West Branch Trail

The West Branch is the friendliest way into the Rawah Wilderness, and it lets you in gently. From the big trailhead lot off the Laramie River Road you follow an old ditch road south, cross a lumber-stringer bridge, and slip past the Wilderness boundary about half a mile in. For the next couple of miles the trail leans into the West Branch of the Laramie River — you catch it cascading below through gaps in the trees, walled by aspen that turn the whole climb gold come late September. It is a steady grade, not a cruel one, and the water is never far: Supply Ditch a quarter mile up, side creeks and crossings the rest of the way.

Higher up the trail earns its wilderness. At 3.4 miles you wade the North Fork — there is no bridge, and it is usually only a safe ford by the first of July, so time your trip and check the flow. Past the Rawah and Blue Lake junctions the forest thins to krummholz and the grade tips up toward the cirque that holds Carey and Island Lakes, where bighorn and elk drift the high meadows and the sky can turn on you fast. Watch for moose down low and lightning up top, keep your dog on a hand-held leash, remember wood fires are banned above 10,800 feet, and come home wet-footed but grinning.

Trail Facts

Getting There

From Ted's Place, drive west on CO-14 for 51.6 miles, then turn right onto Laramie River Road (CR-103) at mile marker 71.5 and follow it 7.1 miles to the West Branch Trailhead and parking area, a short distance north of the Tunnel Campground. The trail begins about 100 yards south of the lot and heads west along a ditch road. Toilets & water are at the trailhead, but the water is currently non-potable — filter it. The large lot has two entrances and roadside space, so it handles stock trailers well. Laramie River Road isn't plowed, so the trailhead is closed in winter and typically opens in late June.

Know Before You Go

• Moose country. Moose frequent the willowy drainages along the lower trail — give them a wide berth, and keep your dog close and leashed so it doesn't provoke one.
• Unbridged ford at 3.4 mi. The North Fork of the West Branch has no bridge and is usually only a safe crossing by the first of July; in early-summer runoff the first 2.6 miles also run wet, so plan to get your feet wet.
• Wilderness rules. This is the Rawah Wilderness — no bikes, no wheeled or motorized use, and group size is capped at 12 people and stock combined inside the boundary.
• No fires up high. Wood fires are prohibited above 10,800 ft in the Rawah Alpine Closure Area (which includes Carey & Island Lakes) — self-contained chemical stoves only.
• Exposed lakes. The cirque around Carey and Island Lakes is wide open and unsafe in thunderstorms — watch the afternoon sky and be off the high ground before it builds.
• Dogs on a hand-held leash with hikers (voice control only with stock), and treat all water — the trailhead tap is currently non-potable.
• Closed in winter. Laramie River Road isn't plowed; the trailhead typically opens in late June once the road clears.