Second Annual Mega Magnolia Transect

20160910_095204After last year’s rousing success of the Mega Magnolia Transect, I decided to run it again this year and add some additional trails.  Another Rising Sun 4×4 Club member joined me.  If this keeps up, maybe next year we’ll have three Toyotas on the run!

Our first trail of the trip was Kingston Peak Trail.  The flag at the rock house looking over Loch Lomond recently was replaced.
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Our two trusty trail rigs out for a big adventure.



20160910_102041Coming down the steep section of trail on Kingston Peak before the shelf road on the north side.



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Looking toward the continental divide at the start of the shelf road on Kingston Peak.

20160910_112311_richtonehdrThe Albino Rhino on the trail between Kingston Peak and Yankee Hill.

20160910_120201_richtonehdrComing through the rocky section that sometimes becomes a creek.  Andrew and I went through this in the spring.



20160910_122028_richtonehdrHeading through some aspens back up to the Kingston Peak trail to head toward Magnolia.



20160910_162410_richtonehdrHeading up Jenny Creek Trail toward Rollinsville Pass.

20160910_165554_richtonehdrGetting back on the main Rollinsville Pass East trail from Jenny Creek.




20160910_170456_richtonehdrAt the lake below Rollins Pass.



20160910_173506At the top of the road toward Rollin Pass.

20160910_173526_richtonehdrMaybe someday the road all the way over will be reopened.

20160910_191803_richtonehdrSome of the old mining equipment on West Magnolia Road


20160910_192017_richtonehdrOld ore cart?

20160910_192043_richtonehdrThe Mega Magnolia Transect was a success once again!  We did a lot of miles off road and visited some of my favorite trails.  Can’t wait until I do it again!

Mega Magnolia Transect

IMG_1899The Mega Magnolia Transect was born late last week when I was looking at maps of 4×4 trails near the Metro Denver area and realized that there are many trails that link up together between Nederland and Idaho Springs.  Usually I would only do one or two trails in a day but looking at the map, I figured that I could do several all linked together.  Thus I set out in the morning for the northern end of the West Magnolia trail.  My goals were to 1) see the fall colors and 2) see how far I could go in a day.

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There was a lot of great color on West Magnolia.  Also there were some new waterbars built recently that make it a more challenging road than before.

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So many great trees!


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20150926_100224_Richtone(HDR)-3My friend Brent did a little color correction here.

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STA_1939-Pano-8After West Magnolia, I went over to Gamble Gulch.  This road is really narrow in spots.  I wouldn’t want to try driving a full-size vehicle through this road.

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IMG_1954Next I went over to the Kingston Peak Trail.  There was quite a bit of traffic on this road.  Lots of big built vehicles, shiny brand new Rubicons, and side-by-sides.  I had the oldest and most stock vehicle on the trail this day.  One couple in a Rubicon Unlimited told me they were turning around because the road was too rough for their jeep.  I went around them and proceeded easily up the hill they were worried about.  It’s interesting to see all these very good vehicles not get used to their full potential.  I suppose in the spring when I started 4x4ing with my little 4runner, I would have also been intimidated by Kingston Peak Trail but now it seems easy to me.

STA_1955-Pano-10Looking north.

IMG_1966This is an awesome trail!  I’m guessing there was mining somewhere up here once.  Now it’s a beautiful route across some really unique landscape.

IMG_1967What a truck!

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IMG_1988Heading up a rough section with some big dislodged boulders.

IMG_1989On top of the world.

IMG_2007Bumping along.

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IMG_2016Neat meadow.



IMG_2018This hill was giving some people in front of me trouble.  I crawled right up without any problem at all.  I wonder how many people were running on fully inflated tires.



STB_2021-Pano-16Up at the rock house looking down onto Loch Lomond where we were last weekend.

IMG_2033Lots of people stopped at the rock house putting their rocks on it.

20150926_124937And of course my truck was the most attractive up there.

IMG_2035Heading down a connector trail between Yankee Hill and Apex Road.  This trail became progressively narrower and rougher as I went.

IMG_2036Big loose jumbled rocks that I had to slide down.  Very steep, very rough.



IMG_2040Heading down toward Apex.

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IMG_2047Back on Apex Road heading up toward Gamble Gulch Road.

IMG_2049Great colors!

IMG_2050Up at the top of Gamble Gulch Road.

STA_2051-Pano-17Very pretty.

IMG_2058An old mining site.

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IMG_2062Looking down into the valley above Rollinsville.


IMG_2066This was a nice, easy road.  I ran into a couple in a Jeep who had the same book I do.  I helped them navigate down to the highway.  I thought they were going to follow me to the next trail but we didn’t end up in the same place.  Next time!


STA_2069-Pano-18With some daylight left, I decided to go up the east side of Rollins Pass.  This road is really busy and has all sorts of passenger cars really high up on it.  I’m glad I went late in the day because it would have been even worse during the middle of the day.

IMG_2074Big old mine entrance near the lake.

IMG_2077Kingston peak to the south (I think).



IMG_2079Up at the rockfall at the cut about a half mile before the closed tunnel.  I’m surprised no one has gone up with some explosives and opened the trail back up again.  It certainly won’t reopen as long as Boulder County has anything to say about it.

IMG_2080-Pano-2-19The infamous tunnel plus the lake just below the tunnel.

STA_2090-Pano-20Looking back south where my truck was parked.

IMG_2098It was at this point that I found the starter in my truck wouldn’t work.  I initially figured that the truck had simply heat soaked the starter like what had happened in the summer going to California.  I poured water on the starter and waited.  Still nothing.  I tried roll starting it in reverse.  The grade wasn’t steep enough to do that very well.  Then I looked around more, checking fuses and whatnot.  Then finally I discovered a loose wire in the engine bay.  Some quick splicing and I was back in business.  It took me a little over an hour to figure out what was actually wrong.

IMG_2099Looking back at the tunnel on the way down.

STA_2103-Pano-21Sunset.

IMG_2112I saw a big moose in the uppermost meadow on the way down.  Neat!

IMG_2116Nearly full moon rising.




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Looking down into the valley above Rollinsville.  By the time I got down to the staging area by Moffat Tunnel, it was late enough and dark enough (especially with my puny stock headlights), I decided to air up my tires and head down to Golden.  Had I more time, I would have reverse-run West Magnolia or maybe gone up Mammoth Gulch or tried Jenny Creek.  Next time!

West Magnolia and Apex on New Tires

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We went up West Magnolia and Apex Road yesterday to try out my new tire inflation system using a SCUBA tank.  The West Magnolia road is really nice and quite.  We only saw a few other people at the start of the trail from the Nederland side.  About halfway along West Magnolia, we saw some old mine ruins.

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Big old boiler or pressure tank.

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Collapsed headworks.

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A big pit in the ground where an old adit is collapsing.  The whole area looks a bit unstable.


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An old collapsed cabin close to the Rollinsville end of West Magnolia.

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The trail is narrow and gorgeous.  In another few weeks, the aspens will be spectacular.


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Up on Apex Road on the Tolland side looking toward the Indian Peaks Wilderness and Rollins Pass.

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Up at the top in the small parking area.

20150829_171209_Richtone(HDR)Heading down toward Apex near the little stone building.  We were stuck in the snow just below here back in the spring.