W0C/PR-019
Bald Mountain
4171 m / 13,684 ft
Sep 19, 2016

By KX0R

Bald Mountain is a challenging, exciting, alpine summit near Boreas Pass, south of Breckenridge.

Key Points:

• White River National Forest
• Challenging high altitude hike
• Marked trail part way
• Ridge route partly on the Continental Divide
• No marked trail to the summit
• Superb alpine scenery
• Excellent HF site
• ~ 6.5 miles round-trip
• ~ 2700 vertical feet total
• SOTA Classic!

Driving Directions:

• Drive west on Highway 285 and cross Kenosha Pass
• Continue west on Highway 285 about 10 miles
• Turn north on CR 33 and drive about ½ mile to Como
• Pass through Como and drive up CR 33 about 9 miles to Boreas Pass at 11482 feet
• The route follows a historic narrow gage rail line and continues all the way across to Breckenridge
• CR 33 is an OK unpaved road, with several rough, rocky sections, but most cars can make the trip along the railway roadbed
• Park off the road at Boreas Pass, near the old Section House
• This is the trailhead

The Hike and Climb:

• Google Maps shows none of the hiking trails near Boreas Pass
• You need a detailed topo map to navigate the area
• GPS is very useful up there
• Follow the marked Black Powder Pass Trail as it leads north of the Section House along a water ditch

• The pleasant trail heads northeast up a gulch and climbs to Black Powder Pass at about 12,160 feet.
• Leave the trail and climb north up the ridge from the Pass.

• Continue climbing generally northwest along the rocky ridge for almost 2 miles, across several sub-peaks, and climb up to the alpine summit.

• The actual SOTA summit is the north peak, but the highest of the southern sub-peaks is almost the same elevation; be sure you traverse the entire rocky ridge and activate the SOTA peak.

• This is not an easy 13-er with a pleasant trail up through grassy tundra, etc. It’s a serious mountain, and you have to watch your steps and be careful!

Additional Details:

Black Powder Pass is a nice tourist destination, with fine views off both sides. I saw a herd of mountain goats there.

Some route-finding is required along the high ridge to the summit. There are some cairns, and a climbers trail runs along much of the ridge; however, in some spots you may have to ascend talus or climb over boulders to get over the sub-peaks. The entire route need not exceed class 2, but you may find yourself doing a few simple class-3 moves, just because it’s a big mountain with many choices.

Bald Mountain is an excellent 4000+ meter climb! There’s no serious exposure anywhere along the ridge route. The views are continuously awesome! Mount Guyot is particularly impressive less than 2 miles off the northeast side.

Boreas Mountain stands high south of Black Powder Pass. Mount Silverheels looms large to the south.

Many 14-ers are visible in the distance – Quandary, Grays, Torreys, etc. Pikes Peak is easy to spot about 60 miles to the southeast! This is real high country in all directions! The summit is a nice climax for the long hike up over so much rock.

This hike is also a geology field trip. Steeply dipping paleozoic sedimentary multi-colored rock beds appear along the high ridge, over toward Guyot, and in the peaks to the southwest.

The summit of Bald Mountain seems to be made of blocky Sawatch quartzite.

The historic gold mines of Breckenridge are right down below. Lots of gold is still inside these mountains.

I climbed Bald Mountain on an absolutely perfect day. When I ascended the south summit, I felt like I’d gone up to heaven. Why not, with stunning scenery, warm sunshine, and almost no wind? The north summit was a perfect spot to set up and activate, with a cozy wind shelter right on top! I had an incredibly easy activation, with strong signals, etc. I made 42 CW contacts on three HF bands.

This peak is likely a fair VHF/UHF summit, with coverage across large parts of South Park, the area near Breckenridge, and up north near Lake Dillon.

I had the summit all to myself, although I saw a few other climbers on the ridge. It was so nice I didn’t want to descend and traverse the long ridge back to the south. The longer I stayed up there in the afternoon light, the more beautiful everything became!

The return trip over the various sub-peaks takes some time. Each one seems a little higher than it did earlier in the day; it’s a long time at high altitude. It feels really nice to return to the easy trail below Black Powder Pass!

The long alpine ridge of Bald Mountain is a dangerous place in bad weather. In summer an early start is essential. This peak is so nice that it should be saved for a special day when everything is just right.

Bald Mountain is totally a SOTA Classic!

There’s a route up Bald Mountain’s northwest ridge from near Breckenridge, but I have no experience with that approach.

For a dual activation, consider these two nearby summits:

Madonna Dome W0C/SP-051 Easy – access from Boreas Pass
Boreas Mountain W0C/SP-030 More challenging – same access

73

George
KX0R

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!! WARNING !! There are old mountaineers, and bold mountaineers... there are no old-bold mountaineers. Hiking and mountain climbing are potentially hazardous activities particularly in Colorado with its extreme elevations. I am not accepting responsibility for any death or injury resulting from activations based on my trip reports. Proper training, experience, and personal capability assessment is required - enjoy!