There’s a forested mountain in the Upper Cherokee Park State Wildlife Area that rises to 8,740 feet. It’s summit juts above the surrounding terrain to such an extent that the mountain’s top provides stunning views of Larimer County’s northern mountains. The summit vicinity is rocky and supports few trees, affording vistas that are long-distance ones--reaching north into Wyoming, west to the Rawahs, south to some high mountains of Rocky Mountain National Park, and east to the lower peaks of the county. You get a full menu of landscapes from the top of Point 8740. And you get a geocache with the log book treasure that it holds!
The cache is a small camoed container located in a cluster of rocks about 100 feet west of the summit cairn. You may need to search a bit, but you should find it without an immense effort.
After you’ve located the cache and signed its log, relax at the true summit and gaze at the scenery laid out before you. Take maps that will allow you to put names to many of the features you see in the middle and distant views. Look for locations that have other geocaches, so you can plot out on the land your approach routes for them. But mainly, simply enjoy the solitude that you’ve earned by making the hike to this wonderful location.
This State Wildlife Area has some seasonal restrictions you should be aware of: from May 2 through August 31 the area is open to all uses. From September 1 through May 1, uses are restricted to hunting and fishing. You be the judge of whether hunting for geocaches qualifies as “hunting”. I suspect that the local Wildlife Conservation Officer might have a different perspective of what “hunting” is!
Have fun. Enjoy your hike to the top of this peak.
Upper Cherokee
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Thanks Steve for this nice backcountry cache and for the enjoyable hike together.
