. But where I would go first, and in which order I would hike them was undecided as I drove west.
Ultimately, I decided to head towards southeast Colorado and start with the Sangre de Cristo hike. The plan was to do the Venable-Comanche Loop near Westcliffe. It was a one night hike that I thought would be the perfect ‘warm up’ for the next two hikes I had planned. I’ll leave the story of the Sangre de Cristo hike for another article but it did turn out much more difficult than I envisioned. I decided trying to do three hikes in one trip was too much, and eliminated the Lost Creek hike from our plans. We headed towards Buena Vista, Colorado and the Collegiate Peaks Campground near the Denny Creek Trailhead where we would start our Collegiate Peaks Wilderness hike from.
Collegiate Peaks – Hartenstein Lake
Our plan for the Collegiate Peaks hike was to head up the Browns Pass Trail the first day. Then turn left to Hartenstein Lake for the first night. The second day we would go over Browns Pass and to Kroenke Lake for the night. On the third day we would retrace our steps from day 1 and day 2 back to the trailhead. Staying at Hartenstein Lake requires some extra effort. It sits at the end of a one-mile out and back trail, sort of like a cul-de-sac. I was hoping its remote location would cut down on the number of people wanting to stay there. Boy, was I right in that! We had Hartenstein Lake to ourselves, and never saw any other hikers during our entire stay at the lake. An added bonus was that our campsite was huge, and offered an outstanding view of Mount Yale.
Backcountry camping at its best – Relaxing at Hartenstein Lake
Our night at Hartenstein Lake was backcountry camping at it’s best. The weather was perfect, the site was huge, there were comfortable sitting trees, we had a campfire on the lake, a perfect view of Mount Yale, and, best of all, we didn’t have to share it with anyone else. I’ve spent many nights in the backcountry over the years and I’ve rarely had a more perfect evening than that one. Christian set up his hammock in a great spot to enjoy the view, and took a little nap. Bailey decided to join him. As the afternoon wore on there was little to do except relax, explore, and take in the incredible views. As is typically the case in the Rockies in mid-August, the perfect weather gave way to afternoon thunderstorms. They built up right over Mount Yale, giving us a great view.
Nature TV at Hartenstein Lake
Reflecting on our night at Hartenstein Lake
When you arrive in camp after the initial setup chores are completed there often isn’t a lot to do. There is a ‘dead time’ with no activity and no distractions, especially if you are in an area of no connectivity which is often the case. It can be a little unsettling, or even surreal, for those used to to constant hustle-and-bustle, and chaos, of the ‘real world’. Eventually, the mind settles down. The quiet and relaxed pace offers a mindfulness unique to backpacking. That feeling is one of the main reasons I love getting into camp early. The only distraction is typically the simplicity of what we call ‘nature TV’ – a crackling campfire, mountain views around camp, gathering weather. Our night at Hartenstein Lake had it all! That night isn’t a dramatic story, but it is a story about what I find to be the essence of backpacking.
