[Journal entry for January 10, 2016; Mt Royal, Frisco, Colorado]. Mt Royal is a small (elevation 10,502 ft), steep sided and mostly wooded mountain that rises about 1500 feet above the town of Frisco Colorado. Several large cliffs and rock faces just below its summit allow for fantastic views of the surrounding mountains.

In the early afternoon, I parked at the hiker’s lot at the end of West Main Street in Frisco Colorado and donned my snowshoes. The afternoon was cold – about ten Fahrenheit – and partially sunny. I crossed the Tenmile Creek by a wooden pedestrian bridge and headed south on the Recreational Path. In about a half mile I picked up the Mt Royal Trail by a kiosk. The trail is a huff, with a sustained uphill grade a little less than two miles long. It is not hard, in the sense that the trail is wide and the footing is excellent; never once did my snowshoes slip or slide over the snow. The first half of the trail, through pine and aspen woods, has the lower grade, as well as some open sections with nice views of the town of Frisco, Dillon Lake and the mountains beyond it. A runner, wearing just a sweater and sporting microspikes passed me, jogging down the trail. The second half is considerably steep and consists of two sections, the first shorter than the second, separated by a short level section. I could not manage these grades at an even pace, but rather resorted to the tactic of walking fifty paces, resting for a few seconds and then continuing on for fifty more. Another runner passes me, this time one going up, as I was tackling the second section. I climbed for at least a half hour before finally being passed by him again as he descended, and this long interval disheartened me, for he was much faster than I. However, when I came to a trail intersection where a sign indicted that the Mt Royal Trail diverged to the right and the Mt Victoria – Peak One Trail to the left, I was relieved to find that he had taken the left. I came to the cliff edge on the north side of Mt Royal in just a few hundred yards.

The cliff edge is of a tan rock, sparely vegetated with twisted and gnarled trees, some living and some dead weathered wood. The view of Wichata Mountain, across the valley in which runs Interstate 70, and the other high peaks of the Gore Range is superb, especially in the glowing late afternoon sun. I hiked along the ridge as it rose towards the east, reaching a prominent spur of rock. I don’t suppose that I was at the exact summit, yet the ridge beyond was fairly level. My hike up has taken 1:45 and I was running out of time. I decided to go no further, but rather to leave exploring the summit area to another day.

My hike down was rapid. My knees protested a bit against the steep downhill grade, but fortunately, I reached the bottom without any serious pain. The views of Dillon lake and mountains to the southeast had improved as the sun has sunk lower in the sky and as clouds started to drape the high peaks. I was soon back on the Recreational Path and, after a short walk along it, back at my car.

Overall, the kike took about three hours.