By Steve Pate
On a hike up Palmer Lake Reservoir Road to the upper Palmer Lake Reservoir on Feb. 20, the trail conditions were snow/slush with some ice and still over a foot of snow off-trail. I did not use micro spikes but always carry them on hikes this time of year, along with winter-preparedness gear such as a warm coat and hat, water, snacks, fire starter, gloves, mylar blanket, etc. I did not need any of these items, although downhill is more treacherous without spikes.
Despite the beautiful weather, I encountered only one other human on the two-hour jaunt. The Reservoir Road was well-used, as was the trailhead to the Ice Cave Creek trail just west of the lower reservoir and Balanced Rock just beyond the upper reservoir.
On the west side of the upper reservoir, the piles of logs generated by last year’s wildfire mitigation are still intact. A few of these logs have been used to create a new bridge over Monument Creek near the Glen in Palmer Lake. Palmer Lake Fire Chief John Vincent said about a year ago that no plans had been agreed upon by the Board of Trustees to dispose of the logs, and he speculated they might be burned. Another possible solution would be to haul them out and let local people saw cordwood for use in fireplaces or stoves. No private vehicles are allowed on the Reservoir Road—perhaps an exception for a one-time cleanup would be in order in this case.
I saw only one area where someone had been ice fishing. Keep in mind, if you ice fish, the ice should be at least 4 inches thick to support humans walking on the ice. When the ice is snow-covered, fishing can become a slushy challenge.
Steve Pate may be contacted at stevepate@ocn.me.
Other On the Trail articles
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Annual Ride for Tim, Palmer Lake to Monument (10/1/2025)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Ride for Tim scheduled for Sept. 13 (9/3/2025)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Monument Hiking Group planning session (4/5/2025)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Monument Hiking Group to Ice Cave Cliffs and Cap Rock (2/1/2025)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Enjoy being outdoors, but be prepared (11/2/2024)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Prescribed burn promotes forest health (7/6/2024)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Palmer Lake bridge dedication ceremony (6/1/2024)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Cadets build bridge over Monument Creek (5/4/2024)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Mount Herman “Leap” (4/6/2024)
- On the Trail (in memory of Tim Watkins) – Black Forest Trails Association (12/2/2023)