State: Colorado
Location: Great Sand Dunes National Monument
Length, One-Way: 6 miles
Trail Type: Out and Back
Minimum Elevation: 9380 feet
Elevation Change: 2000 feet
Best Season: Summer
Difficulty: Moderate
Usage: Heavy
Trail Information
Sand Creek lakes is popular with hikers and equestrians so trailhead parking can be tight on summer weekends. Hike midweek to find solitude, always purify water taken from natural sources and store your food so it’s safe from bears. Do your best to leave no trace of your stay here.
From Music Pass, the trail descends steadily into the Upper Sand Creek drainage. Less than 1 mile from the pass, there is a trail junction; turn right (northwest) for the lakes. The trail south passes several nice campsites then follows the creek downstream through very dense timber. Heading north from the junction, the trail crosses Sand Creek, then forks again. Turn left to reach the lower lake (.6 mile from here) or right to reach the upper lake (1 mile further on). Note older maps do not reflect recent trail re-routing.
The very steep sided, rocky peak is Tijeras Peak (el. 13,604′). To its right is Music Mountain (el. 13,355′) and Milwaukee Peak (el. 13,522′).
Directions
This area is accessed from Music Pass on the east side of the Sangre de Cristo range. Driving time to the Music Pass trailhead from the national monument visitor center is about 3 hours.
The trailhead for Music Pass is accessed from Highway 69, 4.5 miles south of Westcliffe. Turn off Highway 69 to the west at the sign for Music Pass and South Colony Lakes Trailhead. At the T junction turn left onto South Colony Road. At the end of the ranch fence on the right, you’ll see another sign for Music Pass. 2WD drivers should park where the Rainbow Trail crosses Music Pass Road.
