Explore Angel of Shavano - view hand-curated trail maps and driving directions as well as detailed reviews and photos from hikers, campers and nature lovers like you.
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I never write reviews but I couldn't believe that no one has mentioned the explosives from avalanche testing that happen in the area. There were signs posted once I got to the trail, but I decided to proceed thinking they likely wouldn't do them on a Friday... About a quarter in a loud explosive went off that spooked my dog (and me!) and he pulled me down the mountain as fast as he could. It didn't help that the snow was VERY deep and made the trail really hard to navigate after the first quarter mile. TLDR: use snowshoes, be prepared for deep snow, uphill terrain, and potential explosives in the area
Trail was snow packed except maybe 50 ft of mud in one little stretch. Folks were skiing down which looked amazing.
It’s snowshoeing season! Definitely can’t do this with just spikes now. I didn’t make it to the lake since I ran out of daylight, but it is an amazing snowshoeing trail! Isaiah 1:18 “though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;”
Didn’t need snowshoes until we hit the Colorado trail area. Very nice hike! Well traveled.
Awful slog. Snow wasn't deep on the day I hiked, but was just a generally long day at over 5k of gain since I started at Angel of Shavano which added 500ft to the route plus 4mi round trip. 3/5 wouldn't recommend this route especially during winter.
Spikes only, no snowshoes needed. Trail has a nice solid track to follow.
Great trails. Yes part of it is a road, but a gnarly 4x4 road that's still fun and challenging. Just a bit of snow up to Boss. From there it's at least ankle deep snow all the way to Hunt. Gorgeous views looking back east and up to Bald peak.
Very Nice trail. We only did 3 or so miles up, so RT 6 miles. Some snow at 3 mile mark, but not that much. Nice steady incline. Water crossing at 2.5 mile, but easy to navigate.
Absolutely no views of all the surrounding mountain regions, an ugly sunset, the least fun scramble at the top, and I’ll never go again. (Sarcasm, but seriously it was amazingly empty on trail and I’ve started reviewing these trails poorly to keep them from getting destroyed) Made it up the road in a Rav4. Only one tricky spot to note that might bottom out a sedan. If you lost your iphone on the trail yesterday, a good samaritan picked it up and posted it on the fourteeners of Colorado facebook group.
a lot of truck road until you get to the last 3/4 of a mile.
Great trail! No snow on it as of Oct. 20. Wanted to keep going to Tabeguache but was short on time, water and energy, so just did Shavano, which I clocked at 9.7 roundtrip. Other reviews are accurate that the last 300' or so of vertical is primarily route finding through rocks. The Alltrails map helped a lot then. The road to the Blanks TH is pretty grim right now, but AWD vehicles can still make it if they go slow, no 4 x 4 required.
Easy drive down dirt road. No 4x4 or clearance needed. Easy parking. Did a few miles out and back very gradual. No bikers today. Had a little snow/ice/mud around mile 3 ish. We turned around shortly after. No bugs. Aspens were changing.
Love this trail for years. Guess I should have rode it more. Closing end of 2023
Gorgeous fall colors; both aspens and ground cover. Did a 4 mile portion - gradual steady incline. Followed the creek the whole way easy water for pups. Trail dry and very well maintained.
Gorgeous start near a creek with small waterfalls! This hike is a climb the whole way with some steep sections. Rocky as others said. The lake at the top is gorgeous and the trail was in good condition. Great trail as long as you're prepared for all up!
5 miles clocked from highway. Steepest and bumpiest road is first 200 yds. An he done in an AWD SUV. Lake is pretty. Leaves were awesome on those aspens.
Short and rocky. Nice views. Second lake has boulder field so be very cautious with dogs beyond first lake
I’m obsessed with this trail. The perfect length to add some challenge. The elevation gain was gradual. It was nice to be in the trees until the end. Lots of mtn bikers but most were courteous. One small group of dirt bikers. Took. Me 6.5hrs to complete including sitting at the top for 20mins. My trail running shoes were just fine.
Lost a star because this is a 7.2 mile hike and a rough (and very unpleasant) 4wd road makes up 3 miles of it. I didn’t realize AT counted the road as part of the miles and elevation. The trail was very pretty- after the road you come to a very cute water crossing and bridge and then switchback up to Boss Reservoir. While shaded, I would avoid doing this in the heat of the day. Boss was very pretty. Hunt lake is currently being treated with chemicals so couldn’t go in or filter water from the area. It may have been a bit low due to the time of year but it wasn’t all that amazing compared to the other lakes we have in the state. This was a nice stop on my way home from Gunnison when I had a few hours to kill and wanted to stretch my legs a bit but due to the road section I probably wouldn’t do this trail again.
The other reviews of this hike are accurate in that the trail up for about half of its length is extremely rocky with small and large rocks to slide under foot. However, the lakes are beautiful. Ignore the AllTrails north path from the lower lake to the upper lake. Instead, approach the upper lake from the southern end of the lower lake and skirt the boulder field. This short trail (.3 mi. perhaps) meanders and is easily lost without a GPS app to guide you.
It was a great hike. However, once we reached the lake, a couple came up to us and rudely told us we were on their land and they owned the lake. Made us feel like we were trespassing when we were clearly on the public trail.
Trail is well maintained and generally easy to follow, until the last 300’ when there seem to be several trails-none with cairns and most not very apparent. Getting down that last 300’ is easier as the trails are easy to see from above. I hiked 22 Sep 23, and there was no snow on this trail. The views at the top are fabulous.
Stomach bug hit :/ Yooking a rhia’ing canceled the trip early
Stiff rocky climb. Shallow stream crossings. About a dozen hikers. Blue skies and favorable temps (50’s). No bugs in the afternoon. Trail easy to follow. Light dusting of snowfall above 10,000’. An excellent hike!
When you get to the Boss Lake sign and fork go left. The lake is absolutely beautiful. If you drive up the road in a high clearance vehicle it is a very short hike.
We had to hike to the trailhead. The 4WD road is no fun on the way down! Beautiful hike with beautiful views. Was there 9/10/23 and fished and hiked almost to the summit of Bald Mountain. Encountered a small mountain lion so didn’t summit. Enjoyed the day there. Not busy and beautiful. Some good stretches of incline!!!
Very well maintained trail, wasn’t able to hit the Combo with a storm rolling in. Love this trail
Steep, lung buster at times, but at 1.5 miles to the first lake, not bad, definitely worth it!! Second lake is a bit harder to get to, narrow overgrown path, steep, then crossing a flat boulder field. But— SO worth it. Will for sure return!!
No exposure. Windy on the saddle as others have mentioned, but otherwise fine. Fun hike!
At the beginning there is a diverging path and in the dark it looks like you go straight for the 14ers, but you should go LEFT!!! There is a sign but it is not well placed. We turn the wrong turn and ran into 3 other groups that did the same thing!!! In all, an AWESOME day!’
Enjoyable hike with hefty wind gusts at the summit. Saddle between Shavano and Tab took a little longer than anticipated to negotiate.
The trailhead was a little confusing to find since the sign is a bit hidden off the side of the road. The actual hike is great though and a bit strenuous for such a short jaunt up to the lakes.
The AllTrails map was not updated.
Great day, we drove up to the Boss Lake trailhead, 4x4 needed for sure. Hiked all the way up to Hunt Lake to fish. Lots of people up there but LDW so expected. Beautiful day!
Trail was very well maintained with a new section recently built. The trail is much longer than reported however! Probably 11 miles round trip. Sadly we had to turn around about 300ft below the summit due to lightning and recorded 10.25. Expect a very long exposed section above tree time.
The dirt road is very long to get to the trailhead. Don’t give up go all the way up to the parking area if you plan to do this hike. 4 wheel drive is needed.
Beautiful views and wonderful trail! As of 9/3, the pit toilet at the TH had a broken lock and was stuck closed.
Was a nice steep climb, but the lake was beautiful and worth it. There were a lot of groups on the trail with dogs, so very popular. We got to the trailhead about 9:35am and took the last parking spot. It’s Labor Day weekend, so that may be the reason.