Pogwatigue Perambulations: Evergreen Mountain

Wednesday, I headed back up in to the mountains for a hike, this time in Alderfer/Three Sisters Park near Evergreen, Colorado. It's a pretty large park with a lot of trail options. Naturally, I gravitated toward the highest peak in the park, Evergreen Mountain. It took me a little under two hours to climb the 3.3 miles to the 8,600ft. summit. The trail conditions were really good. I investigated one short spur to a scenic overlook of Evergreen. Near the summit, I found a wonderful spot to rest with a spectacular view of Mount Evans, fifteen miles to west.

After descending Mount Evergreen, I ventured in to another section of the park along some easier trails through a couple meadows. Along the Silver Fox Trail, I got my first glimpse of one of the parks namesake features, the Three Sisters, which are three prominent rock outcroppings. But before approaching them, I sought the lookout atop their sibling, the Brother, whose best views duplicated the the vista from Mount Evergreen, though less grandly.

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Backtracking a third of a mile, I started along the Sisters Trail, which threads between the bases of the Three Sisters. The piles of boulders at the Sisters' bases were two inviting to ignore. Leaving the trail, I started climbing over the boulders and somehow found my way to the top of one of the sisters, certainly the one that was easiest to climb. Though not nearly at the elevation of Evergreen Mountain, the views were even better. Unobstructed for 360 degrees, I could see the high peaks, Mount Evergreen, the tops of the other two sisters, and cabins and mountain homes scattered along the ridges, especially to the east. After a long pause to enjoy the setting, I carefully climbed back to the trail and hike back to the trailhead.

Trip Statistics
Length: 8.3 miles
Time: 5 hours 13 minutes
Avg. Speed: 2 MPH
Trailhead Elevation: 7,500 feet
Peak Elevation: 8,600 feet
Net Elevation Gain: 1,100 ft.
Cumulative Ascent: 1,650 ft.

Elevation Profile