Wilderness -- "an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain ... an area protected and managed so as to preserve its natural conditions." —The Wilderness Act of 1964
This is the 50th anniversary year of the enactment of The Wilderness Act, an especially noteworthy event!
Special protection for the Mount Evans area began in 1956 with the designation of the approximately 5,880-acre Abyss Lake Scenic Area under the precursor of the Wilderness Act, the "U-Regulations" of 1939. This was followed in 1980 by the creation of the Mount Evans Wilderness under the Colorado Wilderness Act. It now has a total of 74,401 acres. All of this wilderness is located in Arapaho National Forest and Pike National Forest in Colorado, and is managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
This wilderness is one of the smaller parcels set aside as wilderness in the Rocky Mountains. Albeit small, the wilderness area receives significant visitation and usage due to the Mt. Evans Scenic Byway which ascends a non-wilderness corridor into the center of the wilderness area.This byway, two 14,000 foot peaks (14,264-foot Mt. Evans and 14,060-foot Mt. Bierstadt), and the close proximity to Denver have contributed to very heavy use. Despite the high likelihood of encountering other users, the area offers several unique features worthy of a visit including the presence of the two 14ers that attract thousands of hikers and climbers each year. Evidence of past glaciers can be seen in the steep granite cirques and glacial moraines surrounding the high peaks. The Wilderness contains small regions of arctic tundra, rare south of the Arctic Circle. Unlike typical Colorado alpine tundra, which is dry and brittle once the snow recedes, arctic tundra holds numerous small pools of water. Vegetation ranges from lower-elevation spruce-fir and lodgepole forests, through 2,000-year-old Bristlecone pines and Krummholtz near treeline, to delicate alpine vegetation reaching all the way to the highest peaks. Deer and elk inhabit the sub-alpine areas, and bighorn sheep and mountain goats are common above treeline.
The wilderness contains 17 hiking trails involving 77 miles of trails. An additional 28 miles of trails that provide access to the wilderness are on adjacent forest service lands.
THE PUZZLE
The listed coordinates will take you to an asphalt parking lot near Guanella Pass. Go to the coordinates and look around. Find a conspicuous information sign for “Guanella Pass Summit” that’s adjacent to the parking area. The cache is located 2,968,543 mils at 793.36 mils from the front of this sign. It is NOT under a rock cairn, and it’s well-hidden. It is not findable when snow is present in the area.
CONGRATULATIONS TO -E T- FOR THE FTF!!