Gunsight Pass (Sawatch Range, Colorado)
The pass is traversed by Forest Trail 428, the South Lottis Creek Trail, which is 10.5 miles (16.9 km) long. The trail is accessed from the north at the Lottis Creek Trailhead on Gunnison County Road 742. From the south, the trail is accessed at the Gold Creek Trailhead located on Gunnison County Road 771. The trail lies within the Fossil Ridge Wilderness, and only foot and horse travel are allowed. No permits are required to enter this wilderness area.
Evidence of Pleistocene glaciation dominates the area around Gunsight Pass. The pass is the low point on an arête that separates two glacial cirques. Moraines are found in the valleys below and the glacial cobble can make hiking along Forest Trail 428 difficult in spots. The ridge itself is composed of Proterozoic metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks.
In about 1900, area resident John Gardiner blasted a hole in the ridge to allow passage of his pack trains. The resulting notch gives the pass its name.
References
- ^ "Gunsight Pass". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ Helmuth, Ed; Helmuth, Gloria (1994). The Passes of Colorado: An Encyclopedia of Watershed Divides. Boulder, Colorado: Pruett Publishing Company. ISBN 0-87108-841-X.
- ^ "South Lottis Trail". trails.colorado.gov. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ "South Lottis #428". fs.usda.gov. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ Zech, Robert S. (1988). Geologic map of the Fossil Ridge area, Gunnison County, Colorado. Reston, Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey.
- ^ Prather, Thomas (1999). Geology of the Gunnison Country (2nd ed.). Gunnison, Colorado: B&B Printers. LCCN 82-177244.
External links
- Media related to Gunsight Pass (Sawatch Range, Colorado) at Wikimedia Commons