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Trail Tale: Mount Thorodin
TRAIL TALE: Mount Thorodin
TO THE TRAILHEAD
Drive up Boulder Canyon of Coal Creek Canyon to Colo. 119 and go south to Rollinsville. Continue five miles south to Gap Road. Turn left on Gap Road and follow signs to Golden Gate Canyon State Park and Panorama Point.
DISTANCE: 2.9 miles round-trip.
ELEVATION GAIN: 1,200 feet
DIFFICULTY: Moderate
DOGS, BIKES: No bikes. Dogs OK.
ETC.: $5 day fee or Colorado State Parks pass required to park at Panorama Point. Because there is no official trail to follow, check with park officials for any closures/private property.
DESCRIPTION
You know 10,540-foot Mount Thorodin, though you may not know you know Mount Thorodin. If you've ever drifted far enough east to see the hulking, forested peak to the southwest of Boulder's famous mountain backdrop, you've seen Thorodin. From this eastern view, the peak is frankly nondescript. There are no dramatic rock formations, though for a brief period each autumn you can see a few streaks of aspen gold along the mountain's eastern flank. Navigating to the top of Mount Thorodin requires a decent map (the USGS Tungsten quad is perfect) and some patience, though it does not involve a tremendous amount of bushwhacking. From Panorama, you can see three huge rock outcroppings, and you may find a faint climbers' trail dribbling up that direction. But you should head south of these formations through a thinly forested area. Along the way to the top, you'll see remnant trails, Starr Peak — where a fire lookout tower stood from 1941 to 1976 — and an old shack in a meadow near the summit. The views from the summit are breathtaking and comprehensive, with Longs Peak and the Indian Peaks to the north, James Peak to the west, and the backside of Boulder's mountain parks to the east.
MORE INFO: Golden Gate Canyon State Park, (303) 582-3707[/url]