Chalk Mountain (12,021) & Antero Benchmark (10,532) by Brian Schultz Tuesday August 27, 2024

Chalk Mountain:
Roundtrip mileage: 2.75 miles
Elevation gain: 450'
Start to finish: 1 hour 15 minutes

I climbed Chalk Mountain five years ago but the repeat today was strictly to hike to the LiDAR highpoint. It's just a short distance from the map point and the road goes all the way to it. This time I drove the road (FR 134 from Highway 91) and parked at a pull-out next to the mini jaws section. I think I could've driven over this sketchy section but didn't want to chance it.

I began at 9:00 AM under sunny skies and walked the easy road to the LiDAR summit. This only took 30 minutes and two cairns marked possible highpoints on the flat summit. The one with a tall stick appeared higher by a couple feet. I stayed a few minutes taking pictures before departing and arrived back at my truck at 10:15. No others were on Chalk Mountain or the road today. This is a very easy peak with terrific views!

Antero Benchmark:
Rountrip mileage: 2.45 miles
Elevation gain: 765'
Start to finish: 1 hour 50 minutes

It's a relatively short drive from Chalk Mountain to Buena Vista and then north on Highway 285. I turned off Hwy 285 onto CR 307, then onto CR 308 (Mushroom Gulch road), and then west on FR 329 to its end. These roads are all two wheel drive roads.

I began at 12:50 PM under sunny skies. The route is a total bushwhack as there's no trail but it's easy to follow a bearing west to the summit. I arrived on top (photo 1, photo 2) at 1:45.

The register is in a birdhouse (photo 1, photo 2), something I've never seen on a summit, and it's pretty cool! The views are good and after 15 minutes I headed down. I was back at my truck at 2:40, making for another short, easy day.