Montville Nature Trail and Mosca Pass Trail

See the San Luis Valley through the eyes of Zebulon Pike. In 1807 he used the Mosca Pass Trail to enter the valley and became the first American to write about the nearby Great Sand Dunes. The 3.5 mile trail winds through aspen and evergreens to the summit of Mosca Pass in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. It served as an entrance to the valley for nomadic hunters, Spanish soldiers, homesteaders, and traders carrying goods bound for Plains Indian tribes. For a shorter hike, visitors may take the self-guided Montville Trail, a half-mile loop that parallels Mosca Creek and leads past the remnants of a historic toll station.