Four seasons on the UTE

We started from Milner Pass in the early afternoon. I wore my big green jacket to keep me warm in the wet wind we were having before we began the short drive to the trailhead.
WE started the high-altitude trek in the sub-alpine summer. The sky was blue and the sun was warm; there were plenty of cool gentians and we passed some towering light-colored rock structures on the way up. For the first mile of the hike, which was very steep, we passed several different folks and couples. They'd taken the downhill route from the ALPINE VISITORS CENTER.


When the trail forked and began to flatten, far above Milner pass where we'd started, it became wet and the flowers where more and brighter. Purples and reds and yellows and pinks; it was obviously spring time in the mountains. The mosses were thick- their green was intense!

The lush, green mountain transformed to a more arid, fall-like one without warning. THe living grown-cover seemed to turn the colors of death. There were lots of yellows and oranges, and a few spots of red. We continued the ascent, though not as steep as when we started. Thick, grey clouds began to intrude on our sunny day and soon smothered the entire sky. The air got a crisp chill when Jan noticed the wisps of dark rain dropping from the clouds far to our right. They were to our left, also, and behind us.
Despite the next grey mile or so, the alpine habitat that we had come to find ourselves in was beautiful and awesome. At any point on our leisurely walk, we could see the most incredible mountain-scape's for many miles. The short, thick carpet that protected both sides of the trail still displayed a few nice flowers. I found a small, scattered patch of my favorite, Alpine Gentian. Jan spent some time kneeling in the silence, photographing a group of bright red ones that reminded me of a small crown-vetch.

I spotted a small outcropping of exposed rock- though there was something oddly familiar about it. It just didnt look natural. I walked towards the rock, away from jan and the trail. It was BIG and out-of-place; 'Not until I was about half-way to the rock that I realized it was a small pit mine. I spent about 15 minutes scrounging through the over-grown tailing piles- Jan waited in a bald spot about halfway between me and the rocks. He was still and silent- enjoying the most peaceful of moments on a sublime mountaintop.

After digging and sorting had given me nothing, I walked across the mine, touching back to the great outcropping every now and then. There was a lot of pink granite and alot of orangish-gneiss, and the only clue I was given about what was there to find was a small green blob on ot flat side of a large pink boulder. The blob, a millimetre thick and only a few inches in diameter, was of the darkest, greenest epidote Ive ever found. IT was the colour of a very dark moss.


Epidote is a fairly common silicate mineral (like quartz, feldspars and micas) that can range from a very yellow-green to almost black! Epidote grows most commonly as massive crystals, having no distinct shape or form, but can sometimes be found in prismatic crystals. The clearest crystals, found in alaska, brazil and in salzburg have been cut as gemstones.
I found many other hunks of epidote, though none as nice as the thin mass on the first granite boulder. I imagine that this is what was mined- I found traces of nothing else.
On my way out of the mine, as I walked towards meditating Jan, I stumbled upon the iron remains of something. I assume it was the rusted skeleton of the old mining tools.
Not long after my discovery, as Jan and I strolled over the hills, we spotted the Alpine Visitors centre. We listened to a small group of elk bugaling.-The lovelorn giants whined and howled out of Forest Canyon, beneath us and to our right.

It sprinkled for a second, and the sky remained dark and gloomy.



We walked slowly until the sudden sound of traffic blared over the ridge. It destroyed the peace, and a single reeving engine was enough to change our environment. The air chilled with our increasing altitude and the large snow masses got closer; It was like we were climbing into winter!
Jan led and I followed- up the hill and past a small Helicopter landing spot near the road. The landing was only a Black H posted on a small light sheet of steel and nailed to the ground. Jan needed to stop by the restroom and I needed to walk the small boardwalk up to the peak. We passed the alpine centre and summited the mountain. It was, visually, beautiful; but the small crowd was just about offensive-

I was fooled around with the giant blocks of granite at the top; found some cool hornblende and mica crystals, and was ready to walk back to the truck. JAn was not so interested in the rocks at the top, but he sure wasnt about to walk back!
He asked several folks in the lot for a ride, but didnt have much luck with any of that- until a giant white pick-up with Kentucky plates. There were four folks in the extended cab, and two in the lawn chairs in the bed- with us!
THey had many coolers and offered us food and beer- Tony, a skinny guy with no discernible Kentucky accent or dialect, video taped his friend having a conversation in GERMAN with Jan. They got a kick out of the stories that Jan told of his home- Tony and his friend planned to visit Germany in only a few months. The kind folks dropped us off at Milner pass, at my truck- THANKS!

ALPINE GENTIANS ON THE UTE TRAIL