Snakeskin Trail, CO

Warning
Mountain biking can be dangerous - please know your skill level and be appropriately prepared with PPE before starting any trail.


Overview
Snakeskin is a short connector trail that allows folks to form a loop between Good Vibes and the Gunny Loop in the Little Park Area. It follows a winding canyon rim with nice views into both the canyon and the Grand Valley beyond.

Hike
As with many of the Little Park area trails, this one is short but provides a great way to see the valley and link together multiple other trails. Snakeskin starts at the T-junction of Good Vibes and Second Thoughts, and picks up where Second Thoughts, coming from the Third Flats trailhead left off. Both of these trails are (or will be) described elsewhere. The trail descends slowly, winding along ridges along the edge of an unnamed canyon that trends northeast. The trail seems narrow at times, especially for a biker, but no part of the trail is technically challenging for a hiker beyond the usual errant rocks. After roughly half a mile the mesa on the left retreats and you are in a saddle between two (relatively low) high points. The Snakeskin to Little Park Connector (described elsewhere) branches off to the left here, but Snakeskin itself keeps going straight ahead. You leave the meadow behind and enter a pinyon-juniper forest as the trail begins a series of descending switchbacks before dead-ending into the Gunnison (Gunny) Loop. Turning left will bring you back towards the Little Park Connector while turning right will give you a slow descent over 1.2 miles until you read the bottom of the Gunny Cutoff Trail.

Water Sources
None, bring all you need.

Camping
No.

Note
This trail is rated Intermediate (Blue) for mountain bikers.

Check out the Official Route.

Leave No Trace and +Add a Triplog after your hike to support this local community.

2020-05-16 PaleoRob