Hourglass Trail

The Hourglass starts where the Beaver Creek Trail leaves off, at the northeast end of the Comanche Reservoir dam, and it doesn't waste any time getting down to business. You cross the face of the dam to the south, find the trail sign past the overflow spillway at the timber's edge, and then follow Hourglass Creek up a fairly steep pitch into a mature forest. This is Cameron Peak Fire country — the 2020 burn that took nearly 209,000 acres — and the Forest Service still lists the trail's condition as unknown, so expect downed timber, stretches of bare tread, and terrain that can look unfamiliar even to folks who've been here before.

Higher up the forest gives way to a big boulder field near mile 2.6, and from there the route is marked only by small rock cairns as it breaks out onto open alpine tundra. The reward is a spectacular ridge walk with Comanche Lake tucked in the valley below, but the exposure is real: this is no place to be caught in an afternoon thunderstorm, and the water is spotty once you leave the creek. Watch for the unsigned “T” junction near mile 2.8 — the wider, rockier branch climbing to the southeast (left) past the cairns is the Hourglass; the narrower path dropping to the right is not. The trail ends 5.0 miles in where it meets the Mirror Lake Trail.

Trail Facts

Getting There

There's no separate trailhead — the Hourglass is reached by way of the Beaver Creek Trail. Follow the Beaver Creek directions to its trailhead above Sky Ranch in the Pingree Park area, then hike roughly 3 miles up Beaver Creek to the northeast end of the Comanche Reservoir dam, where the Hourglass Trail officially begins. Cross the face of the dam to the south and look for the trail sign beyond the overflow spillway. The access road is closed and unplowed in winter; in that season the route is reachable only by several miles of snowshoeing or skiing from the gate near Tom Bennett Campground.

Know Before You Go

• Burn country. This trail sits in the 2020 Cameron Peak Fire scar and its condition is officially unknown — watch for falling trees, hidden stump holes, rockslides, and flash flooding that can hit hard even from a small rainstorm and well downstream of where it's raining.
• Route-finding. Above the boulder field the tread is often bare and marked only by small (6–18″) rock cairns; the burn can make even familiar terrain disorienting, so keep a map and don't count on a clear path.
• The unsigned junction. Near mile 2.8 an unsigned “T”-fork splits — the Hourglass is the wider, rocky branch climbing southeast (left) past the cairns; the narrower trail dropping to the right (northwest) is not your route.
• Exposed and high. The upper trail runs across open alpine tundra with no cover — be off the ridge before afternoon thunderstorms build, as lightning is a serious hazard up here.
• Wilderness rules. Inside the Comanche Peak Wilderness, groups are capped at 12 (people and stock combined), and no bikes, wheeled conveyances, or motorized use are allowed.
• Dogs on leash. Dogs must be on a hand-held leash with hikers (voice control with stock).
• Water is spotty. Reliable water is only at the lower end along Hourglass Creek (treat it) — the alpine stretch and the boulder-field camps are dry.
• Weed-free feed. Stock must be fed only pellets or certified weed-free hay throughout the trip to keep noxious weeds out of the high country.