Sheep Mountain – Wild Wanderer

Sheep Mountain – 13,304 and Greenhalgh Mountain – 13,228

RT Length: 8.97 miles

Elevation Gain: 2714’

I was parked at Stony Pass, and was up and on the trail at 6:30am, heading east towards the CDT.

I followed the CDT north for 2.2 miles.

At the junction with Moose Gulch, I turned right to stay on the CDT, and continued on the trail until I made it to 12800’.

After passing a small pond to my right, at around 12800’, I left the CDT and followed the tundra ridge southeast.

I kept following the ridge, and eventually I could see Sheep Mountain to the southeast. The ridge eventually became a mesa, and the route to the base of Sheep Mountain became obvious.

I needed to get to the ridge, and did so on tundra mixed with scree. This is the overall route I took to get to the ridge

Once on the ridge, I turned left and headed southeast up the ridge. This is where the terrain changed to small talus. It was very loose. The further you climb, the steeper and looser it will be, but you might encounter a game trail to follow.

At the top is a wide, flat expanse, full of holes about 5 feet wide. I kept heading east, towards the summit.

The rest of the route to the summit can be done on the ridge proper and kept at class 2. The only difficulty here is the talus, scree, and exposure that might make it feel more difficult.

I summited Sheep Mountain at 8:20am

Sheep Mountain:

My next goal for the day was Greenhalgh Mountain, to the east

I continued along the rocky, class 2 ridge east

I followed the ridge east, until I came to a dropoff of sorts. Visually, it looked like the scree was continuous and went all the way to the rocks at the bottom. However, that was not the case. I ended up descending about 100 feet on scree, and then everything was loose talus, and steep, so I made my way climbers right to the ridge, and descended that way. If I were to do this again, I would have just taken the ridge to the right. It goes at easy class 3, and there’s talus, but it was much more stable than the talus below the scree. Also, EVERYTHING moves here. More info/pictures to come on my return route of this area.

From the bottom of the ridge, I headed northeast towards the Sheep/Greenhalgh saddle on class 2 terrain.

Then I ascended the ridge to the summit of Greenhalgh Mountain. This part of the route was actually very enjoyable, on class 2 terrain, with rocks that stayed put and didn’t roll.

I summited Greenhalgh Mountain at 9:20am

Greenhalgh Mountain:

In order to get back to the trailhead, I was going to need to descend Greenhalgh and then re-ascend Sheep Mountain, so I turned around and made my way back to the Greenhalgh/Sheep saddle.

At the saddle, I then aimed for the left ridge of Sheep Mountain.

Once there, I ascended the LOOSE rocks up to the ridge, then followed the ridge to the summit. The rocky area went at easy class 3, and is more stable than it looks. In this picture you can see the scree to the center. That’s the way I came down, and I don’t recommend that route. Instead, stick to the ridge.

I then turned left, and re-summited Sheep Mountain, following the ridge west,

Then it was back across the hole filled rock field mesa

And back towards the tundra mesa I’d hiked in on.

However, when I got back to the tundra mesa, instead of heading back towards the CDT, I turned left and headed towards Stony Pass. I could see the road in the distance, and was able to hike down the entire slope on tundra (except for a brief rocky section where I took a game trail), avoiding the willows.

Back on the road, I followed it northwest back to Stony Pass

I made it back to my truck at 11:30am, making this an 8.97 mile hike with 2714’ of elevation gain in 5 hours.

I spent the rest of the day playing Trail Angel for CDT and CT thru-hikers. I met a ton of really cool people from all over the world, gave them snacks, water, and beer, let them re-charge their devices, and had some great conversations. What upset me though, was the Colorado Trail hikers told me I was the first person they’d seen doing trail magic on the trail. Considering they probably only had 2 days left of a 30 day or so hike, this upset me. We can do better Colorado! If you have a free weekend next summer, I’d encourage you to do some trail magic. You won’t regret it!

On to the next trailhead!

Endlich Mesa Trailhead to City Reservoir and Emerson/Peak Twenty Two Saddle

RT Length to City Reservoir: 7.5 miles

EG to City Reservoir: 1250’

City Reservoir is a good place to set up basecamp for several 13ers in the area, including Mount Valois, Amherst Mountain, Organ Mountain, Peak Twenty-Two and Sheep Mountain.

However, getting there can be kind of tricky, especially if you don’t have a 4WD vehicle. There’s a good place to park about 11 miles below the Endlich Mesa trailhead, just after the Florida Campground. The next 11 miles will be 4WD. Think a step up from South Colony Lakes trailhead. There were a lot of mudholes, even though it hadn’t rained in days, rock slabs to navigate, and rocks along the road. Here are a few pictures of the lower parking area and 11 mile long 4WD road:

As you can see, two Ford Rangers made it to the trailhead.

Endlich Mesa Trail starts at the northeast end of the parking area, is easy to identify, and has a trail register.

I started hiking north along this well established, class 1 trail. There are large cairns to guide the way. I followed Endlich Mesa Trail all the way to the reservoir. The trail started off gaining in elevation. I gained over 1100’ of elevation over 4.5 miles. First, starting in the trees, then hiking along the wide, open Endlich Mesa.

After hiking for 4.5 miles it’s time to lose 1350’ of elevation in 2.3 miles as I headed towards City Reservoir. I would head back down into treeline to get too the reservoir. (Spoiler alert: this is not fun to regain on the way back, and feels like way more than 1350’, especially with a full pack).

The west side of City Reservoir is where I made my basecamp.

The fishing here was amazing! 3 casts and 3 fish later and I was cooking dinner. I stayed here for 3 nights, and had fish every night. In an hour I’d catch and release 30-40 fish. At this time campfires are allowed, but you need to camp at least 100 feet from the water. This was also a popular place to camp, and not everyone seemed to read the rules. There were two groups set up with at least 20 people, so campsites were limited, but luckily I got there first and secured a great spot with a waterfall directly in front of and another behind my campsite.

RT Length to Saddle from City Reservoir: 3.5 miles

EG to Saddle from City Reservoir: 2000’

The next morning, I had beta on how to get to the Emerson/Peak Twenty Two saddle, and I used it, and vowed to find a better way on the descent. I’m not sure my way is better, but it is more straightforward. I hope this information is helpful.

I spent the night near the reservoir, and was on the trail at 6am to head to the Emerson/Peak Twenty Two saddle. I continued following the Endlich Mesa Trail north towards Logtown (which isn’t really a town… there’s nothing there).

After hiking for about .9 miles I came to a waterfall, and crossed the creek just above the waterfall.

I found a large rock slab, and stayed to the right of it, heading northeast into the basin.

Once in the basin, I found a game trail not listed on maps to the left of the creek, that was very easy to follow.

I followed this trail until I was parallel with a gully that ran between Emerson Mountain and PT 12843 to the east. I aimed for this gully, then climbed straight up it, eventually finding a game trail to follow east.

Here’s what that gully looks like from Mt Valois to the west

And some pictures of the upper basin and the gully

Now on a pretty established trail, I continued following it east

Past a small pond

Then left towards the Emerson/Peak Twenty Two saddle

I was now at the saddle of Emerson and Peak Twenty Two. From here I would summit Amherst Mountain, Organ Mountain, Peak Twenty Two, and Sheep Mountain.

And now for the return back to City Reservoir.

From the Emerson/Peak Twenty Two saddle, I headed west, staying to the left of the small lake.

I picked up the game trail

And followed it west back down the gully

From the base of the gully it was choose your own adventure to find the solid game trail on the other side that would lead me southwest down the gulch.

Once on the game trail, I followed it southwest to about 11600’

Once I could see the big boulder in the distance, I left the trail and headed towards it, following it to the creek and the creek crossing.

I crossed the creek, and followed the Endlich Mesa Trail back to City Reservoir.

I stayed at the reservoir for a few days, hiking other peaks. Here are some pictures of the hike from City Reservoir back to Endlich Mesa Trailhead:

NOTE: you will gain 1600’ of elevation going from the City Reservoir back to the trailhead. The elevation gain begins as soon as you’ve crossed the reservoir.

Then it’s back across the mesa

And then a little bit of uphill to get back into the trees.

Once in the trees, I continued following the Endlich Mesa Trail southeast back to the trailhead.

Here are some pictures of the 4WD road back towards Florida Campground.

And topo maps of the route to the reservoir and to the saddle

Bennett Peak – 13,203 and Sheep Mountain – 12,492

RT Length: 6.91 miles

Elevation Gain: 2451’

I started at 5am from the South Fork Trailhead, at the end of 28 and Trail 702. The road was a well maintained dirt 2WD road, with about 5 parking spaces at the trailhead.

Instead of taking the trail, I followed the road that had been blocked off

This road eventually became a trail. I followed that trail northwest to the stream crossing

The I was able to cross by hopping across the rocks and jumping a few feet at the end.

A trail picked up on the other side, but quickly dissipated. To combat this, I just kept heading north-northwest up the basin, towards the gully I could see ahead of me to the northeast (I know that sounds contradictory, but I had to make my around the trees to get there. If you’re doing this in the daylight, the gully should be obvious above the trees).

After hiking a total of .81 miles, I came to South Rock trail, turned left, and followed it about 20 yards to a small stream crossing and a ravine. I turned right, and followed the ravine to the gully, staying in what looks like an avalanche runout.

This is the route I took up the gully. This was easy to navigate, all class 2. I just kept heading north.

Here are some pictures of the route

At the top of the gully I headed northwest, which included a lot more class 2 ascending on grassy tundra

I eventually came upon an ATV road, and followed that to the summit

I summited Bennett Peak at 6:45am. It was 2.37 miles to the summit from where I parked.

Bennett Peak:

My next objective was Sheep Mountain, but I wanted to take the ATV road to get there, so I headed back south, the way I’d come in, towards the road.

Here you can see the road below I was aiming for

When I made it to the road I turned right, and followed it southwest to the Bennett/Sheep saddle

As you can see, this was an easy descent to the saddle

I hiked down to an open gate at the saddle, walked through it, and ascended the ridge

Here’s my route

And some pictures of the class 2 ridge covered in tundra

And the false summit

Here’s the real summit

There was no summit register. It was 1.6 miles from Bennett to Sheep

I summited Sheep Mountain at 8am

Sheep Mountain:

Here’s a look back in the route from Bennett Peak to Sheep Mountain

And the route I took up the gully to the summit of Bennett, and over to Sheep

I turned and headed back towards the Bennett/Sheep Saddle. Specifically, to that open gate

Once at the gate, I turned right and followed Trail 700 back towards the gully (I’d noticed it on my way up, and thought it would be a convenient way back down). You could also take it to the saddle and summit that way.

It actually became a nice trail

When I made it back to where I’d ascended the gully, I turned right and followed it south, and then southeast, back down to the road

This was a drainage, and very marshy

I turned left at the road, and followed it for about 20 yards before turning off the road and heading back down to the creek.

There are a lot of game trails here, but they aren’t all consistent

I crossed the creek again, which was a little more difficult with the rising temperatures and rising water level

I then picked up the trail on the other side, and followed it south back to my truck

I made it back to my truck at 9am, making this a 6.91 mile hike with 2451’ of elevation gain in 4 hours.

On to the next trailhead!

Antora Peak – 13,269, Sheep Mountain (UR) – 12860, and Sheep Mountain – 12,228

RT Length: 8.53 miles

Elevation Gain: 3562’

Boy, was that drive in fun! I took LL56 to Bonanza, and then the 862 4WD road. The road was clear to Bonanza, and then the fun began. Notes about 862: It’s narrow, making passing difficult. It’s easy 4WD: In fact, I didn’t put my truck into 4WD (because I couldn’t), but having decent ground clearance was nice. The creek crossing looked more difficult than it was. I’d say the water was 8-10 inches deep.

I parked at the junction of 862 and 8622D. There’s a fence blocking off the road here, next to Kerber Creek.

The trail starts just behind the fence, and follows an old 4WD road and Kerber Creek for .3 miles

At this point the road comes to a ‘T’, and since I made this a loop, I ended up coming back to this spot on my way down. Now however, I turned left, and continued to follow the road south.

I stayed on this road for another .3 miles, and then left the road to head west and bushwhack up to the ridge. As far as bushwhacking goes, it wasn’t too bad: Not a lot of downed trees, so heading west and staying west was easy.

At treeline, there’s a rock outcropping to skirt to the right

And then I followed the ridge northwest.

Once on the ridge I could see Antora Peak to my left

Here’s an overview of the rest of the route to the Antora Saddle.

And some step by step pictures. There is no need to ascend Sheep Mountain at this point, but instead skirt it to the left, staying parallel with the saddle.

Once on the ridge I turned left and followed it southeast to the summit. There were a bunch of game trails here, but I just went straight up the ridge.

I summited Antora Peak at 7:15am

Not sure why I called it Sheep Mountain in the video: Probably because that was what I was viewing and it was in my head. Oh well, this video is actually the view from Antora Peak.

Antora Peak:

There are fires in the area, so it was a hazy day. I was making this a loop, with Sheep Mountain and Sheep Mountain Northeast.

I headed back towards the Antora/Sheep saddle

And then crossed the tundra and headed up Sheep Mountain. I was glad it was still early and the water still (mostly) frozen on the tundra, otherwise this would have been a sloggy mess

There’s a game trail that goes up the side of Sheep Mountain. It can be hard to see initially, but it’s useful in getting through the initial mound of loose rocks.

Then it was up and over the ridge

The summit had a great view of Mt Ouray to the north

Sheep Mountain:

Now to head over to Sheep Mountain Northeast

I hiked northeast, following the ridge

Here’s a look back at Antora Peak and Sheep Mountain

I was able to avoid most of the snow on the ridge towards Sheep Mountain Northeast.

Just before the final ascent I skirted the mountain to the left, following game trails

And then continued northeast to the summit

I walked all over the summit, trying to find the highpoint. It looks like it’s further east than it really is (the first cairn you come to is the actual summit). Here’s looking back at the route

To make this a loop, I hiked a third of a mile southwest, then cut across the tundra, heading east

This led me to a gully. From here I could see Mosquito Lake. I didn’t want to go to the lake, I wanted to find the trail that led back to the 4WD road. Here’s the basic route:

I followed the gully down, crossed some small runoff streams, and kept heading south, looking for a trail.

I actually found a trail, but kept losing and finding it again. It hasn’t been used frequently in years, and there are a lot of game trails here. I’m pretty sure it’s a ranching area as well. At one time it looked like the trails were maintained: they may even have been roads, but now they’re a mess. I knew I was on the right track however, because I kept seeing tree stumps from sawed trees.

Continuing south, I eventually made it to the old road

This road led me back to the junction from earlier this morning. I turned left onto 862 (no signage) and hiked the short distance back to my truck. This area is full of nice irrigation channels.

I made it back to my truck at 10am, making this an 8.53 mile hike with 3562’ of elevation gain in 4.5 hours.

Now to drive out in the daylight. Luckily, it was a Tuesday and I didn’t expect to encounter any other vehicles on the road. I didn’t. The Bonanza Mine was pretty cool.

Marys Mountain – 9860’ and Sheep Mountain – 9820’

RT Length: 12.77 miles

Elevation Gain: 4823’

These peaks have been on my short list since last year, when I attempted to hike them in winter by following the cog railway (which was under construction and not running). I learned two things: There was too much snow to summit this time of year from the cog, and the route is seriously steep! My legs were burning after just 2 miles.

I’ve been hiking in this area the past few weeks and was surprised at how little snow there was, so I figured now was a great time to attempt this hike. I parked at the Barr Trail lot, paid the $10 fee at the machine, and was on my way at 6am.

This time, instead of following the cog railway, I followed Barr Trail for just over 3 miles. This is a class 1 trail that is well maintained. Spikes are recommended in winter.

After hiking for 3 miles I came to a junction for the experimental forest and Barr Camp. Here I stayed on Barr trail, turning left. The trail became an ice skating rink here, but not for long.

I only stayed on this trail for a few yards, turning left onto unmarked trail 706. This trail can be difficult to notice if you aren’t looking for it, and this is the first time I’ve seen tire tracks on this road. It looks to be an old 4WD road that leads to a functional pipeline, and these tracks looked to be the first made here in quite a while.

I followed Trail 706 for about a mile and a half as it wound around the south side of the mountain.

The road ended and I crossed this pipeline bridge. Gingerly. I don’t think this bridge has many seasons left.

After crossing the bridge I picked up the trail again and followed it a short distance to the cog railway.

Once making it to the Cog Railway there’s a sign saying from here on out it’s private property

No matter though, because I wasn’t heading up the Cog. Instead, I crossed the tracks, passing this sign

I then headed south, aiming for the ridge and continuing south until I reached Marys Mountain

This required a lot of bushwhacking, and the brush was thick in areas

When I came to the top of the ridge there was a rock outcropping. I climbed to the top, only to realize the summit was on the outcropping further south. So, basically, don’t climb the first outcropping you see.

Instead, skirt it to the left and climb to the proper summit. Here I am, on the correct summit, looking back

It was cold and windy on the summit, so I placed a summit register at the highest point, and turned and headed towards Sheep Mountain.

Here’s an overall view of the route to Sheep Mountain from Marys Mountain. Take a good look from here because there are a lot of rock formations to navigate

To do this I had to lose 820’ of elevation as I descended northeast towards the creek and Dark Canyon

Once at the low point I crossed the creek and continued heading northeast towards the summit of Sheep Mountain.

There was a lot of bushwhacking and rocks to contend with here as well

The summit was rocky as well. I walked all over the summit just to make sure I truly summited.

Here’s looking back at Marys from Sheep Mountain. Statistics say Marys Mountain is taller than Sheep Mountain, but to me, Sheep felt taller.

Once again, I left a summit register and was on my way

This time I headed northwest down the slope, aiming for the cog railway below.

Sections here were steep, and I was glad I’d hiked Marys first.

Once back near the cog I once again crossed the creek on a log near a picnic table, and picked up Trail 706

I followed Trail 706, crossed the sketchy pipeline bridge again, and continued on to Barr Trail.

Once on Barr Trail I followed it east for 3 miles, back to the Barr Trail parking lot.

I made it back to the parking area at noon, making this a 12.77 mile hike with 4823’ of elevation gain in 6 hours. I really liked this route, and recommend it instead of hiking the cog.

Sheep Mountain – 13,168, PT 13,100, PT 13681 & Silver Mountain – 13,714

RT Length: 25.26 miles

Elevation Gain: 6689’

Ah, the thrill of changing plans. I like to check off a bucket list item for my birthday, usually involving a lot of effort or planning and mileage. I was supposed to do the Rim to Rim Grand Canyon hike for my birthday, and due to COVID and the shuttles not running so my boyfriend was going to be my shuttle driver (with the east gate closed it’s now a 5 hour drive from one rim to another). However, last week I broke up with my boyfriend. After the breakup I gave myself a day to wallow, and then came up with a plan B (Plan C was Rim to Rim to Rim). In the end I wasn’t able to hike Rim to Rim on my birthday, but I was able to find someone to shuttle my truck a week earlier (in exchange for a photo shoot along the way at both Horseshoe Bend and Ouray Via Ferrata… to be featured in his next book). So instead I hiked Rim to Rim on September 12, and decided for my birthday I’d try to get in a long hike somewhere in the San Juan’s.

After birthday dinner with my daughters I drove to the Little Cimarron East trailhead and parked for a few hours sleep. This is a 2WD drive on a dirt road. There was space for 2 vehicles at the trailhead, but it looks like you can park along the road as well if needed. Side note: This trailhead is much preferred to the Nellie Creek Trailhead approach. Hands down.

I got in a few hours sleep and was on the trail at 4:30am. This is a class 1 trail (at least until the first stream crossing) that looks like it used to be a 4WD road.

After the stream crossing there’s a junction. Continue straight.

The trail goes through an avalanche area but a clear path has been established.

After hiking for 5 miles (exactly) I came to a small meadow. Here I left the trail and headed west, staying to the left of the gully, but following it up.

I eventually picked up a faint trail. There were a lot of game trails in the area, so I kept losing then re-finding the trail.

When I hit treeline I crossed the gully and headed left and northwest up the side of the mountain

The rest of the hike to the summit of Sheep Mountain was fairly straightforward. Here’s the route I took, staying to the left of the cliffs

Once on the ridge I skirted the rocks to the right to keep this class 2

I summited Sheep Mountain at 7:55am. The summit was wide and flat and it was my birthday, so I decided to jump for the photo.

Sheep Mountain:

I was making this a ridge hike today. Next on the agenda: PT 13100. I turned and followed the ridge south

This was an easy class 2 ridge to follow. As times I stayed left to avoid rocks.

From the saddle, here’s looking up at PT 13100 and back at Sheep Mountain

It was a simple ridge hike up tundra until the very end. Then the terrain became rock and it was difficult to tell where the actual summit was, so I followed the entire ridge. I spied a cairn and I considered the cairn the summit.

I’ve circled the summit cairn in red (although the rock outcropping certainly felt/looked the same height)

I summited PT 13100 at 8:50am

PT 13,100:

Next up was PT 13,681. Once again, I followed the ridge south

The volcanic ash towers at the saddle were pretty cool!

From the first saddle, here’s looking back at PT 13100 and Sheep Mountain, along with my route, and a look up the ridge

I followed the ridge to the false summit of PT 13681

When I made it to the ridge, instead of climbing the false summit I stuck to the left, keeping this class 2

Here’s a look back from the ridge

After skirting the false summit to the left I could see PT 13631. I stayed low until I made it to the saddle, and then stuck to the ridge until I hit the second false summit

From the saddle, here’s looking back at how I skirted the bump

From here I took the ridge straight up and over, making this class 3. You can keep it class 2 by going to the left and skirting the ridge. They both end up in the same place.

A view from halfway up the ridge

If you go over the ridge, this is the downclimb (still class 3, not as bad as it looks)

And here’s the rest of the class 2 route to PT 13681

I summited PT 13681 at 10:45am

PT 13,681:

Here’s a look back on the route so far

And a look at the route to Silver Mountain. The rest of the way was a simple tundra ridge walk

I summited Silver Mountain at 11:35am, and since it was my birthday (my 40^th!) I kept my tradition of standing on my head because I still can. Also, this is harder than it sounds, as I had to set up the automatic timer, get far enough away from the camera and then actually do the headstand before the camera took the picture.

Silver Mountain:

Now to head back down. I had several options, but chose this one because it looked easier on a topo map (it most likely wasn’t). I continued south along the ridge to the Silver Mountain/Big Blue Peak (unranked) saddle.

After passing the two large cairns, I continued a bit further down, turned left, and headed east down the gully

My goal was to link up with the Fall Creek Trail. Here you can see it to the right. However, I didn’t want to lose too much elevation, so I took a game trail up high to the left (they both link up on the other side of the hill). I lost just over 1000’ of elevation here, and gained under 200’ by staying high to the left.

Once at the top of the hill I figured my elevation gain was over for the day. Boy, was I wrong! I dipped down once again, losing another 400’ of elevation, only to gain another 500’ of elevation to make it to the next ridge. I was following the Fall Creek Trail, then switched as I stayed high on the Little Cimarron Trail, but this trail doesn’t look like it gets used much by people. There are many game trails in the area that parallel this one, and they make route finding frustrating at times. Here’s the overall route:

Once I’d regained the ridge it was a nice 2 mile tundra walk on a fairly visible trail. Side note: It’s hunting season, and the elk are bugling. Advice to hunters: Practice using your bugle call BEFORE trying it in the wild for the first time. I heard some pretty funny noises coming from what were obviously hunters and not elk.

At exactly 2 miles of mesa walking, and just before reaching this old shack I turned left and headed west. Here the trail pretty much ended. There were 2 cairns in the area (which surprised me, the first I’d seen all day), so I just kept aiming for the valley below, where I knew I’d pick up with the trail I’d hiked in on.

I had a good view of the path I’d taken up to Sheep Mountain that morning

Gradually, the Little Cimarron Trail became more visible, as I followed it towards the creek below.

I crossed the Little Cimarron River (more of a creek now)

And headed north, easily picking back up the trail

I stayed right this time at the junction between the Little Cimarron Trail and Little Cimarron East Trail, crossed the stream again, and followed the trail back to my truck. Along the way I saw a dad holding a rifle and two daughters, both under 10 years old, sporting camo and bright orange hunting hats. They were the only other people I saw all day. The girls had big smiles, and looked thrilled to be camping/hunting with their daddy.

I made it back to my truck at 5pm.

This was a 25.26 mile hike with 6689’ of elevation, completed in 12.5 hours. Here’s a topo of my route.

Not a bad way to celebrate my 40^th birthday! On to the next trailhead!