With Beth leaving next weekend, I opted to take her up to Miller Peak. She had never been up this peak and I wanted to document the fire and flood damage along the way. Kevin was originally supposed to go with us, but opted out yesterday because of the "60% chance of rain."
At 6:30am this morning it was 60F with 70% humidity, yet the sky was clear and the wind was negligent.
There was no rain, at least over us, and I knew Kevin just wanted an excuse to not hike. It was just Beth and I with Sadie and that was fine with me.
We agreed to meet at the upper Miller Canyon Trailhead at 8am. Her car got stuck in the soft sand. Two massive landslides hampered the drive to the trailhead.
We made it to the start at 8:15am. I had no idea what to expect here. Would downed trees make the trail impassable? Would flash floods have washed parts of the trail away? How many trees were destroyed? Luckily the damage overall wasn't so bad. Burn damage varied across the region, with anywhere from 40-90 percent of an area damaged. Most of the damage was in pockets.
Water damage was more intensive. Miller Creek tore down that mountain and ripped its banks, taking dead trees with it. Fissures deeper than I am tall were in parts of the creekbed. Two massive floods in the lower canyon created new creeks. The loose rocks, soft ash and downed trees made this a slow and ardous hike as we had to watch our footing.
Yet despite the damage, overall it wasn't as bad as I had expected. The lower Miller Canyon endured serious damage, but once we got to the bathtub the last 2.1 miles were easy in comparison. Although there was heavy burn damage near Miller Peak itself, the trail was quite passable. The Forest Service had already cleared away some of the bigger trees.
We knew that we may have to turn around if it got too dangerous, but it never did. Most of the aspen grove had been destroyed, but new life was already sprouting from rootstock. Thick fern-like trees grew along the Crest Ridge, making Sadie look like she was walking through a jungle.
The only damage we saw to trail signs was at the Miller Peak junction, where nothing remained of the Crest Trail sign. It would have been difficult for first-time hikers to Miller Peak to know where to turn here for that last half-mile up the peak.
A group of five or so 20-something-year-olds were descending the peak as we approached at 1pm, giving us the peak to ourselves. It was amazingly calm on top, as we sat at a small level area where once a firetower's foundation was securely anchored. I ate an apple and Sadie got more chicken breast treats. From the top one could see the heavy damage of the aspen groves, but Carr Peak looked spared. Carr Peak had seen its share of damage in 1977 when its peak was swept through with fire.
We sat on top for a good half hour, chatting and enjoying the view. This was an accomplishment for Beth, who called a few friends to let them know she had made the challenge.
Our hike back down was the same way going up. It's easier to hike downhill, but the trees near the lower slides were no easier. We didn't come across any more people. Three lose beagle dogs from Beatty's Orchard came after Sadie in the parking lot, and despite her fatigue she was able to outrun those beasts. The dogs were a bit terrifying at first but they kept Beth and me alone and were only interested in Sadie. Sadie made it inside the truck before the dogs could get to her, and Beth wielded her hiking stick at them to keep them at bay.
Thus ended our long day adventure.
