Ute Creek #1824

The Ute Creek Trailhead is just outside of the Ute Creek summer homes. The trail switchbacks .5 mile to the top of a ridge between Ute and Campbell Creeks, and follows a ridgetop for nearly 2 miles before dropping into the Ute Creek drainage. The trail follows Ute Creek 4 miles to the Flat Tops Wilderness [https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/whiteriver/specialplaces/?cid=stelprd3825863] boundary, passing through aspen groves, Englemann spruce and grassy meadows. The Ute Creek Fire of 1994 burned the trees along several miles of the trail. Please use extreme caution around standing dead trees. Two miles into the Wilderness, the trail reaches the Flat Tops Plateau. It continues through spruce-fir for another mile before breaking into open parks for 2.5 miles, where it meets Oyster Lake and the junction with Oyster Lake Trail (#1825) [https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/whiteriver/recarea/?recid=40807].