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Holy Cross
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Location: Minturn Colorado
Difficulty: 6
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Scenic, wooded trail with water crossings, lakes and tundra. Holy Cross City mining town located near top with two buildings. Stopping point for most is at French Creek. The trail becomes more difficult beyond French Creek especially, after the city. 33" tires, locking differentials and a winch are recommended. Vehicle damage and unpredictable weather possible! |
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Independence Trail
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Location: Penrose Colorado
Difficulty: 9
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Description: Very difficult, challenging trail system. Trail splits to Liberty, which is longer and easier than Patriot. A minimal tire size of 35” is needed. Front and rear lockers are required. A winch is a must! Armor helps because, body damage is likely. Pictures taken by John Kruse 11/18/2007. |
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Taylor Mountain
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Location: San Isabel National Forest, Salida Ranger District Colorado
Difficulty: 3
N 38 33.05' W 106 17.17' |
Taylor Mountain is a great easy drive that leads you from Garfield, on the east side of Monarch Pass, back towards Salida.
The road does take you through an active quartz mine, the Lilly Mine. Please leave the area like you found it, follow the signs and stay on the Forest Service road. The road comes to a Y. Take the right fork. At the next fork go to the right. This intersection is above tree line. If you continue straight at this point it is a narrow and dangerous path that has no good point to turn around as it leads to a dead end. You will come to one more intersection. The left takes you to an abondoned quartz mine and the right continues the trail and will wind down the mountain back towards Salida.
This trail is not recommended for a full size vehicle such as a pick up or suburban as it is very narrow above tree line. |
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Mt. Antero
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Location: San Isabel National Forest, Salida Ranger District near St. Elmo Colorado
Difficulty: 7
N38 42.60' W106 17.50' |
The top half of Mt. Antero is a shelf road and is not recommended for anyone that is not comfortable with ledges and tight switch backs. This trail is also not recommended for full size vehicles. This is for experienced drivers only.
Mt. Antero was named for Chief "Graceful Walker" Antero of the Unita band of the Ute tribe. It is one of the 14ers and rises to 14,269 feet. The driving trail takes you to roughly 13,900 feet where you can park and continue your journey to the peak of Mt. Antero on foot.
Mt. Antero is rich in aquamarine, topaz and quartz crystals, hence why you will see people with a pick ax and a bucket when at or above tree line. |
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Metal Masher
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Location: Moab Utah
Difficulty: 6
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Oh My God Road
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Location: Idaho Springs Colorado
Difficulty: 2
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Oh My God Road is a historic road taking you though mining country and ghost towns of Russel Gulch on your way to Central City and Black Hawk. It is a winding road that is steep and rocky but is passable in a stock 4-wheel drive SUV. This is a county road an cannot be driven on legally by ATV's or UTV's.
The trail takes about an hour to do and will take you through some of the most historic areas in Colorado. Take a camera and get lots of pictures of the old mines and breathtaking scenery. On the Central City side of the trail make sure you stop at the old grave yards, if you are into that type of thing.
To get to the start of Oh My God Road from Idaho Springs:
Get off I-70 at exit 240 Idaho Springs. Head north on 13th Avenue to Colorado Blvd and turn right. Go about 1/4 mile nad turn left uphill following signs to Virginia Canyon.
Return trip directions:
Return via Road 297 and stay on paved road. This will take you into Central City. You can take either the Central City Parkway back to I-70 or continue from Central City to Blackhawk and take Hwy 119 to Golden. |
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North Sand Hills
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Location: Walden Colorado
Difficulty: 3
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Northwest of Walden Colorado are the only sand dunes in the state that are OHV/4WD friendly. The North Sand Hills are a set of rolling sand hills mixed with patches of brush. They are a fun area to play on with your 4-wheel drive, ATV or UTV. Just remember to watch the temperature guage on your vehicle so you don't overheat the engine when you get stuck, because you will get stuck.
The dune area does have BLM bathrooms, and a camping area. The town of Walden has the closest accomdations and amenities.
Directions on how to get there:
Allow about 2.5 hours from Ft Collins if you go through the Poudre Canyon. From Ft. Collins take St Route 14 west to Walden. Once in Walden head north on hwy 125. You will go through a little town called Cowdrey. Turn right on County Rd. 6 after Cowdrey. Follow the gravel road 3.3 miles and turn right on a sandy road marked #2509. Go 1.5 miles and turn left. You will pass several areas to camp before reaching the parking area.
From Laramie head west on hwy 230, then south on hwy 125. After the fork at hwy 125 you will go about 4 miles and look for County Rd 6. Turn left on County Rd. 6; if you get to Cowdrey you missed the turn. Follow the gravel road 3.3 miles and turn right on a sandy road marked #2509. Go 1.5 miles and turn left. You will pass several areas to camp before reaching the parking area.
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Middle St. Vrain / Coney Flats Loop
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Location: Peaceful Valley Colorado
Difficulty: 4
N40.13 W-105.52401 |
The Middle St. Vrain / Coney Flats loop is definitely a trail that you want to take your camera! The trail meanders next to the Middle fork of the St. Vrain river through aspen groves and tall pine trees, cuts south west and up to the Coney Flats Trail. If you run the trails consecutively from Middle St. Vrain to Coney Flats you will start Coney Flats above tree line at one of the most prestine areas in Colorado. The trail skirts the Wilderness boundry so please Stay The Trail and enjoy the views!
Middle St. Vrain does feature several water crossings. Please drive slowly through the these crossings as they are in wetland areas, which are filters natural for our drinking water. Most of the water crossings are deep so do not stop or drive through fast as you might hydro lock your engine.
Once on Coney Flats you will see several off shoot roads. They are all dead ends. At the camping spot bear right continuing east. You will pass through a seasonal gate at Beaver Reservoir, go left onto County Rd 96. You will come to another intersection of a well maintained road, turn left. You are now on private property so please Stay The Trail. This road will take you to Hwy 72. Left takes you to Peacefull Valley and back to the Middle St. Vrain trail head. Right takes you Nederland.
To get to the Middle St. Vrain trail head:
From Lyons, head west on Hwy 7, then south on Hwy 72 to Peaceful Valley. From Boulder take Hwy 119 to Nederland and Hwy 72 north to Peaceful Valley. At mile marker 50 head west on CR 92 to Camp Dick. Wind through Camp Dick to the large parking area at the back of the camping area. The trail starts to the north west of the parking area. |
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Kingston Peak
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Location: NW of Idaho Springs between Alice and Rollinsville Colorado
Difficulty: 4
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Most of the Kingston Peak trail is above 12,000 feet. You can see for miles in all directions! Several of Colorado's 14ers can be seen from the top of the trail. Plus the trail is close to Denver. A high clearance 4WD vehicle with an experienced driver can manage the trail. Stock SUV's such as Envoy or Escalade will have difficulty on this trail and could sustain body and/or undercarriage damage. This trail is often windy and chilly, so plan ahead and go prepared for cold weather conditions, even in the middle of summer. Because the trail is above 12,000 feet, please stay on the trail as the natural tundra is very fragile and should not be driven on for any reason.
You can start the trail at either end, but keep in mind that if you have not been on the trail before it is difficult to find if you start on the Alice side. Allow 2 - 3 hours for the trail itself, plus considerable travel time to the start of the trail.
Directions to start Kingston Peak from Alice:
Take I-70 west from Denver to Fall River Road (Exit 238). Take Fall River Road north for 8.3 miles to Alice Road on the left. There is a long row of mail boxes that you can use as a landmark. RESET YOUR ODOMETER. Stay on Alice Road for .06 miles and turn right uphill on Harris Drive. You will zig zag up a hill side: Bear left after Texas Drive, left on Glory Hole Road. Go right on Nebraska Drive and left on Hilside Road.
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Bill Moore Lake
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Location: Empire Colorado
Difficulty: 4
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Bill Moore Lake is open seasonally and is a beautiful trail in the summer months for wildflowers and breathtaking views. The trail starts north of Empire and winds past the Conqueror Mine. The trail is adopted by Mile Hi Jeep Club in coordination with the Clear Creek Ranger District. Bill Moore Lake trail is an out and back trail. Plan to sepnd about a half day to make the full round trip from Denver.
The main trail for Bill Moore Lake is FS road 183.1. There are several off shoots to this trail. The first off shoot you will come to is the challenge route, which has a bypass. It is highly recommended that you do not enter the challenge route if you do not have 35" tires and lockers front and rear. Please note that FS 171.2A off shoot is a dead end at a very tippy spot, so only travel if you absolutely cannot resist it as the trail is just an out and back to the main trail. The next off shoot side road is worth the drive as it takes you to an small cabin that is still used today. The road should be marked at 171.2. This portion of the trail also connects with 171.3 which leads to Red Elephant Hill and the Empire Loop.
When you get to the lake, please park as close to the road as possible as you are on high alpine tundra that is very fragile. As always, Stay The Trail so we can keep trails open for future generations to use!
To get to Bill Moore Lake trail:
Take I-70 to Hwy 40 towards Empire. When you get to Empire obey the speed limit!!! At the light in the center of town turn Right (north) on Main Street. Continue uphill beyond thepavement and bear right onto a swithcback. If you are needing to air down or have trailered your vehcile there is a parking area after the switchback nexted to a fenced area (you can't miss it). |
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