Wallace Lake (well, almost anyway)...

This hike is just up Missionary Ridge (north of Durango), and can be reached easily by car. Thanks to the 2002 fire, mom, Trevor and I drove to the wrong trailhead (all the burned timber is a little disorientating), and hiked an easily three miles before turning around and heading back to the car – all the time wondering where the stupid lake was!

The burned forest is starting to regenerate, and is very beautiful in a different way than some of the other hikes we've been on. Additionally, dead trees can be heard falling down from time to time, which almost gives the area a haunted, eerie feel (that whole, “if a tree falls down in a forest and no one is around, does it make a sound” thing).

We did find Wallace Lake eventually, but - for some reason - I do not seem to have any photos of it. All the following images are from the short three mile hike we did trying to find Wallace Lake from the first trailhead. Just so you know, though, you can literately drive all the way up the logging road to Wallace Lake without a problem (or a four-wheel drive vehicle even). This is a great hike to go on when trying to get acclimated.