Gore Range Overview The Mount Solitude Massif
”In my opinion, the two most rugged mountain ranges in Colorado are the Gore Range northwest of Dillon Reservoir and the Needles Range in the remote San Juan Mountains.” -John Fielder-famous Colorado Landscape photographer.
The Gores are more of a range consisting of 12-13,000-ft ridges, rather than separated peaks. A few of the more prominent ridges actually have names like, Zodiac Spires, Rockinghorse Ridge, Ripsaw Ridge and the Grand Traverse. With 50 peaks over 12,000-ft, none attain the magic 14,000-ft mark, which is the primary reason for the Gores obscurity. This is one of Colorado’ most rugged mountain ranges and the rock quality is generally good.
Only 60 miles from Denver, Colorado the Gore Range as a whole is relatively inaccessible due to the lack of mining roads that normally criss-cross other Colorado mountain ranges. The Gores also have a rep for a lot of trailhead access red tape, due in large part to private property. Hikers and climbers not interested in long approaches and heavy vertical might want to look elsewhere for their adventure. Overall, the west side of the Gore Range is more accessible than the east. Approaches that start from the east are few because of private property, in return, expect even longer approaches and expect a poor network of trail systems. Precise planning and execution are of paramount importance when selecting routes in this range. Armed with a loaded backpack and good maps, many of these quiet summits can be climbed without a rope. Major faces and long jagged ridges provide unlimited technical climbing opportunities as well. An ice axe is highly recommended on any early season climbs.
Officially named peaks in the Gore Range are hard to come by, only a few of the Gore highpoints have official names. Differentiating the highpoints on a map or while hiking has challenged all of us at some point. Thankfully we have the CMC to make sense of all of that rugged terrain. In 1932, CMC members Carl Erickson and Edmund Cooper used letters to assign summits in the obscure Black Creek Basin and the CMC subsequently tended and expanded the system (Jacobs & Ormes- Guide to Colorado Mountains.) The lettering system for naming peaks has frustrated many casual visitors over the years, however Gore Range enthusiasts seem embrace the system. It won’t be going away anytime soon.
Mount Solitude Overview
Solitude: the quality or state of being alone or remote from society: solitude may imply a condition of being apart from all human beings or of being cut off by wish or circumstances from ones usual associates.
COMING SOON
Bighorn Creek Trailhead(Per Jon Bradford)
From the Front Range drive west on I-70 to Vail. Exit I-70 at the easternmost exit (180) and take an immediate left onto Big Horn Road to go under I-70. Follow Big Horn Road back east for less than a mile to Columbine Drive. Take a left on Columbine Drive and go back under I-70 and up the hill a couple hundred yards. You’ll find a small parking lot on the left side of the street.
Camping(Per Andy)
There isn't much car camping near either the Bighorn Creek Trailhead or the Pitkin Creek Trailhead because they essentially start in the town of Vail. To car camp I'd try near the top of Vail Pass or up U.S. 24 past Minturn. However, if you're willing to pack your gear up the trail a little ways there are many great campsites up both the Bighorn Creek Trail and the Pitkin Creek Trail. No permits are necessary and there are no restrictions on where you can camp once inside the Eagles Nest Wilderness Boundary.
Eagles Nest Wilderness Red Tape(Per attm)
No permits or fees are required. Like all wilderness areas no mechanized or motorized vehicles are permitted within the Eagles Nest boundaries.
Wilderness is land set aside as part of wild America, where man can be a visitor. The natural environment has not been disturbed. Travel is restricted to foot or horseback. No mechanized equipment is allowed.
For more information, contact the U.S. Forest Service at the # below:
USDA Forest Service
White River
National Forest
900 Grand Ave.
P.O. Box 948
Glenwood Springs CO 81602
970-945-2521
White River National Forest Home Page
Eastern Portion of the Wilderness:
Dillon Ranger District
680 River Parkway
Silverthorne, CO 80498
970-468-5400
or
Western Portion of the Wilderness:
Holy Cross Ranger District
P.O. Box 190, 24747 US HWY 24
Minturn, CO, 81645, Phone: 970-827-5715
Current Weather-Pitkin Lake Drainage Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC)
Vail Web Cam
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Click here to view a 7-day forecast for Pitkin Lake Basin at 11,400-ft
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Gore Range
