Hiking Ptarmigan Peak in Silverthorne, Colorado

I had expected my post on Mount Shavano to be my last hiking post of the year, but I turned out to be wrong. Mother Nature wanted me to get in one more hike (can it please start snowing so this can be the last hike of the year?!). With very poor conditions at the local ski resorts, I decided to avoid the overcrowded single run that was open at most resorts and go on a solo hike on Ptarmigan Peak.

I can almost see the top of this mountain from my house, but because of one reason or another, I have never actually made it to the top of this mountain. I could see there was very little snow at the top of the mountain and felt confident that I would be able to summit on this December day. I wonder when the last time was that one could summit Ptarmigan in December without coming upon any material amount of snow?

I set out from the car around sunrise and made my way up the steepest part of the hike - the very beginning. I have done this hike many times to what locals call “the bench” but didn’t know what the hike would look like this time as I hadn’t been on the mountain since before the Ptarmigan Peak wildfire in the fall of this year.

I made my way to “the bench” and had it all to myself to take a break and have a snack. I believe this viewpoint provides one of the best views of the Gore Range that you can find. Buffalo Mountain and Red Mountain are some of the most picturesque mountains you can find in Colorado. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the actual bench still existed at “the bench.” It looked like it may have seen a few flames from the wildfire as I had started walking through the fire-impacted areas very shortly before I hit this point.

Looking towards Lake Dillon from the bench

The part that I find the most eerie about walking through an area where a wildfire recently happened isn’t the burnt and fallen trees; it’s the complete lack of any undergrowth - no grass, bushes, flowers, etc. The ground just looks like the ashes from a campfire and seeing that normally has the greatest impact on me. With the fire only having happened a few months ago, I was extremely impressed by the amount of work the Forest Service had done to clear the trail and cut any fallen trees. There were none I had to walk around as a result of the fire.

After taking this short break, I continued along the trail through some more fire-impacted areas. I soon found some trail that was a little bit more north facing and there were several patches of packed down snow to walk through, but they were not an obstacle in any way.

About a mile after the bench I ran into the first two people I would see that day. They were not the fellow hikers I was expecting to see, instead they were wearing camouflage and bright orange carrying rifles on their backs. Since I typically am not hiking this time of year, I foolishly did not even think to bring bright clothing with me and when I looked down at what I was wearing, it was a black jacket and gray pants. My concerns were somewhat alleviated after a conversation with the hunters who were very friendly. They told me they had gotten to the parking lot a little after 3am that morning and hiked to the top of Ptarmigan. They could see some animals in the distance from where they were, but nothing close enough for them to pursue. I asked if there were any other hunters in the area that they had seen, and they said there was only one other pair of hunters that went well down the ridge towards Ute Peak. Not wearing any bright colors, I was somewhat relieved to hear this. The other piece of helpful information they provided is that there was no snow that would prevent me from summiting that day. Finally I would make it to the top! They turned out to be the only hunters I would see that day.

As I approached tree line, I crossed the wilderness boundary, and the views started to open up in all directions. Views of Lake Dillon and the Ten Mile Range took my attention for a few minutes.

Find me a better spot for a snack break :)

As I started to approach the summit ridge of Ptarmigan, I saw two other individuals I was not expecting to see that day. Two paragliders! I guess the day was full of surprises. I saw one take off from the ridge of Ptarmigan and float down towards Silverthorne. The second paraglider didn’t have the same luck as the first. The wind was very minimal that morning and after 3 failed attempts to take off and walk back up to the launch area, the trail I was on came right next to the paraglider. His frustration at the lack of wind was apparent. The wind was supposed to pick up later in the day so I was confident he would catch enough wind to take off at some point.

Paragliders! No trees at the top of Ptarmigan

Ten minutes after this encounter, I was at the peak. Of course as I got there, the wind picked up and my hands got a little colder than I would have liked. I took in the views to the east and the north. Next summer, I’d like to hike the ridge from Ute Peak to Ptarmigan Peak and laying eyes on it made me excited for this future adventure.

Wondering which lines to ski this winter

After this snack break I turned around and headed back the way I came. When the spot where I encountered the paraglider came into view, there was no one there so I assume my new friend had finally found the windy moment he needed. On the way down I passed about 10 groups total; a pretty quiet day for a Saturday on Ptarmigan. By the last two miles my knees were ready to be back at the car, but thankfully the views of Buffalo Mountain kept me going.

Overall, it was a very fulfilling day. After many failed attempts to reach the top of Ptarmigan, I had finally made it. The hike was 12.2 miles with 3,490 ft of vert according to my GPS. It took me about 5.5 hours including breaks. This hike is pretty any time of year and should be one for your bucket list.

Let’s all hope this is actually my last hiking post of the year! :)