W7I/BL-095

I climbed this nameless peak on one of my days off. The forecast was for a chilly day, but I figured I had brought enough gear to go up to some higher peaks safely. I drove up to the trailhead, at the end of Greenhorn Road. There was plenty of parking, and a pit toilet. I set out up the Cow Creek Trail.

Near the start, looking back to the trailhead.

The day started out sunny, but got progressively cloudier as it progressed. After about an hour I had reached the highest point on the trail, near a spring. From here it was a cross country hike up to the summit. The first part was flat, then a climb up to the ridge. I could see the peak, and it looked like there were cliffs surrounding the summit. I pressed on, hoping they were either passable, or short enough that I could still get into the activation zone.

Summit, from partway up the ridge.

As I got closer I discovered that there were gaps in the cliffs that could be climbed with a little scrambling. This was good news. I went around to the North and found a place that was easy to get up. On top I discovered that the East side didn't have cliffs, and would have been even easier to get up, and that's how I went down.

Just below the summit, a gap in the cliffs.

It was windy on top, so I quickly put on a jacket and hat, then got set up. I had good 4G service on the summit, so spotting was not an issue. I only worked 30 meters, and got quite a few contacts. The only one that threw me was a German station operating in Colorado. I was not expecting to hear a call sign starting with DL, and I had to ask for a repeat. There were good views all around, though Bald Mountain blocked them to the north-east. There was some snow on the high peaks, but only on north-facing slopes.
After about 30 minutes on top the wind was really starting to get cold, so I packed up and headed down. As I was approaching the trail again, it started to snow on me. It didn't stick, and it was a fun treat to hike in a snow flurry for a few minutes on my way down. At the bottom I had time, so I decided to go activate Dollar Mountain.

Tunnel of aspens.

Trailhead: Greenhorn Trailhead, end of Greenhorn Road.
Website: SOTA Site.
Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.
Route: Take Cow Creek Trail to its highest point. From here, go cross-country up the ridge to the summit. There are very few trees, the route is easily visible.
Red Tape: None.

Setup on the summit.