Conundrum Trailhead
Free Tickets Available
Fri, 08 Aug, 2025 at 05:00 am to 10:00 pm (GMT-06:00)
Conundrum Trailhead
Conundrum Creek Road, Aspen, United States
REGISTRATION OPENS ON TUESDAY, JULY 1ST @ 7pm! Spots are very limited. Must be available all dates to register!
Latino Outdoors Colorado managed to get permits for Conundrum Hot Springs near Aspen, CO! We are looking for intermediate/experienced backpackers to join us! We will be asking you to tell us about your backpacking experience during registration and ask that you have been on at least one intermediate backpacking trip prior. Gear is available to borrow if you don't have backpacking/hiking gear.
IMPORTANT: This event is for participants over 18 years old only. Each participant should reserve a spot with their own name and email, in which they will receive a waiver to fill out.
If you cannot attend, please let us know as soon as possible by cancelling your tickets or by replying to the Eventbrite email so that we can release spots to those on the waitlist.
PRE-HIKE
All participants are required to attend a pre-hike outing. We will all be wearing our packs for training with the gear we are planning on bringing on the Conundrum trip.
Date: Saturday, July 26th
Time: Be at trailhead at 7:30am, if carpooling we will coordinate times
Trail Info - Herman Gulch
https://www.alltrails.com/en-gb/trail/us/colorado/herman-gulch-trail
Distance: 6.3 miles round trip, out-and-back
Elevation Gain: 1,755ft
Max Elevation: 11,989ft
Skill Level: Challenging, since we will be wearing our packs. Without packs, moderate.
Use: Highly trafficked
Facilities: There are 2 porta potties at the trailhead parking lot. Cell phone service is limited. We will be bringing a Garmin In-Reach mini. There should be water access to filter water, but we will confirm. Parking lot is packed on the weekends and we highly encourage carpooling with an LO volunteer.
Terrain: The trail starts with rocky and with an incline. After this incline, you will be rewarded with a beautiful flat meadow where there are tons of wildflowers blooming, including columbines, alpine daisies, and orchids, as well as a creek flowing. After the meadow, there is another incline through the subalpine forest where we will cross many small (1-2 feet) creeks. There are tree roots on the trail that could be tripping hazards. Soon thereafter we will reach treeline and then the alpine Herman Lake, with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains on the continental divide. Overall, the trail is partly shaded.
What to Wear
Packing List
BACKPACKING TRIP
Trail Info - Conundrum Creek Trail
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/colorado/conundrum-creek-trail-to-conundrum-hot-springs
https://www.recreation.gov/permits/4675333
Distance: 19 miles out-and-back (we will break this down, see breakdown in itinerary below)
Elevation Gain: 2,788 ft
Max Elevation: 11,258 ft
Skill Level: Challenging
Use: Hikers only, no dogs are allowed in the permit area
Facilities: There are no toilets on this trail, this is an undeveloped trail. We will have to grab wag bags at the trail to pack out our human waste and toilet paper/wipes, as cat holes are not allowed in the permit area. The town of Aspen will be the closest developed town to the trail. There are plenty of water sources on this trail, and we will be camping near a creek. There is no cell service on this trail. We will have 2 Garmin In-Reach Minis, as well as walkie talkies, which can be used in emergencies to communicate.
Terrain: The trail traverses through the middle of a mountain pass, with mountains on both sides. There are parts of steep incline on this trail, we will be gaining elevation from the start of the trail. We will go at the pace of the slowest member of our group to make sure that our group stays together at an even pace. There is a river crossing on this trail. The trail is narrow at times.
What to Expect During this Backpacking Trip
Parking:
There is a very small parking lot at this trailhead. We highly encourage carpooling, which will be provided by LO volunteers. We will leave notes in our cars stating the start and returning times for our group.
Weather:
The weather during the day and overnight is at least 30 degrees colder than the Denver metro area and is prone to rainstorms and near freezing temps. We will send more detailed information closer to the day of. Everyone should be prepared with rain gear and winter gear.
Itinerary:
Day 1 - August 8
Day 2 - August 9
Day 3 - Augut 10
Bear Safety/Wildlife Precautions:
Bear canisters ARE REQUIRED for this area. All food, food utensils/cookware, and personal care items (anything with scent) shoulld fit in your bear canister and be placed away from campsites when we are sleeping in the permit area. All smell-ables should not be left unattended at anytime; they should either be on your person/at arms lenght or in the bear canister away from camp at all times.
Packing List
If you do not have something on the packing list, please note it in the registration and we will provide it for you to borrow. We will remain in communication on what you should bring.
How to Dress for Backpacking Comfort/Protection from the Elements
For more detailed resources on gear recommendations, please refer to the Backpacking 101 Workshop - General Resources Doc that will be sent to you via Eventbrite upon registration.
FAQs
Is there a cost for this event?
This is a free opportunity to gather with community. The permits for backpacking in the area are covered by Latino Outdoors.
Language Accessibility Disclosure:
As a volunteer-led chapter of Latino Outdoors, we rely on the language skill sets of our volunteers and partners. Due to limited capacity and funding, we are not able to provide consistent multilingual, Spanish-language programming, or other Native languages. As an organization, we value transparency and Language Justice, and we want to make sure that our participants are aware of what to expect at each event.
The programming for this event will be:
Regardless of your language abilities, you are welcomed at this event and we will do our best to work with you. The intention of this disclosure is to create better transparency on what to expect during our program.
Also check out other Trips & Adventurous Activities in Aspen, Workshops in Aspen.
Tickets for LO Colorado | Backpacking Conundrum Hot Springs can be booked here.
| Ticket type | Ticket price |
|---|---|
| Registration | Free |
We have gathered all the information for you in one convenient spot, but please keep in mind that these are subject to change. We do our best to keep everything updated, but something might be out of sync. For the latest updates, always check the official event details by clicking the "Find Tickets" button.
