This is a popular hike so the parking can get full. Several glacial lakes are located at the base of the peak. Reaching this point is easy from the summit of Medicine Bow--just rock-hop along the gentle, open ridge for 1/3 of a mile to the west. The highest peak in the range is Clark Peak (12,951 feet (3,947 m)), located in Rawah Wilderness and is along the southern end of the range in Northern Colorado.Much of the range is located within the Medicine Bow National Forest in Wyoming. BearInTheMountains.com is a participant in the Avantlink Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to a range of approved online retailers. The parking area at the trailhead is moderate, with room for maybe 20 vehicles. The north-south Albany/Carbon county line passes just west of the summit of Medicine Bow peak, so the highest point in Carbon County is this spot, where the line intersects the crest of the ridge. 3 476 m (prom: 96 m) Rock Creek Knoll. On the return trip back to the parking area, the trail was a little easier to see. Pack Weight Start: Did Not Measure, est 15lbs.
The road is paved the whole way with no issues needing high clearance. During the recovery process, several additional access routes were established, which are still in use today. America the Beautiful National Parks/Forest is valid. In the above general route outline, the yellow was roughly the route. Hiking info, trail maps, and 18 trip reports from Medicine Bow Peak (12,013 ft) in the Snowy Range of Wyoming. The peak sits around 12000ft. Peak: Medicine Bow Peak Elevation: 3 665 m. 126 mountains. The highest peak on the Wyoming side is Medicine Bow Peak (12,013 feet (3,662 m)). Hiking info, trail maps, and 18 trip reports from Medicine Bow Peak (12,013 ft) in the Snowy Range of Wyoming ... which is usually extremely difficult to calculate because a peak’s base elevation can be highly subjective. The summit lies in extreme western Albany County, but the mountain's lower reaches stretch westward into eastern Carbon County. From the trailhead, you begin very gradual, but then starting gaining elevation over a series of switchback that provide a lot of good views from the west, south and east. (All pictures are clickable for larger views.). [2] These publications often refer to the mountain as "Medicine Peak", and its rock as "Precambrian Medicine Peak Quartzite". I relied on the “Hiking Wyoming’s Medicine Bow National Forest” book by Marc Smith. Turn right into the West Marie Lake Trailhead parking area. The peak offers great 360degree panoramic views extending well past of the Snowy Range area. Amazon Referral Link. On the way back I finally had a chance to see a couple marmots, but they were either too far or too quick to take a picture of. Its about 0.8-0.9miles to the peak. There are not many resources for maps. The trails to the peak are usually open from early June to mid October. TopoQuest.com Topographic map of Medicine Bow Peak, Medicine Bow Peak Trail Review from Trails.com, US Forest Service Medicine Bow - Routt National Forests, http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2001RM/finalprogram/abstract_6228.htm, "History and geology of the Medicine Bows", "-State Species Abstract--Wyoming Natural Diversity Database", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Medicine_Bow_Peak&oldid=948205993, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 30 March 2020, at 18:45. USDA Forest Service Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests, Thunder Basin National Grassland 2468 Jackson Street Laramie, WY 82070 307-745-2300. The trail does become quite rocky the rest of the way to the peak as can be seen in the following panoramic pictures as I progressed along the trail. Sunday afternoon hike up to Medicine Bow Peak via Lake Marie in the Medicine Bow National Forest in Wyoming. There were quite a bit of patches of snow along the trail which you’ll see below. Since I had nothing going on the rest of the day, I thought I would just hang out and take pictures at the peak.
The higher you go, the better and more expansive the panoramic views become. After talking to a bunch of locals, snow doesn’t typically last into late in the summer, but coming from Washington state, snow would still be common, even at much lower elevations than 10000-12000ft. Medicine Bow Peak. The summit lies in extreme western Albany County, but the mountain's lower reaches stretch westward into eastern Carbon County. Medicine Bow Peak (12,018 ft (3,663 m)) is the highest peak in the Snowy Range, a part of the Medicine Bow Mountains, about 35 miles (56 km) west of Laramie, Wyoming.It lies within Medicine Bow National Forest and is the highest point in southern Wyoming. The peak is located in a Special Botanical Area.[5]. The roughly 7.5 mile round-trip took about 4hrs 40min. The trail is not always clearly defined and there were a few areas that I had to search for the trail. Carbon County High Point at ListsOfJohn.com, CoHP.org Trip Report for Carbon, WY by Dave Olson, CoHP.org Trip Report for Carbon, WY by Walt O'Neil, CoHP.org Trip Report for Carbon, WY by Michael Schwartz, CoHP.org Trip Report for Carbon, WY by Layne Bracy, Top 10 County High Points Grid for U.S. States, High Points of Counties Crossed by the Continental Divide, 2019-08-09 by Mihai Giurgiulescu (GPS Track), Radius Search - Nearest Peaks to Medicine Bow Peak-West Ridge, Elevation Ladder from Medicine Bow Peak-West Ridge, Prominence Ladder from Medicine Bow Peak-West Ridge, 1:25,000 (or larger) Topographic Survey Map. Elevation Info: NAVD88 Elevation: 11,925 ft / 3634 m: Peak Type: Slope Point, subsidiary to Medicine Bow Peak: Latitude/Longitude (WGS84) 41° 21' 25'' N, 106° 19' 22'' W 41.356812, -106.322849 (Dec Deg) 389347 E 4579212 N, Zone 13 (UTM): Country: United States https://www.justtrails.com/trails/medicine-bow-peak-trail/#.XVOjNnVKhhE, Hiking Wyoming’s Medicine Bow National Forest, 2.5L Hydration Bladder Reserve (for added hiking weight).
The was really clear so you could see out quite a ways in the distance.
Bow Peak often will block the sun on the moderately steep ascent and will keep the path completely shaded – a real treat on a hot day. 3 575 m (prom: 217 m) Sugarloaf Mountain. All Rights Reserved. The wildflowers along its access trails include Indian Paintbrush, blue columbine, gentian, and harebell. I arrived back at the parking area around 3:57PM, roughly 2hours to get back. It was glaciated until quite recently, and year-round snowfields are still present on its flanks. Ute, and Eastern Shoshone were known to have either inhabited the surrounding lowlands or used nearby canyons and mountain passes as travel routes.[4]. The peak sits around 12000ft.
The rest of the pictures capture the return trip back to the parking area. Ranger Districts There is a restroom structure at the West Lake Marie parking area. The higher you go, the more you can see in the valleys below, which contain several more scattered lakes. 3 392 m (prom: 80 m) Bridger Peak. Medicine Bow Peak (12,018 ft (3,663 m)) is the highest peak in the Snowy Range, a part of the Medicine Bow Mountains, about 35 miles (56 km) west of Laramie, Wyoming. A hiker's blog about trips, experiences, training, and resources. During winter the peak can be reached by snowshoe or by skiing.
Geologic publications have suggested that the Snowy Pass Supergroup at the peak is significantly older than, and unrelated to, the orogeny of the surrounding Medicine Bow mountains.
This is a easy-moderate, non-technical hike. The majority of the elevation is gained over the first 1.75miles. Moderate. Medicine Bow Peak Trail (5.2 Miles) Lakes Trail (1.7 Miles) Lake Marie Trail (0.6 Miles) Dipper Lake Trail (0.9 Miles) Heart Lake Trail (1.7 Miles) Libby Lake Trail (0.3 Miles) Gap Lakes Trail (2.8 Miles) [3], Little is known of the mountain's history before the John C. Frémont expeditions of 1833 - 1834. A GPS can help you find the exact spot. By Elevation. I ended up parking at the next parking area (Tipple Trailhead) due to a lack of parking at the West Lake Marie one. The Tipple Trailhead is about 0.1miles past West Lake Marie on the left as you are driving west. [3] The findings may be pseudofossils. Southern extent of Medicine Bow Peak rising above Lake Marie. In 1955, United Airlines Flight 409 crashed into the side of the mountain; there were no survivors. It lies within Medicine Bow National Forest and is the highest point in southern Wyoming. Thereafter, there is a gradual until the final 0.75miles to the Peak. Periglacial polygons, also known as "stone nets", are located above the timberline. 3 665 m (prom: 994 m) Browns Peak. It was just a short walk to the trailhead, and I arrived at about 11:15AM. Along the trail there were several areas that would be great for camping and a few points where you could get water as well.