Pennsylvania Mountain (13,006) & Mount Bailey (9,089) by Brian Schultz Saturday July 18, 2015
Pennsylvania Mountain:
Roundtrip mileage: 5 miles from Mountain View road (~11,700' elev.)
Elevation gain: 1,465'
Start to finish: 3 hours 15 minutes
I had trouble finding the trailhead last night in the dark until I finally took out my GPS. The trailhead on Mountain View road is reached by driving north of Fairplay and turning left on County Road 1. The roads are a bit confusing but here's the short version to the trailhead: stay on CR 1 to Valley of the Sun road, which winds around like crazy, then turn right on Mountain View road. Continue to the end of Mountain View road to the parking area. I set up for the night in the truck and wondered if I'd be chased out of there because there is a house on Mountain View road close to the parking area. Fortunately, the homeowner didn't call the sheriff.
The trail starts straight ahead from the end of the road. I began at 6:55 AM under clear sunny skies. knowing this would be a short day with minimal elevation gain. The trail, actually old road tracks, leads toward Pennsylvania's southeast ridge but when it started descending after a while, I departed it and began a bushwhack through the willows. On my return, I noticed I could've stayed on the old road a bit further to a more open area before bushwhacking. Regardless, there are plenty of alleys to keep the willow bashing to a minimum. Once I ascended higher it was an easy hike up the slopes to the southeast ridge.
The wildflowers on the slopes were in full bloom and the remaining distance to the false summit was a mix of grass and talus. I wondered why a huge cairn was built on the false summit because the actual summit is still 0.65 miles away as the crow flies. I dropped down about 75' and hiked across the tundra to the actual summit, passing by a mine on the way over. I arrived on top at 8:35 and stayed for twenty minutes. The return to the false summit was fast and I departed the from there at 9:15.
I stopped often to take pictures of the flowers (photo 1, photo 2) and when I neared the trailhead I met the first of many hikers on the trail. I wasn't surprised to see their late start because the weather was so nice and I stopped to chat with some of them. I reached the parking lot at 10:10, which was full of cars and trucks, and the street was lined up with many more. A large group of people was gathered together by a woman whom apparently was about to lead them on a flower viewing expedition.
If looking for a short and easy climb, this is a great one.
Mount Bailey:
Roundtrip mileage: 1 mile from the playground off Burland Drive in Bailey
Elevation gain: 400'
Start to finish: 30 minutes
This was a nice easy peak to hike up on my way back to Denver. I used Jeremy Hakes' brief trip report to find the approach and started from the Bailey playground at 12:45 PM. A trail goes all the way to the top on public land (there are no trespass concerns on this peak) and I met a trio of hikers who'd just finished when I began. It's an excellent trail with lots of switchbacks and I stepped around the communications tower to get to the highest point (photo 1, photo 2) at 1:00. I headed back down a few minutes later and arrived at my truck at 1:15. This is a cool little summit and offers some nice views.
This is another short and easy climb.
