Collegiate Loop Gear Checklist
The Collegiate Loop is about 160 miles around the Collegiate Peaks, split between a lower eastern side and a western side that spends long stretches above treeline. The gear conversation is about weather and water rather than permits. Hikers who wrote about it carried rain gear every day, sleep warmth for below-freezing nights, a filter plus a phone map with crowd-sourced water notes, and a plan to be off the passes before the afternoon storms. Weather, more than mileage, set the pace for the two hikers who wrote about it at length.
What shapes your gear on Collegiate Loop
- Size of the trip
- About 160 miles with roughly 35,000 feet of climbing. One guide gives 10 to 18 days, and a hiker who finished in 7 days says that pace suits only seasoned backpackers. Resupply is easy from Buena Vista and Salida.
From CleverHiker and Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures
- Best months
- Mid-July to mid-September is the sweet spot. Early summer brings mud, mosquitos and leftover snow on the high ridges, and frozen snowfields can be risky at dawn. Late September can bring snow at high elevations.
From CleverHiker
- Weather
- A hiker who started at Twin Lakes in August 2016 got rain or hail on nearly every day of the trip. A newspaper diarist on the western side saw morning, afternoon and evening thunderstorm forecasts together and moved to the lower eastern route to stay below treeline.
- Permits and fires
- The guide we read says no permit is required, only a voluntary sign-in at trailheads. The Forest Service asks hikers not to build fires near treeline because the stunted trees there are being damaged.
From CleverHiker and Pike-San Isabel National Forests (USFS)
What hikers carry on Collegiate Loop
Rain jacket and rain pants, plus a pack cover
Hail, then steady rain, arrived around 3 PM on one hiker's first day. The pack cover went on and stayed for days, and the jacket came out whenever he got chilled. A three-person group listed rain pants and a jacket for rain, frost, hail and snow.
From Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures and Continental Divide Trail Coalition
A 0 to 15 degree sleeping bag and a liner
A three-person group carried bags in that range for a late-summer trip because nights drop below freezing even when days are warm. A diarist walking the Colorado Trail said her partner's night would have been colder without a replacement pad a friend ran up to deliver, and the western route's 4 a.m. start was bitter.
Wool hat, gloves, fleece and a light puffy
The same group took all four for the high ridges and cold camps. Frost, hail and snow can all show up in summer on the Divide.
Headlamp with spare batteries
The diarist's party started in the dark to be below treeline on Hope Pass before storms and before a crowd of trail runners. The three-person group also listed a headlamp with extra batteries.
A filter and room for 2 liters
Water comes from creeks and lakes rather than taps. A group of three carried a squeeze filter or drops, kept room for 2 liters, and leaned on a phone map where other hikers post which sources run and where good camps are.
Offline maps and a printed guide
A phone trail app with downloadable maps worked without service, and the same group kept a paper itinerary in a waterproof bag. The 2016 hiker picked camps from a guidebook, including a meadow with a good water source below Hope Pass.
From Continental Divide Trail Coalition and Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures
Mosquito repellent for the lower miles
A guide lists mosquitos as a lowlight at lower elevations in summer. One hiker met pesky ones on a damp road walk near Chalk Creek, and another camper reported others calling them some of the worst they had seen, though the author found them tolerable.
From CleverHiker, Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures and TrailGroove
An Ursack or a rope and bag for food
One person in a three-person group used an Ursack while the other two strung their food up in trees, and nobody had trouble with animals. The Forest Service wilderness page we read names no food container, so confirm the current rule with the district before you go.
From Continental Divide Trail Coalition and Pike-San Isabel National Forests (USFS)
15 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Collegiate Loop
Packing for a dry July pattern
The 2016 hiker saw a dry stretch in the forecast, then watched it flip to monsoon and spent the trip in hail, rain and fog. Only one morning had a dry rainfly.
Shoes and socks that can not cope with a week of wet
The same hiker noticed foot trouble building from constant wet while descending toward the end of the trip.
An afternoon start over the highest passes
Hope Pass tops out near 12,548 feet, and the western side stays above treeline for long stretches. Both the newspaper diarist and the 2016 hiker built days around crossing early, before thunderstorms rise.
From Denver Gazette, Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures and CleverHiker
A campfire plan near treeline
The Forest Service asks hikers to skip fires near treeline. Plan a stove-only dinner at high camps.
Gear questions for Collegiate Loop
Do you need a permit for the Collegiate Loop?
The guide we read says none is required and signing in at trailheads is voluntary. Rules change, so check with the ranger district before you go.
From CleverHiker
How long does the Collegiate Loop take?
A guide gives 10 to 18 days. One hiker finished in 7 days with rain on most of them and does not recommend that pace unless you are a seasoned backpacker.
From CleverHiker and Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures
Do you need a bear canister on the Collegiate Loop?
The hikers we read used an Ursack and tree hangs. The Forest Service wilderness page we read names no food container, so confirm the current rule with the ranger district.
From Continental Divide Trail Coalition and Pike-San Isabel National Forests (USFS)
When is the best time to hike the Collegiate Loop?
A guide gives mid-July to mid-September. Late August into September tends to bring steadier weather, and late September adds cold nights and a chance of snow.
From CleverHiker
Sources
- Collegiate Peaks Wilderness · Pike-San Isabel National Forests (USFS) · Agency
- Collegiate Peaks Loop Backpacking Guide · CleverHiker · Blog
- Section by Section: Exploring the Collegiate Peaks Loop · Continental Divide Trail Coalition, Dru Falco · Blog
- Backpacking the Collegiate Loop · Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures, Tomcat · Trip report
- Colorado Trail: When everything goes south, go east · Denver Gazette, Kyla Pearce · Trip report
- Collegiate Loop, Colorado (forum thread) · TrailGroove, tomcat · Forum thread