Round Trip Distance: 0.5 miles
Difficulty: Easy
XC Skill level:
Elevation: 8945 - 8997 feet
Cellphone: 0 bars
Time: 30 mins.
Trailhead: Upper
Fee: none
Attractions: Scenic ungroomed trail
The Upper Meadow Loop is located in the Sunlight Mountain Resort Nordic Area near Glenwood Springs, Colorado. The loop begins near the little cabin shelter where the Williams and Babbish Express trails meet up. From there it travels through the trees to a scenic meadow where it loops back around to the Williams trail and then back to the cabin where it began.
The little cabin is 1.5 miles up the Williams trail from the Upper trailhead that is along Forest Road #300. We say little cabin because the doorway probably isn't over 4 feet high and many people won't be able to stand up straight once inside. Stoke up the fire though and it shouldn't take much to warm it up.
A little less than 200 feet past the cabin the groomed trail turns to the left. It as that point where the ungroomed Upper Meadow Loop branches off on the right.
The trail marker for the Upper Meadow Loop is on the left at least 50 feet or so away.
Once the Upper Meadow Loop leaves the groomed trail it quickly disappears into the trees.
After another couple hundred feet the trees begin separating and the meadow starts coming into view.
In this photo there are several different trails where previous visitors had left the main route in the meadow to explore other areas that looked inviting.
There aren't any trail markers in the meadow but the main route follows an imaginary arc that bends around to the right.
As the trail loops around it aims for a notch where the trees on the left slope come down and meet the trees at the other end of the meadow.
The meadow closes up as the trail continues looping around. The main route turns and heads back toward the groomed trail which can't be seen from this point. It is here that the unmarked Upper Babbish trail branches off on the left.
There is another trail marker for the Upper Meadow Loop on a partially fallen aspen tree where a gap opens up between the trees.
After passing through the gap the Upper Meadow Loop comes back out onto the groomed trail just over 200 feet from the cabin where the loop first began. Even when there are already tracks in the meadow it still requires a little imagination to figure out which set of tracks to follow around the meadow to make it to where the gaps are in the trees to get back out to the groomed trail. All in all it's a nice place to go stomping around in the snow. If you would like to see it for yourself then all you have to do is 'Take a hike'.
