March-April Rides

Since I'm reminiscing and dreaming of trails we have traveled in spring, I'll continue with the locations we can first visit in late March and April.  Here's the view from a ridge in Tabby Mountain Wildlife Management Area on March 21, 2009: 

We saw a herd of elk on this ridge, but they were gone by the time we took the photo.  The lower reaches of Tabby (6600 ft at the lowest trailhead) to this ridge at about 8000 ft were open, but Tabby's peak (10,000 ft) won't be accessible until late May, most years.
Big Pack Mountain (6600 ft) is in the desert south of Ouray and makes a nice training ride.  This photo was taken April 10, 2009:   

On a trip to the Book Cliffs, Jack Canyon Wilderness Area, we had this view on April 13, 2008:

Red Mountain, just a 20 minute drive north of Vernal, is low enough to be accessible early in the year.  Here I am at the top on April 15, 2005:

A spring favorite is Lake Mountain (10,000 ft).  We got high enough for a fine view on April 21, 2009:

Behind Steve, Marsh Peak (12,240 ft) is still covered with snow.
We like to ride Wild Mountain (8600 ft), located on the Colorado-Utah border, in late April before the catch ponds dry up, because water is scarce up there.  Here I am on top on April 28, 2007:

During the last week of April, 2006, we rode on the Colorado side of Dinosaur National Monument, north of the little town of Maybell.  Here's the view from Zenobia Peak (9000 ft), the lookout point for the region.  We had to leave the horses and climb through some snow to reach the top: