We hiked from Thirtymile Campground on the east side of the Rio Grande Reservoir across Weminuche Pass, linking up with the CDT and then crossing the Divide over to the west side near the Window / Rio Grande Pyramid, taking the East Ute Creek trail back to the west side of the Rio Grande Reservoir, where we had to ford the Rio Grande River and then hitch a ride back to Thirtymile. Incredible backpack, around 25 mile semi-loop. I got a bad case of altitude sickness on day 2 so we had cut the trip shorter than we had intended, but still managed to complete the loop in 2 days. I had done a similar trip from the Ute Creek trailhead 8 years ago in 2008, where we forded the Rio Grande and then headed up to Ute Lake (the big one) on the Divide. It was great to come back to this area after all these years. The views of the Window and Rio Grande Pyramid up close were worth it alone, not to mention the amazing views atop the Divide looking west. More detailed trip info to follow when time permits, but for now enjoy this video:
