Red Hill (6,570') from Heil Ranch, 02/03/2008
Red Hill (6,570 feet) is on Gerry Roach's Boulder Couny Peaks list.
Looking toward Boulder from Red Hill summit, 02/03/08
We started hiking at 10:30 from the upper lot of Heil Ranch. Hiking north on the dirt road, which is the Wapiti Trail, we turned right at its intersection with the Lichen Trail, then headed northeast getting on the ridge north of Knob 6548.
Our path north was diverted by a bluff, where we turned right, heading down a deer trail, and then north to an arroyo. From there we headed northeast to a couple of rock quarries, then followed an old dirt road north which parallels another arroyo.
The dirt road took us to a saddle just west of Red Hill. From there we headed east about 0.2 miles, up the steep slope, to the top of Red Hill. We met some deer on the slope just below the summit.
We reached the summit of Red Hill at 11:49, where our odometer showed 2.71 miles. The summit has a small pile of rocks with a niche for a register, but there was no register. There was a nice view to the south towards Boulder, to the north towards Lyons, and to the west where we could see the top part of Longs Peak/Mount Meeker.
From the summit we headed back down to the saddle, then followed an old road west, and then north. This dirt road intersected the Wild Turkey Trail (odometer 3.47 miles), but we stayed on the road after this intersection, eventually reaching an intersection with the Ponderosa Loop Trail, where we turned right, and hiked to the Overlook, getting there at 12:42.
We had lunch on the bench at the Overlook, enjoying the view. The view is really quite nice, with Deadman Gulch and Twin Sisters to the northwest, and to the southwest, Peak 8315 and Fairview Peak.
Leaving the overlook at 13:07, we headed south on the Ponderosa Loop Trail until its junction with the Wapiti Trail, where the odometer showed 5.87 miles.
Returning on the Wapiti Trail, we got back at 14:29, where the odometer showed 8.52 miles. The total trip time was 4 hours. The elevation difference from lowest (parking) to highest (high point on Ponderosa Loop) was 832 feet, although there were lots of ups and downs.
| Place name | Elev [ft] | Accuracy [ft] | Lat/Lon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parking at upper lot of Heil Ranch | 5950 | 16 | 40.14941/105.30061 |
| Red Hill summit | 6592 | 14 | 40.17405/105.28371 |
| Reached Wild Turkey Trail | 6469 | 32 | 40.17696/105.29060 |
| Overlook on Ponderosa Loop | 6626 | 18 | 40.18716/105.29519 |
| High point of Ponderosa Loop | 6782 | 15 | 40.17977/105.29596 |
| Number | Description | Lat/Lon |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Red Hill | 40.1742/105.2835 |
| 2 | Ridge point | 40.1775/105.2784 |
| 3 | Peak 6455 | 40.1880/105.2727 |
| 4 | Peak 6448 | 40.1909/105.2663 |