Snowshoeing Central

Brainard Lake boasts two new dedicated snowshoeing trails to defuse conflicts between cross-country skiers and snowshoers. Trail planning and tree pruning began in 1998, and one or both trails were expected to be flagged and snowshoeable by the 19981999 season. With snowshoer trails accessible from the Red Rock Lake trailhead, the Forest Service is expected to designate Little Raven as a skier-only trail and to make skier-only use of CMC South voluntary, at least in the beginning. Check future regulations, which could change.

In designing these trails, consideration was given not only to physically separating snowshoers and skiers in this busy and popular area, but also to separating them visually. Along most of the snowshoe and ski routes, users of one trail will not be able to see users of the other. Both trails, which were unnamed at this writing, begin together at the CMC South trailhead. After about 20 yards, the snowshoeing route veers off to the west, roughly paralleling the CMC South Trail. About 100 yards before Red Rock Lake, it crosses the CMC Trail and continues to the lake, where there are fine views of the Indian Peaks. There, the routes divide.

The shorter route, a loop of about 1.5 miles, bends right (north) along Red Rock Lake's east shore, then curves further to the right. It comes out on the Brainard Lake Road close to the Waldrop trailhead. At Red Rock Lake, the longer route—about 4 miles one way—bears left (west) and continues along the south shore. It parallels the CMC South Trail to the Brainard Lake Cut-Off, where it bends right (north) across an open meadow to the Brainard Lake Road.

Snowshoers should head west on the road for about roughly 150 yards and then pick up the trail again at a marked place on the north side of the road. The trail bears left (northwest) to the large clearing ,which everyone calls"the big meadow." It angles off to the west, again paralleling Brainard Lake Road, and ascends on a long, gradual uphill to a creek crossing just below the automobile bridge at the bottom (east end) of the lake. It continues for about another mile to the CMC Brainard Cabin.