Bald Mountain - Just Hiking

Statistics

Date - 09/11/2022
Elevation - 13,684'
Route - South Ridge
Miles - 6.0
Elevation Gain - 2,695'
ACME Mapper - Link
CalTopo - Link
Partners - Not Applicable

Description

According to the new Light Imaging Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) elevations, Bald Mountain is actually 13,703'. However, the data on my website is from the older map elevations and I am not that motivated to go through and update the elevations.

After hiking Point 13768 the previous day, I drove from Minturn, Colorado, to Boreas Pass after getting some lunch in Fairplay, Colorado. The night was rather cold sleeping on Boreas Pass, so I slept in and didn't start hiking until 8:45 am. The initial section of the hike follows the trail towards Black Powder Pass. Before I reached the pass, I cut north and simply started ascending the south slopes of Bald Mountain.

After gaining the first main southern point of Bald Mountain, the ridge begins undulating as you head north to reach the actual highest point of the peak. I seemed to struggle most of the morning and was a bit demoralized knowing I'd have to gain some elevation on the way back to the trailhead. Nevertheless, I reached the summit after 2 hours and 45 minutes of hiking. I only stayed on the summit for 15 minutes and then reversed my route back to Boreas Pass for a car-to-car time of 4 hours and 30 minutes.

Photos