Scarp Ridge Hike in Crested Butte: The Middle Loop Trail- Hiking the ridge line along Scarp Ridge in Crested Butte was one of my favorite hikes in this area. This trail can be completed many ways, from hiking the middle loop, hiking it one way to adding on some optional extensions. This hike is family friendly and gives you some great over basin views while getting to see Lake Irwin as well. My article will let you know where to park, where to stay, how hard it is, how long it takes and much more about the Scarp Ridge hike.
There are a couple different ways to complete this hike. We hiked this as a loop starting at Lake Irwin. Some even hike here from the Oh Be Joyful Area as a day hike and a few hike from to The Blue Lake as a through hike. I will speak of all the options in this article. First starting as a loop trail, called the middle loop from the Lake Irwin area.
Stats
Length: 4.6 miles (depending on route)
Time: 2.5 hours
Difficulty: moderate to strenuous
Evelvation: 10,712 feet at trailhead, 11,867 feet at Scarp Ridge
Elevation Gain: 1,250 feet
Trailhead: Lake Irwin Lodge
Overview
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When To Go
We went in mid July and some parts of this hike had minor snow coverings on the sides of the trail. Nothing that got in our way of the path. But unless prepared with proper gear, plan for summer. April through October would be the best months to go.
Where To Stay
To put you really close to this hike you can camp at the Lake Irwin Campground.This campground has trailer and tent spots. Large campervan trailers will have a hard time getting up and down some parts of the road in. But small ones should be fine! This campground has drop toilets but nothing else, so make sure you bring your own water. Book sites here ahead of time as they go fast, check recreation.gov to pre-book your site.
We stayed at the Oh Be Joyful Campground in our KuKu Campers Campervan. We stayed here to mainly have easy access to the Blue Lake Hike. But it also put us at a reasonable distance for Scarp Ridge as well. After hiking Scarp Ridge we drove to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison to stay the night there.
The town of Crested Butte is only a 35 minutes drive to the trailhead. And a very cute mountain town.
How Hard Is The Hike?
We saw many families and people of all ages along this trail. This is also a high elevation gain hike. If you are not used to high elevation make sure to acclimate. This means spend a few days on smaller hikes or simply stay in the area to acclimate. We did this hike on our eighth day in Colorado (from Ohio) so we felt pretty acclimated. At the Rocky Mountains National Park we hiked Sky Pond and I did feel more tired on our first day in Colorado. This led to more breaks in the trail. Still doable but listen to your body and be prepared to turn around.
Parking
The official start to this trail is at the Lake Irwin Lodge. This lodge is no longer in service but they ask that you do not to park right at the lodge. There are about 20 parking spots right before the gate of the lodge, park there if you can.
The road past the lake at Irwin can get a little sketchy. We were in a rented campervan and felt a little unsure making the drive all the way up when we got past the main campsites, we found a few pot holes right away. So we turned around and parked in the lake parking lot. Once we got to the trailhead we saw plenty of non- 4 wheel drive cars and we could have probably made it, but better safe than sorry.
If you park at the Lake Irwin Parking Lot and walk along the lake up to the lodge you will add about 1 mile (one way) to your hike.
The Route
This hike can be completed a few different ways, we did it as a loop and took the split to the right first. Click the options below for directions and tips for your intended route.
Scarp Ridge Out and Back to the Left
Scarp Ridge Out and Back to the Right
Start
If starting at the Lake Irwin Parking Lot then you will start clockwise around the lake. Take the trail to the left of the lake. This first part of the trail will have a very small creek crossing. Eventually once around the lake the trail cuts up to the road to the Lake Irwin Lodge. The walk up to the Lodge is slightly steep.
If starting at the Lake Irwin Lodge Parking Area you will continue up the gravel pathway for a short time until you get to the gates of the Lodge. Here you will see a sign pointing to the left to get you on the Scarp Ridge Trailhead.
The trail starts on a gravel path and a slight increasing incline for about the first 0.3 miles.
The Split
Eventually you will come to a split, here is where you can make a decision if you want to hike this in a loop, or an out and back trail.
We went right as locals told us this was best, I able glad we did the whole loop.
Scarp Ridge Middle Loop
No matter which way around you go you will see the same sights. But to the right will give you a better view of the ridge line.
Going right first will take you through an easy path, this section of the trail will have tons of wildflowers during July and wildflower season.
A few cuts through some pine trees before going up to the ridge.
Peeler Basin Viewpoint
The first viewpoint will be looking over the Peeler Basin. Here you can even see the some of the town on a clear day.
After checking out the Peeler Basin viewpoint we continued our hiking along the ridge. We would occasionally take the paths out to the edge to view the basin from different angles.
Eventually along the ridge this path merges back with the loop to hike a straight path up to Scarp Ridge, you will walk along the ridge for about 0.3 miles.
There will be a section of the trail that you hike up some boulders before hiking up over the slight hill to the main viewpoint.
Scarp Ridge Viewpoint
The Scarp Ridge end point is an incredible 360 degree panoramic viewpoint. When we got here there was only one other couple. We got to walk down to the left to get closer views of the Ruby Peak Mountain, Green lake and Blue lake. We stopped at the end to eat lunch.
Once packing up from lunch we started to head out and many people were starting to roll in. Start this hike early if you want to avoid the crowds.
We took the other side of the loop back. Although still beautiful with the flowers and mountain top views we were glad we did the full loop.
Scarp Ridge Out and Back to the Left
Many people hike to Scarp Ridge by just hiking the left side of the loop and back. This would make the hike more direct and slightly shorter. But you would miss the view over the basin and most of the walk along the ridge. But this would give you more time to add on an extension such as the Blue Lake (mentioned below) as it is more direct and would take less time than the full loop.
Scarp Ridge Out and Back to the Right
If you only hike this section of the trail you will get to see the views along the ridge more and the final destination. Hiking this route out and back would let you see the ridge more and you would have the option of adding on Mt. Emmons or Gunsight Pass if you have extra time as you will pass it on your way back as well.
Other Ways To Hike This Route
A Day Hike From Oh Be Joyful Recreation Area
You could start very early at the Oh Be Joyful Recreation Area, hike to the Blue Lake then up to Scarp Ridge. The incline from Blue lake would be rough. And I would prepare for an all day hike if combing these for an out and back hike.
A Through Hike From Lake Irwin
You can hike this as a through hike. Leaving a car at Lake Irwin and one at Oh Be Joyful. I think this would be my favorite option if you have the transportation for a through hike. Start at Lake Irwin, to Scarp Ridge, down to Blue Lake and through the valley of Oh Be Joyful ending at the Oh Be Joyful Campground.
A Through Hike From Oh Be Joyful
You can also reverse the above through a hike starting at Oh Be Joyful. This route would be more inclines than if starting at Lake Irwin for a thorough hike.
A Multi- Day Trip
If you have the time and equipment this area would be a great overnight backpacking trip. Blue Lake had some camping spots available and designated fire pits. This would make a beautiful scenery to wake up to during an overnight trip.
Optional Extensions
Blue Lake
From Scarp Ridge you can see the Blue Lake in the Oh Be Joyful Basin. From Scarp Ridge look out you can take the trail going off to the right side along the ridge. Make sure you are sure footed and conditions are good as this starts to get more dangerous than the Scarp Ridge trail. From here you will make a very fast descent down before getting to the Blue Lake. This would be a decent add on but the hike back up to Scarp Ridge would be hard as it is a big ascent.
Mount Emmons
If hiking in a loop you can walk more along the ridge towards Mt Emmons from the Peeler Basin viewpoint. This would be an out and back extension so go as far you have time for. The hike all the way to Mt Emmons from the Peeler Basin viewpoint would add on about another 6 miles round trip.
Tips For The Hike
Go Early
To always avoid the crowds and heat. Stay close for this hike and get an early start in the morning. I believe we started around 7:30 am and had the trail to ourselves.
Avoid High Spline Storms
With high alpine hiking you do need to watch for the weather. It can be very dangerous to get stuck in a lightning storm at high elevation with minimal coverage. Check the weather and go early. Many storms happen in the afternoon. When we went a storm was rolling in at the end of our hike around noon.
Leave No Trace
Follow the Leave No Trace guidelines and tips to keep these beautiful places open the public and beautiful.
What To Bring
Water: we each filled 2 liter water bladders and this 1 liter collapsible water bottle for our day hike.
Electrolytes: to help with dehydration and altitude sickness I like to use a hydration tablet (I love the Nuuns as they are easy to pack) at least once a day. So I stuck one in my water bottle for this hike.
Snacks: we like jerky sticks, a peanut butter sandwich, granola bars, and trailmix to bring on our hikes.
Hiking Poles: I like my travel hiking poles for long all day hikes, definitely helps the knees.
Sturdy Hiking Shoes: I wore my Vasques Hiking Shoes.
DayPack: My favorite lightweight summer daypack is the Osprey Daylite Daypack. Perfect size for all that you need.
Hat/sunglasses: not much shade at the top of the trail.
Sunscreen
Other Hikes In The Area That You Might Like
Blue Lake
My favorite hike was to the Blue Lake from Oh Be Joyful, but as mentioned above this can be added on to this days hike if feeling adventurous.
Green Lake
The Green Lake looked pretty cool from Scarp Ridge, if we had more time we would have tried to complete this hike while we were in the area.
Ruby Peak
The color of Ruby Peak looked awesome.
Gunsight Pass
A hike through the Peeler Basin Gunsight Pass looks like a scenic hike.
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