SOTA outings by KØMOS and contributors

Tag: Sheep Mountain

  • WØC/SR-153 (Sheep Mountain) – 3380 m / 11089 ft

    Sheep Mountain is an rarely visited mountain in White River National Forest, approximately a half mile bushwhack from the nearest road.

    The first thing worth noting is that both Google Maps and COTREX have the marker for this mountain very much not on top of a mountain. The latitude \ longitude from the SOTA database is the correct one – approximately 1.2 miles South and 1600 feet above the marker.

    To get to Sheep Mountain, take I-70 to Silverthorne and head North on CO-9. Once you pass the reservoir, you’ll go by the turn off for Williams Peak Road on your right, and hang a left onto County Highway 10. Take this back a while, until you see a sign indicating Dice Hill to your right, and National Forest land straight ahead. Continue straight past this sign, onto BLM2773. At the border of the National Forest, there will be a bunch of information signs and various admonishments. Veer right on FS23.1, which quickly climbs uphill. Take this back almost 3 miles. I parked at 39.87308N 106.43094W – there was a convenient pull-off on the right with an open field that heads up Sheep Mountain:

    If you encounter a split in the road with FS1834.1 off to the left and FS202.1 continuing straight, you’ve gone too far.

    From here, it’s a pick-your-own-adventure bushwhack up to the top. I crossed the field and aimed for the what looked like a ridge on the left (West). This wasn’t a good choice – there were long rocky segments, tons of downed trees, and and waist-high grass hiding ankle deep mud. Regardless, I made it to the top. Having not seen any cars, or signs of people, since the National Forest boundary, I was somewhat surprised to see some gear with a solar panel and antenna on top of the mountain:

    The summit has some low (5′) trees that I threw a random wire over. There were also a couple logs and rocks that a pole could be guyed to. The weather on top was lovely, and I spent an hour or so working the radio. I tested out a newly-added GPS to my portable FT8 setup, got a couple QSOs that way, then hunted for P2P and S2S. My phone showed plenty of bars, but data service was non-existent.

    As far as VHF goes, I was able to intermittently hear a couple activators on the other side of continental divide on 2m, but didn’t manage to get through to them.

    On the way down, I stayed more to the East, and emerged at the Eastern edge of the clearing that I parked by. This was significantly less rocky and muddy compared to the way up. Back in your car, you can retrace your steps, or continue further along the forest service road towards Cottonwood Peak and Piney Peak. The road quickly gets worse in that direction, and I would strongly recommend only attempting this with a high-clearance 4WD vehicle. I was planning on attempting to activate one of them, but time and weather ended up forcing me to leave them for another day.

    This was slightly harder to get to than Dice Hill, but significantly more scenic, and could be easily combined with any of the other summits in the area.

    ATTENTION !! 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!

  • W0C/FR-097 (Sheep Mountain) – 2303 m / 7555 ft

    W0C/FR-097
    Sheep Mountain
    2303 m / 7555 ft
    Oct 20, 2015

    By KX0R

    Sheep Mountain is an obscure SOTA peak on the north side of the Poudre Canyon, right above The Narrows.

    Key Points:

    • Roosevelt National Forest
    • Accessible trailhead
    • No marked trail
    • Old trails provide a path part way
    • Navigation and route-finding required
    • Minimal bushwhacking via correct route
    • Prominent open summit
    • Fine views of Poudre Canyon
    • Burned up in High Park Fire of 2012
    • Fine HF summit
    • Mount McConnel and 7612 are nearby
    • Trailhead elevation ~ 6500 feet
    • ~ 2.2 miles round-trip
    • ~ 1030 vertical feet

    Driving Directions:

    • Drive to Fort Collins.
    • Continue northwest from Fort Collins on Highway 287 to Ted’s Place.
    • Turn west on Highway 14, and enter the Poudre Canyon after 4 miles.
    • Continue up the winding canyon road, and pass through the Narrows
    • Look for the Narrows Picnic Area on the left side of the highway
    • A good parking spot is nearby, on the west side of the highway. It’s about 20 miles from Highway 287 to the parking spot.
    • Parking is prohibited in some other pullouts nearby.

    The Hike:

    • Walk across the highway and hike northeast through an open area toward the obvious gulch.
    • Just to the right, above the gully, is an eroded hill with hints of a trail.


    • Climb up this steep spot, to the eroded orange dirt, rather than hiking directly up the rocky gully.
    • A hidden abandoned road 50-100 feet above the gully leads eastward.
    • A good game trail follows this track.


    • This route ascends efficiently up to the wide saddle at 6860 feet, north of Sheep Mountain.
    • Head south from the saddle and climb the north slope of Sheep Mountain.
    • It’s steep and eroded, but it’s probably easier than other routes to the summit – there are hints of an old trail.
    • At the top of the slope, follow the gentle ridge south.
    • Stay just east of a rocky sub-peak.
    • A shallow valley leads up toward summit.
    • Follow the valley and remains of an old trail
    • Climb up the northeast ridge to the top.

    Here’s an alternative trip report from K0MOS.  Matt ascended up the steep southeast side of Sheep Mountain from The Narrows.  I believe my route detailed here is much easier.

    Additional Details:

    The following photo shows the key details of the first part of the climb.  To find the secret trail up above the gully north of Sheep Mountain, you must ascend to the point where this photo was taken.  This is the start of the hidden path up to the saddle north of Sheep Mountain.  Note that this spot is directly across the highway from the south end of the Narrows Campground.  The parking spot is visible down the road to the left.

    Because the mountain was burned, there are great views of the Canyon in all directions from the summit:

    The prominent summit is very rocky; scorched trees stand all over the slopes.

    The large Activation Zone offers several good places to set up with shelter from wind. Plenty of dead trees are available to support an antenna.  The wind forced me to set up my gear down the northeast side below the top.

    Sheep Mountain is an excellent HF radio site. There are no higher mountains nearby to interfere with HF propagation. The only development is far down in the canyon, so the HF noise level is low. This is probably a poor VHF/UHF site, as there’s only a glimpse of the plains down the Canyon.

    I had a busy HF activation on 7-10-14 MHz, with 30 CW contacts in less than an hour.

    Several other accessible SOTA peaks are nearby:

    W0C/FR-205 7612                        1.7 miles west
    W0C/FR-088 Mount McConnel       2.2 miles southwest
    W0C/FR-198 7980                        3.0 miles east
    W0C/FR-095 Greyrock Mountain    7.3 miles northeast

    Of these, 7612 and Mount McConnel are the best choices for a dual or multiple activation. I had no problem activating 7612 on the same day as Sheep Mountain.

    Use caution during hunting season in the fall – wear orange; and be careful about lightning, especially in spring and summer.

    73

    George
    KX0R

    ATTENTION

    !! 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!

  • W0C/PR-103 (Sheep Mountain) – 3253 m / 10671 ft

    W0C/PR-103
    Sheep Mountain
    3253 m / 10671 ft
    Oct 2, 2016

    By KX0R

    Sheep Mountain is a moderately challenging SOTA peak standing west of Fraser, Colorado.

    Key Points:

    • Convenient access via Arapaho National Forest roads
    • Summit is on public BLM land
    • No marked trail or trailhead
    • Relatively challenging off-trail ascent via game trails
    • Pleasant summit
    • ~ 2.6 miles round-trip
    • ~ 1175 vertical feet

    Driving Directions:

    • Drive west from Denver on I-70
    • Turn north on Highway 40
    • Cross Berthoud Pass, drive through Winter Park, and continue north to Fraser
    • At Fraser, turn west on CR 73
    • Follow CR 73 west about a mile, and turn right on CR 50S
    • CR 50S merges with CR 50 after about 1 mile
    • Follow good dirt road CR 50 about 3 more miles west to the National Forest
    • Continue on CR 50/FR-139 up the Crooked Creek Drainage almost 3 miles, to where the road crosses to the north side of Crooked Creek, at about 9240 feet
    • A small road FR-880.1 heads off to the right and northeast up a hill


    • Drive up this narrow 2WD road about ¾ mile to where it curves sharply at about 9680 feet, just north of Rocky Point
    • This is near some large power lines, as well as campsites
    • Park near the bend in the road

    The Climb:

    • From the parking spot, hike east and slightly down, along the power line right-of-way, for about ¼ mile

    • Head north up through meadows and aspen groves


    • Gradually climb more to the northeast, toward Sheep Mountain


    • Near the top of a meadow area, a game trail leads east and climbs steeply around the south ridge of Sheep Mountain


    • Follow this game trail up, and then follow other game trails more or less north up the south side of the mountain
    • Soon you’ll ascend the distinct summit ridge


    • Follow the ridge north to the summit

    Sheep Mountain has two similar summits – the southern one is the actual summit – the slightly lower northern summit is about 1500 feet along the ridge to the north.

    Details:

    The Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forest Map is useful for planning a hike to Sheep Mountain. In particular it shows the useful roads FR-139 (CR 50) and FR-880.1. The route I found is rarely used by humans, but it’s short and sweet.

    The entire summit ridge is made of hard, gray, resistant gneiss.

    There’s a geocache in a bottle on the peak. A visible trail runs north along the ridge from the summit. People climb Sheep Mountain mostly from the north. There’s access at the YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch, and perhaps elsewhere.  The Ranch calls this peak “Snow Mountain”.

    Sheep Mountain is an excellent SOTA peak. The activation zone is of moderate size, with good trees and nice spots to set up. There’s no development on the mountain, except for the power lines, and they seem to be quiet – the RF noise level was low. This is a fine HF site. It’s not blocked much for skip signals, except to the south. The peak has limited VHF/UHF coverage of Winter Park, Fraser, Granby, and Grand Lake.

    My log shows 33 CW contacts on three HF bands.  These included three summit-to-summit (S2S) contacts:

    KE7BGM      Kay on W7A/AP-033

    NM5S          Alan on W2/NJ-009

    K2JB           Dean on W4C/CM-110

    Sheep Mountain is easily combined with nearby Blue Ridge, W0C/PR-100, for a dual activation. After Sheep Mountain, Blue Ridge is just a pleasant walk.

    The peak offers good views of nearby Ptarmigan and Byers Peaks to the south, Blue Ridge to the west, as well as more distant ranges.

    When I was there in early October, the aspen trees were spectacular!

    Sheep Mountain Aspen Gallery:

    73

    George
    KX0R

    ATTENTION

    !! 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!

  • W0C/FR-080 (Sheep Mountain) – 2576 m / 8450 ft

    W0C/FR-080
    Sheep Mountain
    2576m / 8450 ft
    Oct 7, 2015
    Sep 29, 2016

    By KX0R

    Key points:

    • City of Loveland and Roosevelt National Forest
    • Good maintained trail to the top
    • Easily accessible trailhead – eventually – closed now – see below!!
    • Moderate hike with considerable elevation gain
    • Beautiful trip through varied terrain
    • Plenty of wildlife
    • Pleasant forested summit with no fire damage
    • Starting elevation ~ 5770 feet
    • ~ 9.4 miles round trip
    • ~ 2800 total vertical feet of gain

    There are many “Sheep Mountains” in Colorado. Sheep Mountain W0C/FR-080 is a prominent summit on the south side of the Big Thompson Canyon, west of Loveland, Colorado. It’s about 2 miles from Palisade Mountain W0C/FR-084, across the canyon.

    Thanks to Brian N0BCB for first activating W0C/FR-080. This aroused my curiosity about the big mountain. When I first looked at the Google map, I assumed that there was no trail. Eventually I learned otherwise…

    The USFS Round Mountain Trail # 969 leads all the way to the summit of Sheep Mountain. This is a National Recreation Trail; it was built mostly by the CCC in the 1930’s. The upper part is called the Summit Adventure Trail. This is a well-maintained hiking trail with excellent access; the USFS says use is light.

    Driving Directions:

    • Drive several miles west of Loveland on Highway 34.
    • The trailhead is about 4 miles west of the Dam Store
    • In the canyon, pass the closed entrance to the Loveland Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park on the right
    • Look on the left for a sign
    • Immediately turn left onto a marked dirt road leading into the parking area
    • There’s space for about 20 cars
    • Parking is free

    *** In 2017 the Big Thompson Canyon Highway 34, including the area near this trailhead, is closed due to highway re-construction.  Check online before going up there!!

    This trailhead isn’t labeled on Google Maps, and the Round Mountain Trail is not shown at all!

    The Hike:

    • Start up the trail on the Foothills Nature Trail, which is property of Loveland.
    • After ¼ mile, the Round Mountain Trail splits off to the left at a sign.
    • At first the trail climbs gently east, across a steep, north-facing slope
    • Then it climbs progressively up the northeast ridge of Sheep Mountain.
    • The route leads southwest through some interesting rock formations


    • At 7380 feet, it turns south and contours into a pleasant valley
    • The path ascends the head of the valley to the saddle southeast of Sheep Mountain
    • From the saddle, the trail climbs 1000 vertical feet, up several switchbacks to the summit.

    The only water on the trail is a spring along the trail in the valley, at about 7370 feet. There’s a warning there that the water must be treated to be safe to drink. Carry enough water, or use a pump-filter or other means to purify the available water.

    The forested summit is large and relatively flat – the Activation Zone is spacious! There are plenty of pine trees for supporting a pole or a wire. I set up my gear about 100 feet north of the summit, in a pleasant spot at the edge of a small meadow. It was quiet, and I saw no one while I was up there.

    There’s no development or radio equipment on the mountain. Sheep Mountain is an ideal radio site, with no close sources of RF noise, and it’s not blocked by any higher mountains nearby. This peak has pretty good UHF/VHF coverage of much of the greater Denver metro area, as well other cities along the northern Front Range.

    My HF SOTA activations on Sheep Mountain have been easy and fun!  With an ATS-3B radio, an end-fed wire, and only 5 watts output:

    October 7, 2015, I spent more than an hour on the air, and I logged 25 CW contacts on 7, 10, 14, and 18 MHz. This session included one summit-to-summit (S2S) contact.

    September 29, 2016, I logged 44 CW contacts on 7, 10, and 14 MHz. This session included two S2S contacts.

    Later I enjoyed exploring the top of the mountain and looking for views. This forested peak has no wide vistas, but dramatic views can be found at nearby crags.

    Even though the USFS classifies the Round Mountain Trail as “most difficult”, this is a relative rating. It’s a moderately stiff trail, and it might be better to skip it on a hot day – or start really early. This is a fine climb for experienced hikers with light gear, but it might be arduous for those not used to the altitude, or carrying too much weight. It’s also too long for a good family hike. Unless you’re a SOTA activator, the summit’s slightly disappointing. I thought the hike was really nice in early October!

    Other SOTA peaks are near Sheep Mountain:

    W0C/FR-084 Palisade Mountain 2 miles north, across the canyon
    W0C/FR-192 8310 2 miles west
    W0C/FR-103 Alexander Mountain 3-1/2 miles east
    W0C/FR-057 Crosier Mountain 6 miles west
    W0C/FR-064 West Crosier 7 miles west

    Of these, Palisade is the easiest peak to combine with Sheep Mountain for a dual activation.

    Sheep Mountain is a fine SOTA peak with a convenient trailhead. Activators who like to hike with light equipment will enjoy this peak. This is another Colorado two-point summit that comes with lots of exercise and few hassles.

    73

    George
    KX0R

    ATTENTION

    !! 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!