Hike of the Week: Ptarmigan Mountain

This week’s selection from “The New Summit Hiker” is Ptarmigan Mountain. A spectacular Lake Dillon panorama awaits hikers here. June-blooming floral beauty colors the initial south-facing slope.

Columbines are just starting in the aspen forest and pink fairy slipper orchids hide in the pines.

This hike, which starts in Silverthorne, goes only to the log bench overlook, not to the 12,498-foot Ptarmigan summit which is still in deep snow. (See The New Summit Hiker, pages 82-83, for topographical map and additional information.)

Climbing Ptarmigan Mountain makes an exhilarating outing with all the forest beauty and knockout views hikers love. What’s more, after an initial rocky stretch, the trail is padded like a carpet store showroom, soft with built-up mulch, and rock-free.

To get there, drive Colorado 9 to Silverthorne’s Tanglewood Drive (next to Wendy’s), just northwest of Interstate 70 exit 205. Proceed 0.2 miles, past the hotels to road No. 2021. Turn right and drive 0.9 miles to a trailhead pull-off before the left-hand curve in the road. Park there.

The trail begins in aspen trees and then crosses a dirt road to regain the footpath.

The track leads through a rocky, sagebrush area and connects briefly with an overgrown road. Both the closed 4WD road and a footpath climb to Ptarmigan’s 12,498-foot summit. Cross the road, which climbs sharply, and use the trail, rising gently to enter a rich aspen forest.

After the trail leaves the columbine-dappled aspen glades to the drier pine forest, begin to look for the rare fairy slipper orchid alongside the trail at left.

As you gain altitude, take a breather to look back on Dillon Reservoir, shimmering like a jewel in its mountain setting. To the west, Buffalo Mountain and Red Peak loom large, giving you a great view into Red Buffalo Pass, another great hike.

Soon, you can see all the way south to the Breckenridge ski trails on the Tenmile Range. The trail continues up and north in pine forest, which opens to reveal the gentle lower Blue River valley and the imposing Gore Range.

Two streams cross the trail. Look along dark forest stream banks for ptarmigan who come to drink.

Views from the log bench overlook sweep from Mount Guyot in the south across to the snowy Tenmile Range and Peak One. Below lies Dillon Reservoir with its 25-mile perimeter partly visible. In the west rises the granite mound of Buffalo Mountain, named for its resemblance to the buffalo which once crowded the valley below.

Buffalo anchors the south end of the jag toothed Gore Range stretching 54 miles north toward Summit County’s border with Grand County.

Colonel John Fremont first viewed the Gore Range on an 1844 expedition during this same time in June. He found the valley of the Blue River delightful.



“The New Summit Hiker” is a guide for 50 historic hiking trails near Breckenridge, Frisco, Copper Mountain, Keystone, Dillon and in the Ptarmigan Peak and Gore Range/Eagle’s Nest Wilderness Areas.

The book is available in Summit County and Vail bookstores, supermarkets and sporting goods shops or by calling Alpenrose Press at (970) 468-6273. For additional trails information for both the Vail and Summit County areas, visit www.alpenrosepress.com.