Bald Mountain

4.3/5 (18 reviews)
Red Feather Lakes, Colorado (Larimer County)
Last Updated: 06/22/2022

Trail Information

Highlights

Bald Mountain is a 4WD trail located in the Roosevelt National Forest a few miles southwest of Red Feather Lakes, CO. The trail winds through the dense Lodge-pole Pine forest as it climbs to nearly 11,000 feet. The trail offers a variety of experiences as you head west on the 13 mile journey. It is known for its rocky mid-section and then its muddy path near the trail's end. This route is true 4WD experience to escape the summer heat as it remains in the trees.

Trail Difficulty and Assessment

Trail Navigation

Trail Reviews

4.3/5 (18 reviews)
400
Open
Rated 4/5
Visited: 10/22/2022
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

Tons of logging activity, many parts of the road have been recently graded. Driving through the Cameron Peak burn scar was a bit like driving to Mordor. There is still a rocky, technical section prior to the mud holes which is a solid 5, if this section gets graded for logging, the trail would be a 2 (assuming the mud holes are dry). I would not recommend anything bigger than a 4 door Jeep, many places were quite tight. Make sure you take a saw, between the burned trees in the burn scar and the beetle kill once you get out of the scar, you are bound to come across a downed tree. Not much in the way of scenery, but overall a fun backcountry drive.
Open
Visited: 09/25/2022
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

I drove this yesterday from waypoint 1 to the intersection of Green Ridge. It's in great condition and super fun. Driving through the burn is wild! There's barely anything growing in places and still a lot of ash and charcoal on the ground. The is a logging operation happening on the west side of the trail, so head up if you go during the week.
Official Crew
4850
Partially Open
Rated 4/5
Visited: 07/04/2022
Difficulty Accuracy: Harder

The Forest Service partially reopened this road in the most recent closure order for the Cameron Peak burn zone. It is now open between waypoints 1 and 11 at the intersection with Roaring Creek Road. I drove it on July 4 coming in from Roaring Creek Road and out to Manhattan Road and found it passable but challenging. I got a cut sidewall on one of my tires getting through it. Most of the challenging middle portion of trail is in the Cameron Peak burn area. The fire really did a number on it. While the rocky middle portion of the road has always been challenging, you will now have burned logs and erosion from the surrounding terrain devoid of vegetation to contend with. On the lower portion of the trail, the Forest Service has been doing heavy salvage logging. The road between waypoints 1 and 4 is graded smooth for logging access. The non-MVUM route at waypoint 2 described as the original route appears to no longer exist, as it has been blocked off during the logging work. This trail will likely need a complete re-write as it is now very different. Overall this trail has a good amount of technical challenge while providing a fascinating look at the devastation of the Cameron Peak fire. I'd definitely recommend it now that most of it has reopened.
Official Crew
39450
Temporary Closure
Visited: 06/22/2022

Bald Mountain remains closed by order of the USFS. An opening date is not known.
Official Crew
106250
Seasonal Closure
Visited: 12/01/2021

Closed for the season! See you in 2022!

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