Sage Hen Trail to McPhee Reservoir Overlooks

The northwest side of the McPhee reservoir area of the Dolores River in southwest Colorado is known as the Sage Hen area.

There is the rough Forest Road 500 that runs straight north for 4.3 miles to the McPhee Dam and a single track trail that takes a more wandering route in the same direction, and then connects with the forest road. These trails are closed to vehicles and are used by horses and mountain bikes in addition to hikers.

Both trails start at the normally closed gate, with the single track veering off to the right after about 60 feet. The first mile or so of the single-track cuts through a sage plain area.

The trail then passes through islands of Pinon Pine and Juniper forest with open areas of sage giving some views over the lake and to Mesa Verde and the LaPlata mountains. There are also thickets of Gambel Oak in this area. After about 2 miles there is an intersection with the segment of rough forest road 500A that leads down to the reservoir edge. The trail continues on but the lake can make a good turn around point for a 2 hour hike, or there is a loop option using road 500A.

From the shore here both of the McPhee Reservoir developed recreation areas are visible across the water. To the left is the House Creek recreation area and to the right is the McPhee area, both offering campgrounds and launch ramps for boating and fishing.

Continuing on, the Sage Hen Trail heads north and west toward the McPhee Dam area, skirting around a side canyon of the Dolores River. There are some high points where there are good views east toward the LaPlata Mountains and north toward the San Miguel Mountains and south towards Mesa Verde..

I got off the trail and searched some of the hilltops for archaeological sites. Some of the hills in this area have pottery shards and rubble piles to find. I saw a few pottery shards in this area but the archaeological sites here are subtle and elusive. I did find some good overlook points for the McPhee Reservoir. The Beaver Creek arm is to the right with Trimble Point in the center. Dry Canyon is to the left.

Further west there is a partial view of the McPhee Dam. The trail that is visible across the canyon is the McPhee Stock Trail. The Mataska Recreation Area and the beginning of the lower Dolores River are visible below the dam.

The return leg of trail follows along to the power line that is close to Forest Road 500 and the single-track trail makes a vague junction with Forest Road 500 close to the junction of Forest Road 500 and Forest Road 500C. Hikes from the trailhead area to the overlooks of the McPhee Reservoir are about 10 miles and have taken me 4:30 or 5:00 hours.

(There is another post on the segment of Forest Road 500 that goes directly to the McPhee Dam. Use the Sage Hen label to find.)

Sage Hen Forest Road to McPhee Dam

The area on the west end of McPhee Reservoir on the Dolores River in southwest Colorado is known as the Sage Hen area. Running straight north for 4.3 miles from Sage Hen is the very rutted and rough Forest Road 500, leading to the McPhee Dolores River Dam site. This Forest Road has been closed to motorized vehicles since 2008.

The trail climbs through a sagebrush plain area with scattered Pinon Pines and Junipers and gives good views of the McPhee Reservoir with Mesa Verde becoming visible the higher you go. The LaPlata Mountains with Mt. Hesperus are also visible to the east. This area gets some use from mountain bikers and horse riders in addition to hikers. There is also fishing and boating access in the side roads close to the McPhee Reservoir.

Descending into Lone Dome Canyon through a side canyon, the Dolores River discharging from the dam flows west. The Dolores River State Wildlife area protects the river through this area. The forest on the north facing canyon wall has Ponderosa Pines and Douglas Firs.

A service road bridge allows easy crossing into the developed Mataska Recreation Area below the dam. The posted historical information discusses how cattlemen were the first to settle this area and at the end of summer the cattle were driven through this area to the rail line in Dolores for shipment to Denver and Kansas City.
 

Near the Mataska picnic ground there is a service road that goes to the top of the dam. Interpretive information in the picnic area reports that the dam was built in 1984, is 270 feet above the river bed, and the water covers 4,470 acres. Irrigation water from McPhee Reservoir is distributed by canals through the area and keeps it greener than it would otherwise be.

It took me about 2:00 hours to get from Sage Hen to the river and I spent about an hour in the river area and up on top of the dam. The total time for about 10 miles was 5:10 hours.

For a shorter hike, there are some artifacts of the human history of the Sage Hen area to see but they take some searching away from the main trail. There are two side trails leading toward the east from Forest Road 500. The first side trail is about 1.5 miles north. A short distance along the side trail there is an old corral.

South of the side trail, but not on the trail there is some sort of old camp with a number of old metal artifacts. This camp is near an old constructed pond.

The second side trail is about 2.3 miles north along the main trail. In the Sage Hen area some of the hilltops  appear to be archaeology sites. With some careful looking, there are some pottery shards visible. I thought the pottery shards I saw were thinner and mostly plain compared to the Black on White styles that are found in nearby canyons.

There are also a number of rubble piles that could be ruins sites. These rubble piles aren’t as distinct as the ones in the nearby Canyons of the Ancients. In a couple of places there are lines of large stones that seem to be turned on edge.