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"The Vail Hiker is a must resource for hiking in the Gore Range and Holy Cross Wilderness areas." - The Denver Post

50 Trails to Wildlife Havens, Flower Retreats, Ghost Towns and Panoramic High Passes

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THE
VAIL HIKER

The Vail Hiker Cover Photo

Vail's Best- Selling Book!

Get the Updates in our New Edition 

Discover the  Rockies in the Pristine Wilderness Around Vail, Colorado

How to Order 

Vail's Verbatim Booksellers store reports that THE VAIL HIKER is their best-selling title, even topping the Harry Potter books.

 

Explore the Holy Cross and Gore Range Wilderness Areas

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For Ordering Information, call 1-970 468 6273. We ship the day you order. Order Online, Or, click here for a mail order form.  Find great trail ideas in the new edition of THE VAIL HIKER.

Exciting News: THE VAIL HIKER, now published in a revised, updated edition, has increased from forty to fifty trails for hikers, cross-country skiers and snowshoers.

    New hikes range from the challenging Commando Run, established during World War II for training skiing soldiers from Camp Hale, to the rewarding Village to Village trail on beautiful Beaver Creek Mountain.

    

Updated Edition
Now Available!

$17.95

In Stores, or Call:

1 970 468 6273

Order Online Now! We mail your book same day. Request an author autograph! Great for gifts.

 

The brand-new revised and updated version of the popular guidebook, THE VAIL HIKER, is now available! Order today!

 

Hikers will enjoy The Vail Hiker’s alpine lakes, waterfalls ghost towns, panoramic high passes, special hikes for kids and winter ski/snowshoe trails.

 Book features:                 topo maps
   
                                             great photos
   
                                             fold-out overall map
   
                                             companion book to The New 

Trail Suggestion for June

20         MEADOW MOUNTAIN

Time:  4-5 hours

Distance:  3.5 miles

Elevation gain:  1,920 feet

High point:  9,760 feet

Rating:  Moderate

Usually open:  June-September

Topo:  USGS Minturn, 1987 or: USGS Eagle County, 1975, Sheet 4

Hikers, mountain bikers, cross-country skiers and snowshoers love Meadow Mountain for its gentle terrain and mellow beauty. Pastoral in summer with its aging ranch structures and wildflowers, Meadow Mountain becomes a winter recreationists' dream. Pick a powder day and get there early to beat the snowmobiles. A shelter at 3.5 miles makes a good destination.

Drive 0.4 miles south from I-70 Dowd Junction exit 171 to the U.S. Forest Service Minturn Ranger Station and park.

The trail begins at the parking lot's south end on a closed road that once served the ski area for lift construction and maintenance.

The route, which is road all the way to the rustic shelter at top, switchbacks in a southwesterly direction up into the sloping ranchlands. Meadow Mountain stands as a symbol of Eagle County's rich ranching history. From here to Eagle, with the Vail valley included, 1800s pioneers homesteaded 160-acre parcels, raising sheep, cattle, hay and at one time, an abundance of crisp mountain lettuce. Never rich but blessed nevertheless, they dined on wild raspberries and fresh cream in summer and game in winter. They sent their children to log schoolhouses, fished the trout streams and explored the wild mountain country on horseback. They stocked firewood and supplies each September and endured the long snowbound winters dreaming of spring.

Rising above the lower ranchlands, the trail begins to offer long views. Hikers can see into the Game Creek drainage to the east and later into Vail's green Game Creek ski bowl above. Reach a fork in the trail and stay straight ahead (right). The left fork leads to a devastated logging area and also intersects the West Grouse Creek Trail (no. 19).

After the fork, the trail moves from aspen into conifers, broken by big open meadows. The trail continues to switchback, opening up views northeast to the Gore Range and its primitive Eagles Nest Wilderness (trails no. 1-7). Ski runs of the Beaver Creek Ski Area appear west as do great views of the Vail Ski Mountain back side. Serenity reigns on these breeze-swept high meadows.

The one-room cabin at 9,760 feet is nicely outfitted with bed, table and chairs. Though hikers share this trail with mountain bikers, its width accommodates both. Nor does this non-motorized vehicle use drive away the deer. Hikers can continue above the line shack for glad-to-be-alive views.

 

High Altitude Tips:

Recreation User Tip: When summer storms blow in, temperatures plummet. Make sure warm hats, mittens, extra jackets are in your packs.

Seasonal Suggestion: Make sure everyone in your party, especially children, wear and reapply sunblock. Be certain everyone, especially children, have high quality sunglasses.

Click here to see reviews and samples of The Vail Hiker 

Order Now! Request an author autograph! Great for gifts.

Hiking User Tip:  Feeling weak or dizzy climbing that hill? Take a long, cool drink of water. Yes, water! Not a soft drink, which may supply only 4% of its volume as usable liquid for your body. Not coffee, which is a diuretic, siphoning off water from your body's cells. Water will often help to replace that "can't do it" feeling with "can do."
Your Summer Pack: Bring insect repellent with DEET, a necessity due to mosquito-borne West Nile virus. Be sure to carry plenty of sunscreen. Extra water or a purifier is a good addition to your pack. Always remember a wind/rain jacket, long pants, hat and gloves for fall storms. The temperature can plummet 30 degrees when cloud cover and wind move in.
High Altitude Tip: If you have just arrived from low altitude, take a day or two for your body to adjust before launching into serious exercise. Be aware that peak physical condition, though a great asset for mountain recreation, provides no protection against altitude sickness. Take a short walk on one of the town bikeways the first day. Drink plenty of water; decrease salt; avoid alcohol and reduce caffeine. Cut back on fat and eat more carbohydrates. Rest. Your body will quickly acclimate to the thin air. Then you can begin with an easy or moderate ski tour and work up to the longer, more challenging trails. 

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