GC2KKAD Seaman Reservoir Overlook!
Type: Traditional | Size: Small | Difficulty: | Terrain:
By: Denali41 @ | Hide Date: 12/23/2010 | Status: Available
Country: United States | State: Colorado
Coordinates: N40° 42.395 W105° 14.614 | Last updated: 08/30/2019 | Fav points: 0
               

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Congratulations to bob69d for FTF!

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Reaching GZ for this one takes only modest effort for a back country cache, yet the location will be one that you’ll recall positively for many years. You will reach a position near the cache site at approximately 6,100 feet elevation where sunlight reflecting off the full length of Seaman Reservoir sparkles more than 600 feet below you; the entire scene will be accented by the grassy and wooded ridges and peaks that rise fairly abruptly above the water. And from this promontory you’ll have great views to the south and southeast, of Gateway Natural Area. You’ll appreciate this vantage that looks down on the neat confluence of the Cache la Poudre River and the North Fork of the Poudre. It all happens here, just below where you’ll be standing. And look out farther, down the valley of the lower stretches of Poudre Canyon. On the day I placed the cache with my puppy Teewinot, a smokey haze filled the valley, providing a surreal vista.

So fill your backpack with camera, food, water, and some extra clothing in the event you experience weather changes, and make the hike to the reservoir. Continue from the west dam up the Wintersteen Trail and select appropriate forks off that trail that take you closer and closer to your goal. If you choose correctly, you will be able to stay on a faint trail almost all the way to the top of the point where the cache is hidden. Bring a pencil or pen for your cache log signing ceremony. Once you’ve located the cache and signed its treasure, find a soft rock to sit on. Relax. Appreciate where you are. Eat your lunch or snack. Drink in the marvelous views. Take some photos to share with those who prefer to reach these special places vicariously.

Dogs are allowed off-leash, once you leave the Natural Area. Be aware that this is mountain lion country, so keep your dog(s) reasonably close to you under voice control....just in case you have the thrill of sighting a big cat! Observing one in this relatively open terrain is a treasure of another sort, and one that you would talk about for a long time into the future!

A $5/vehicle access fee is required for Gateway Natural Area from March 1st through November 30th. Parking and access is free in December, January, and February.

10/31/2016 By jrj1980
I set out this morning with the goal of hiking the Wintersteen Trail from the Greyrock area and caching along the way. I managed to find parts of the trail and a few scattered cairns, but I feel like I was mostly blazing my own trail. This was the turnaround point for me and I had to leave empty handed. I looked for about 20 minutes in the many nooks and crannies. It even sounds like there is more than one container and I couldn't spot either. Adding to my watchlist to see how others fare, though I doubt I'll be back up here again.

03/11/2016 By Snipermedic
Couldn't find any trails that looked like they went up so hiked straight to the top with 5 month old son. Man are we tired! Made it up found the cache was like hey maybe we can go down the other side ummmmm ya no. So we hiked along the ridge and spotted a trail finely so made our way to that trail and man was getting down and back to the gateway natural area parking lot. Long fun hike! Thanks for placing it where you did. Ohhhh ya once I found it I realized I had no pen :( so instead I took a picture of us with the cache :)!

08/23/2015 By markwyoming
Bushwhacked to the top of this one for the cache. Fun experience all in all. I piggybacked my son all the way up and down! Worn out daddy!

04/19/2015 By geofred
Was saving this one for my 500th Found It. Nice walk, glad I decided to follow trail rather than do an "as the crow flies." Took me 2 hours to get there; only an hour on the way down. Left some loot in the cache as it was empty except for the log. Someone should leave a pencil. It will need to less than 4" long. I could not get a six inch pen inside it. Left some Hilo Hattie shell necklaces, a "Return It" tag, ShowBiz pizza token, one of my GEOFRED 2004 star tokens. Filled the cache. Thank you Steve, a real nice view.

03/30/2015 By Cache U
This was part of a fun outing with Mousse the Geopup. I had never been to the Gateway Park before, so it was a great experience. Nabbed this along with Greyrock-SE, which made for a strenuous hike with lots of bushwacking. Now my dogs are tired! (Mousse too!). Saw both containers, signed the larger one. Thanks for the fun!