Sarvis Creek Wilderness Trails

Sarvis Creek Wilderness Trails

Two large creeks, Service (or Sarvis) and Silver, exit the open valley of the Yampa River upstream of Steamboat Springs. Ducking under fallen logs, skirting gravel bars, and providing cover for the darting shadows of trout, the creeks meander through rolling forests in their relentless journey to the river. The trees open occasionally, sometimes at piles of broken rock and other times in wet meadows that squish underfoot. Draped like a soothing blanket over the tired granite hills of the Gore Range, the impenetrable forests of Sarvis Creek Wilderness offer refuge for deer, elk, bear, and mountain lion. What makes Sarvis Creek an oddity among Colorado wildernesses is its complete lack of alpine tundra; its sheltering forests, evenly split among lodgepole pine and Engelmann spruce-subalpine fir, provide its reason for being. The creek name is Service, but the area is Sarvis, harking back to the original appellation adopted by local residents. A misguided mapmaker bestowed the name Service on the creek, perhaps in reference to the pronunciation of the serviceberry bush. The name Sarvis refers to the Sarvis Timber Company, which built an elaborate log flume to float its logs to market, but otherwise failed to make much of a dent in the area’s wild character. Legislation designating the area as wilderness in 1993 restored the original name, and “Sarvis Creek” now appears on some maps. This trail guide includes descriptions of Service Creek and Silver Creek.

See all Hiking in Colorado