Background
On Monday July 6th, 2020 I attempted to summit Red Mountain (C) near Breckenridge, Colorado, starting at 4:30PM. The weather was a problem and it started raining as I moved above the treeline. Fearing lightning, I returned while it rained on me. I attempted to summit again on Wednesday, July 8th and was successful due to lack of rain clouds but it was much more windy.
There is no trail to summit Red Mountain and I didn't see a single person once I started on the GPS route either day. You can park near a sign and map for the area or continue on a dirt road about a mile further where you could park in a lower area. This road requires 4WD but also high clearance and it is only one lane, therefore I was not interested and hiked the road the extra miles.
For navigation I used All Trail GPS for Red Mountain. First, I walked down the road until I found a safe place to cross Pennsylvania Creek. After this, I had to move through marshy brush until I got to the forest. From here, I walked up and slightly left until I finally was above the trees. After that, I continued over ridges until at the summit.
I saw what appeared to be a herd of Bighorn Sheep near the summit. They all seemed to move down the mountain once they saw or heard me. There is likely other wildlife in this area so it is important to be prepared for an encounter.
Overall, the hike took me approximately 4 hours and 30 minutes round-trip and was rewarding once I reached the summit. Stay aware of the weather and turn back if there is a chance of lightning. Since there is no trail, it is important to use GPS or be adept in route finding to make it up and back in a reasonable amount of time.
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