Overview
Mount Buckhorn is located in North Cheyenne Canyon. The summit is a short hike up a ridge off of Capt Jacks trail, not far from the top of High Drive. The summit has many enormous boulders that can be fun to climb on. The true summit however is on top of one of these boulders.
The summit boulder is about 20 feet tall and is a moderate to difficult class 5 climb. The granite is sharp and the top of the boulder has a great deal of loose rock.
The Mount Buckhorn summit boulder
Colorado Rank: Unranked
Prominence: 160'
Quadrangle: Manitou Springs
Rank and Prominence information from
Lists of JohnGetting There
From Colorado Springs take Highway 24 (Cimarron St) west to 21st St. Follow 21st street until it changes to Cresta Rd and intersects Cheyenne Blvd. Turn right onto Cheyenne Blvd. When the road forks, follow it to the right on North Cheyenne Canyon Rd. The south fork will take you to Seven Falls. Follow the road past Helen Hunt Falls up the switchbacks until you reach the end of the paved road. Park in the large gravel parking lot on the left.
Routes Overview
Via High Dr/Capt Jacks: This is Mt Buckhorn's standard route. The first portion is on the dirt road, High Dr. It then follows Capt Jacks trail until the turn off onto Mt Buckhorn's ridge. Overall, an easy walk-up to the summit area.
Via Seven Bridges/Bear Creek/Capt Jacks: It is possible to approach this mountain on Capt Jacks Trail from the other direction. This would add a significant amount of mileage compared to the standard route. If planning on doing this route I recommend looking at the Pikes Peak Atlas or another good map of these trails. The trailhead is the same as the standard route.
Views from the summit:
NE -
Garden of the Gods
E -
Mays Peak and City of Colorado Springs
W -
Tenney Crags
SE -
Cheyenne MountainRed Tape
No permits or fees are required. Dogs should be leashed.
Camping
Camping is allowed in Pike National Forest. Mount Buckhorn lies within Pike National Forest boundries.
External Links
Local weather:
Colorado Springs