Brainard Lake Recreational Area - Nederland, CO

The Brainard Lake Recreational Area, is a short trip from my home base in Boulder, CO, but there is a fair amount of elevation gain. I started at 5400', drove up scenic Boulder Canyon, and arrived at the Pawnee Campground (10,345') in the Roosevelt National Forest about an hour later. I recently purchased a new tow vehicle, a 2006 Nissan Xterra, and had no trouble pulling the T@B up the almost 5000' in elevation gain. It handled very well around several tight, hairpin corners, and seems like good fit for the T@B. I retired my Jeep Wrangler, which worked well towing a light trailer, but it wasn't an ideal tow vehicle for long trips.

I stayed at Pawnee Campground, which has 55, well-spaced sites, and most are in densely wooded forest that provides privacy between campers. The few sites without many trees offer spectacular views of Brainard lake and the Rocky Mountains. Most sites are very level with packed gravel, which made it easy for me to back the T@B in, uncouple the hitch, and then turn it around by hand. It is really nice to be able to reposition the microlite camper manually without having to use the tow vehicle. The campground had pit toilets, several shared water spigots, fire rings, grills, but no electricity or showers. Temperatures got down to around 40 degrees one night, but the T@B's LP gas furnace kept things nice and toasty inside.

The Brainard Lake Recreational Area is popular with hikers because it offers a large number of trails at a variety of difficulty levels. One afternoon I took a moderate, 3-mile hike up to Lake Isabelle at the base of Shoshoni Peak. It was a little over an hour, one way, along a well marked trail, and it was the highlight of the weekend for me with spectacular views of mountain lakes, flowers, and wildlife. At the end of the day, it was nice having the T@B to come back to, where I had a warm, comfortable place to stretch my legs, make a hot meal, and rest up for the next day's adventure.

If you go: All even-numbered sites at Pawnee Campground can be reserved and the odd-numbered sites are first come, first served. There is an $8 entrance fee for a 5-day pass to the Recreation Area, and the camping fee is $16/night at Pawnee Campground. Unfortunately, the campground closed for the season this weekend, but it generally reopens in mid-to-late June. Otherwise, the area is open for hiking, snowshoeing, or back country skiing year round, and the entrance fee is only assessed during summer operation. Nederland (about 17 miles from the campground) is the nearest town where you can pick up groceries and other supplies.