“There’s definitely some semblance of a trail up that thing, but nature has reclaimed a good extent of it”
Donovan Rice has now been hiking the Great Colorado Route for 28 days, and has walked approximately 393 miles over that time span.
His accounts during week 4’s wandering the western Colorado wilderness include closing out the canyon hiking sections as he moves south toward the mighty and majestic San Juan Mountains.
But not before exploring some lesser visited spots, including a stop at Ben Lowe’s Roubideau Canyon Cabin, along the Uncompahgre Plateau west of Olathe and Ridgway.
Leaving canyon country
Rice started Day 21 by closing out the southern section of Dominguez Canyon west of Delta, Colorado, following the Gunnison River southeastward for a small amount before leaving it behind for the next few months; he’ll see it again in the fall.
Even though the day was short, only 10 miles, Rice ran into a couple of roadblocks via some smaller cliffs that didn’t show up on his topo map.
“That’s OK, there’s (always) a workaround,” Rice said in a social media post about the day. “I made my way up the wash, the hill, the bench, and then finally got to the top with this great view.”
Rice also made a new friend, Olathe resident Gina Rone, aka “Sailor”, who picked him up, gave him a ride into town and place to crash for the night.
“I always tell people if you want to restore your faith in humanity, go on a thru hike and see what magic awaits you,” Rice said. “Sure there’s the occasional wackadoo, but the vast majority of people out there are good people and want to help you succeed.”
Day 22 was a “zero day” for Rice, allowing him to rest, relax and resupply in the Olathe area before tackling more of the GCR.
For Day 23, Rice began his cross-country trek through Cottonwood Canyon, a seasonal drainage between two dirt roads southwest of Delta, which leads toward the Camel Back WSA and eventually into Roubideau.
Once Rice reached Roubideau, however, he encountered a couple of obstacles. One, several creek crossings, and two, FLIES.
Rice said he thought he crossed the creek north of 40 times on the day.
But…”the biggest kicker was the Deer flies,” Rice said. “I guess June is peak season for them there, so if you stop to catch your breath, they’ll come out in droves to encourage you to keep moving.”
The mysterious Ben Lowe Cabin
Rice also came upon Ben Lowe’s Roubideau Canyon Cabin, a hideout of the infamous Delta County renegade cattleman, at the end of Ben Lowe Trail while hiking through the area.
Lowe was also a sympathizer of the Night Rider’s, a group of people who “wanted to rid the country of what they considered to be an invasion of sheepmen who presented grazing competition on the open ranges of Delta County,” according to an article in the High Country Spotlight in May 2021.
Lowe was known for making the local papers, causing trouble regularly and even rode around with a group of other cowboys called The Jingle Boys.
According to the Delta County Historical Society, the gang helped Lowe construct a cabin of stone in the upper reaches of Roubideau Canyon, which they used as a hideout when the “heat was on.”
In the summer of 1917, Lowe met his maker, dying in a shootout with United States Marshall turned Brand Inspector, Cash Sampson.
The story goes, Lowe and Sampson were eating lunch together with several others at a cabin in the area Roubideau Canyon area. Sampson, a law man, requested Lowe’s family members and the others at the lunch go on ahead without he and Lowe.
Sampson wanted to talk to Lowe about Lowe’s potential involvement in a recent sheep killing.
Minutes later, an argument began, guns were drawn and both men ended up shooting and killing each other on the spot.
Making his way for the moutains
Days 24, 25 and 26 were lighter loads on Rice’s feet after clearing the remaining sections of western Colorado’s canyon country.
He concluded his hike through Roubideau Canyon on Day 24, passed near Antone Springs and Iron Springs Campground of the Uncompahgre Plateau on Day 25 and reached Dave Woods Road in northern Ouray County on Day 26, catching his first glimpse of the San Juan Mountains.
With only one more day left to end week 4, Rice said, “Day 27 was a 26.7-mile marathon day along roads to Ridgway. Since I’m still waiting out snow, I would rather have three easy days than two hard days.”
Heading into week 5, Rice is getting ready for the San Juans, including a summit attempt of Mt. Sneffels before descending into the heart of Colorado’s most infamous mountain range.
Rice said he’ll pick up some snow gear he mailed to himself in Ridgway before heading into the wilderness to start week 5.
In his own words
Most satisfying moment from week 4
- “The most satisfying moment this week was connecting with a local in Olathe who hiked the Colorado Trail, heard about my route, and wanted to ‘trail angel’ me,” Rice said. “Trail angeling is where you provide support for hikers, whether in the form of a cold soda and a freshly grilled burger at a trailhead, or in Gina’s case, giving me a ride from and back to the trailhead and hosting me for two nights at her house with her family, and a ‘zero day’ in between.”
Most challenging moment from week 4
- “The biggest challenge this week, Escalante to Ridgway, was Roubideau Canyon,” Rice said. “There’s definitely some semblance of a trail up that thing, but nature has reclaimed a good extent of it and you often find yourself crossing the creek; well north of 40 times a day.”
What he’s learned from week 4
- “Biggest lesson of the week is how the Grand Junction area really deserves its own thru-hike route, similar to the Tahoe Rim Trail,” Rice said. “I would need to go back and water down some of the gnarlier bits I had in there, but there is the skeleton for a really fun 250ish-mile loop around the city.”
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