It’s that time of year to get out the skis or snowshoes and head for the woods. I chose one of the Tennessee Pass ski trails for our first outing of the season and found good snow conditions along most of the route. Moderate grades make this tour an excellent warm-up for the season to come, while the length of the tour provides a good workout.
Count on a full day for this route. If the trail is well tracked you should be able to complete the route on skis in four to five hours, but after a fresh snowfall expect some route-finding to be necessary. Couple that with the slower pace of breaking trail and, unless you get an early start, you might want to have your headlamp along.
The route goes well in either direction. Mileage markers along the way are organized for a counterclockwise circuit, and that’s the way I describe it.
Trail description
From the parking area atop Tennessee Pass, cross to the west side of the highway. You will pass an information sign for the Colorado Trail and Continental Divide Trail on your left (where we will exit the loop) before passing an outhouse, then go through an opening in the fence. Ski northwest along the obvious railroad grade, staying straight at the junction with the Treeline Loop Trail after 0.2 miles. Stay right at the coke oven, still on the railroad grade and Continental Divide Trail. The trail drops gradually, passing the Powderhound Loop Trail Junction at 0.8 miles and staying left on the railroad grade at 2 miles, where the Continental Divide Trail takes off to the right.
At 2.2 miles, pass a sign indicating that the Mitchell Creek Loop Trail continues for another 5 miles and enter an open area with good views of some of the surrounding peaks to the northwest.
At 2.7 miles the railroad grade curves to the west and north, crossing the Mitchell Creek drainage. This is where we leave the railroad grade and continue southwest, skirting along the edge of the trees and heading up a minor drainage. The blue diamonds can be tricky to follow in this area, so pay attention.
Continue southwest until you reach the Wurtz Ditch Road at mile 4.2. There is a wooden building at this location. Follow the road south (left), immediately crossing a bridge over the ditch. Continue south, then southeast on the road to a trail junction at mile 4.6. Leave the road here, taking the trail to the northeast (left), signed as the continuation of the Mitchell Creek loop and the Colorado Trail.
From this point the route is well signed and fairly obvious. At 4.8 miles the Crane Park Trail takes off to the right, but we stay straight on the trail signed to Tennessee Pass and marked with the Colorado Trail emblem. Traverse east on rolling terrain, passing the southern end of the Treeline Trail at mile 6.1 and finally arriving back at Tennessee Pass at mile 7.2. We found the last couple of miles to have a few spots where the snow cover was a little thin, but a good storm should fix that.
Dave Cooper is the author of “Colorado Scrambles: A Guide to 50 Select Climbs in Colorado’s Mountains.”
The details
Getting to the trailhead: Tennessee Pass is located on U.S. 24, 9.1 miles north of the intersection with Colorado 91 at the northern edge of Leadville. The pass also can be reached by taking the Minturn exit (Exit 171) from I-70 and following U.S. 24 south for 22.5 miles.
Hike statistics: Cumulative elevation gain of 880 feet in 7.2 miles round-trip.
Difficulty: A long ski on generally moderate terrain. As with any backcountry trail, map and compass skills are essential. A GPS can also be helpful if the trail is not tracked. While most of the trail is well signed either with blue diamonds, CDT or CT signs, the segment from Mitchell Creek to the Wurts Ditch road has only sporadic blue diamonds to guide you. No avalanche hazard.
USGS Quads: Leadville North, CO; Pando, CO.
