Round Mountain

This is actually a hike that I did two weeks ago. The hike up to the top of Round Mountain begins just 5 miles west of the Big Thompson Canyon, right off of Rt 34 that goes from Loveland to Estes Park (home of Rocky Mountain National Park) The hike begins going up the side of a Round Mountain. All and all the hike is about 5 miles each way and climbs probably about 3 thousand feet for a peak around 8,500 feet.

The best views can be seen from about 2.5 miles up with great views of the foothills and the eastern plains. The first picture was taken at about this point. At about mile 3 you run into this cool little section that sort of reminds me of the plumbers crack at Levis Trow back in Wisconsin. As you hike through this unique

section of rock you get a glimpse to look through a cutout of the ages of the rock. The trail is littered with deciduous aspen which show their health by their bright white bark. The trail also has great little informational posts that tell you about the wildlife that you see along the way. I learned a lot about the landscape and had the opportunity to see a tree that continued to grow even after it had been blown down by a storm! (which was cool because the roots were still intact and the tree was growing sideways!)

Eventually I made it to the top of the mountain, but since the peak was still below treeline, the views could have been better as you were basically in the middle of the woods at the high point.

At the top, people who had climbed to the top piled up one of the largest cairns that I had ever seen, it was almost as tall as me! After wandering around at the top for a while I did find a clearing that lead to an decent view.

To get there: From Loveland/ Fort Collins: Take 34 West toward Estes Park. Once you reach the Big Damn store at the mouth of the Big Thompson Canyon follow 34 approximately 5 miles to the trail head (located right off on 34).