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The Flat Tops: Mandall Lakes to Ptarmigan Flat Top

Independence Day | Thursday – Friday, July 4-5, 2024

This year Diane was off from work over the Forth of July and following weekend, but since she was having a friend from out of town visit over the weekend she had to be home by Friday afternoon. Still, we wanted to at least get out on a short backpacking trip and decided to go on an overnight hike up into the Mandall Lakes Basin at the eastern end of the Flat Tops Wilderness. We left from home early on Thursday morning and followed the Colorado River up and over to the headwaters of the Yampa River where we followed the Bear River to the trailhead located next to the Bear Lake Reservoir. After double-checking to make sure we had everything we needed, we shouldered our packs and started hiking up the Mandall Creek Trail just after 10:00am.

High Mesas and Plateaus of Western Colorado

Flat Top Mountain, Blair Mountain and the Roan Plateau
Friday – Sunday, June 24-26, 2022

This weekend I planned to spend my time hiking and driving to a couple highpoints of the high mesas and plateaus of Western Colorado, starting with a hike I’ve been looking forward to for a while into the Flat Tops Wilderness on Saturday morning. I left after work on Friday afternoon, grabbed a quick dinner in Glenwood Springs and then followed the Colorado River to Dotsero and McCoy and then took Highway 131 north to Yampa. There were storms in the area this afternoon and I was a little worried that Glenwood Canyon might get closed by Flash Flood Warnings, which has been common lately, but thankfully that did not happen. Once I reached Yampa I started following the Bear River on my way to the Stillwater Reservoir, and turned off to take a side road up to Gardner Park to find a spot to camp for the night. I watched the sunset from the edge of the Gardner Park Reservoir and then went to bed early so I could get an early start on Saturday.

Elkhead Mountains: Hahns Peak Fire Lookout

Friday – Saturday, June 25-26, 2021

After spending a night in the Jersey Jim Fire Lookout Tower almost two years ago, I thought it would be interesting and fun to try visiting at least one new fire lookout each summer. Last year Diane and I hiked to the Fairview Peak Fire Lookout, which is the highest fire lookout in North America, so this year I decided to check out the Hahns Peak Fire Lookout in the Elkhead Mountains north of Steamboat Springs. There is some confusion as to whether Hahns Peak belongs to the Sierra Madre or the Elkhead Mountains, but according to SummitPost and the book History of the Elkhead Mountains, Hahns Peak is the eastern-most point in the Elkhead Mountains. This is a part of Colorado I have never been to before, so I was looking forward to exploring new terrain!

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Sleepy Cat Peak & The Devils Causeway

A Long Overdue Return to The Flat Tops
Friday – Sunday, June 22-24, 2018

Earlier this year while planning our Memorial Day weekend trip to Dinosaur National Monument, I was scrolling around a map online and it took off on me in the wrong direction and stopped near a mountain called Sleepy Cat Peak (10,853) in the Flat Tops of Colorado. I had never heard of this peak before, but with a name like that I knew we would have to climb it this summer! After looking online for a little bit more information about the peak I found out that it’s actually the 52nd most prominent peak in Colorado with 2,348 feet of prominence. Since this peak is not very high by Colorado standards, we figured it would make a good easy mountain to climb at the beginning of our season this summer to help us start getting back into shape again. Plus, it’s been at least eight years since the last time I visited the Flat Tops, so I’ve been long overdue for a return visit to this area.

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Flat Tops Trail

Fall Colors 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010

On Saturday morning Amanda and I headed to Meeker for our annual Fall Colors trip. This year we would be checking out the Flat Tops Trail Scenic Byway. This road is about 80 miles in length and connects the towns of Meeker and Yampa. Both ends are paved for a number of miles and the section in the middle is a well-maintained gravel road…..but we weren’t here for a challenge, we were here to check out the scenery. I wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of fall colors along this route, but luckily we were able to find some nice colors along the way.

Tag: yampa

The Flat Tops: Mandall Lakes to Ptarmigan Flat Top

High Mesas and Plateaus of Western Colorado

Elkhead Mountains: Hahns Peak Fire Lookout

Sleepy Cat Peak & The Devils Causeway

Flat Tops Trail