Grand Junction Colorado's Mt. Garfield Must Have Been Drenched

Western Colorado's Mt. Garfield recently suffered a little wear and tear at the hands of Mother Nature. At a glance, it appears Mt. Garfield received a little more rain than the rest of the Grand Valley.

Get our free mobile app

Getting to the Trailhead Past Grand Junction's I-70 Was Hard Enough

To get to the East Trail parking area at Mt. Garfield's trailhead, you must first drive through a tunnel under I-70. This is never fun. Add about three feet of water, and you have a James Bond adventure on your hands. Check out the video above. Can you recommend a good car wash?

Palisade's Mt. Garfield Appears to Have Been Soaked

Tuesday, November 9, 2021, was one of those mornings. Since sleep didn't appear to be an option, it seemed appropriate to take one of my 5 a.m. hikes up Mt. Garfield. You don't know what fun is until you've made this hike in 30-degree weather and pitch darkness. Hiking is always more enjoyable with a flashlight.

Just Glad to Have Some Water in the Valley

No matter how you look at it, Mt. Garfield saw some rain, apparently far more than I did in Orchard Mesa. The last measurable rain I recall was clear back on November 2. The images here are from November 9, a week later. Hey, it's Western Colorado, so I'm definitely not complaining. If anything, I'm trying to understand how I missed it.

Even When It's Bad It's Good

Hiking Mt. Garfield is kind of like pizza - even when it's bad, it's still pretty good. There were times last Tuesday when it was difficult to find the trail. Keep in mind, I've climbed Mt. Garfield hundreds of times. It's something of a hobby (my word for "sanity-maintaining exercise").

Wear and Tear on Western Colorado's Mt. Garfield

These images were recorded on Tuesday, November 9, 2021. I was surprised by the amount of water collected in the tunnel as well as in the pools at the base of Mt. Garfield. One indication of heavy rain would be the washing out of established trails.

Gallery Credit: Waylon Jordan

WORTH THE TRIP: Hiking Liberty Cap Trail in Grand Junction

It was really simple to find as I put the location into GPS and it connects immediately, although there isn't a ton of parking so try to be respectful of others trying to use the trail.

During my hike, I decided to walk around and try to take lots of beautiful photos as I knew this would probably be my last hike for a while. Here are some of the shots I got this past weekend on my hike.

LOCAL HIKE: Grand Junction's Ribbon Trail Offers Views for Days

For those that want to see some great scenery but don't want to work for it, the Ribbon Trail is the perfect destination hike for non-hikers.

The Ribbon Trail Hike itself is about 7 miles in length and quite strenuous. But, the first part of the trail from the upper trailhead to Ribbon Rock is not difficult at all. The hike is about 1/4 mile and takes you to some pretty incredible scenery in western Colorado.

Gallery Credit: Zane Mathews

Filed Under: Hiking in Colorado