Ranski

I will be running this the Labor day weekend (Friday)

Does anyone have details. Road numbers, distance, time required to run, nearby camping and any other information will be greatly appreciated.

We will be driving through the night from Kansas City and will catch a few hours of sleep at the trailhead before running Hermit.

jx94148

Hi Randy.

I got your PM. I have never done it and I won't have time to do any recon. for you on Hermit.

Medano is a fun one with lots of moderate water crossings and deep soft sand on the west end. LOW tire pressure is your best friend in that stuff.

Darren

Here's my brief report on it.

Take Hermit Road out of Westcliffe, which is on the south edge of town. You'll come to a sign at the end of the straight-away which will indicate Hermit Pass is to the left.

I think it is about 11 miles or so from Westcliffe to the summit.

I would allow at least 5 hours. The road itself is quite easy. Airing down will afford you a much more pleasant ride on this one.

The views from timberline up to the summit are absolutely awesome. You'll love it.

There are some real great camping spots along the road below timberline.

Ranski

Darren-

I'm so glad you site is back up. It was actually a resource for me when I was palnning the trip. I was bummed when it went down. You are basically the only site that has info on Hermit.

Also, I just PM'd you regarding the details of your rear bumper.

Darren

Yep, I'm fully aware of that. It's really too bad as that is such a neat road as far as the scenery. It's the 4th highest pass in the state at 13,020', which makes it all the more remarkable it isn't found anywhere else. I have a few more pictures from that trail that I'm waiting to put up, but I can't even get in to update my site. The whole thing is such a mystery as to what's been going on with it.

I actually have a few places which there are zero pictures of on the net, both trails and other misc. landscapes that I've tried to address. The Ellis Jeep Trail in the north-central part of the state is another one that comes to mind that you will find nothing on.

JadeRunner

I took my relatives up Hermit Pass last summer. My dad was able to drive his small Lexus 300 up there.

I understand if you hike off the back side on the closed road from the top, there is a nice lake to fish. Several people were parked up there. Another person we saw was bow hunting goats near the top. That would be a scary\exciting place to be with the late afternoon storms. Enjoy.