Montgomery Pass
On my way home from Gould yesterday morning, I pulled off of CO-14 at the Zimmerman Lake parking lot, changed into running gear, and trotted west up to the Medicine Bow Range's Montgomery Pass. I hit the trail just after 7:00 a.m.
Montgomery Pass trail below treeline.
I've been up this trail 20 times or more, but mostly in the snow, and very rarely in the last decade. I can't remember ever going up alone or trying to run it. I made it to the Montgomery Pass signpost in just under 35 minutes. I ran some stretches, but mostly hiked it. The trail grade averages just over 10%.
Looking south to the Diamond Peaks, Nokhu Crags, and Rocky Mountain National Park.
On the ridge at the south end of the Medicine Bow Range it is easy cruising. The third high point (3524 meters or 11,560 feet above sea level) north of Montgomery Pass has a solar-powered antenna installation and nice views of North Park, the higher Medicine Bow peaks, the Mummy Range, and the Never Summer Range.
Pseudo-black-and-white photo from the radio tower.
Near the end of my run, I started to see hikers heading up the trail. One of them was a backcountry skiing buddy from twenty years ago who I rarely bump into in Fort Collins. On the drive home, I thought a lot about how much I've changed in that time, and how these mountains remaining so compelling to many of us.
I was back at my car in an hour and 45 minutes, not a long excursion at all, but felt energized from it all day long today. I really need to find the time to get on some more summits again this summer.