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Corkscrew Gulch
From Dirtopia, The Off-Road Encyclopedia
 Photo: View from the top | |
| Off-Road Information | |
| Other Names: | |
|---|---|
| Terrain: | 4x4/atv/dirtbike |
| Off-Road Use: | type of off road use allowed? |
| Difficulty: | Easy(3) |
| Camping: | {{{camping}}} |
| Geography | |
| County: | Ouray |
| Nearest Cities: | Ouray, CO |
| Map Links: | Google Map |
| Satellite Map: | {{{satlinks}}} |
| Special Map: | |
| GPS Coords: | 37.9393/-107.672 |
| Google Earth: | Corkscrew_Gulch.kml |
| Climate: | |
| Area Size: | |
| Elevation: | |
| Last Visited: | {{{lastvisited}}} |
| Open/Closed/Date: | Closed - Nov 29 2007 |
| Season(s): | {{{seasons}}} |
Excerpt borrowed with permission from TrailDamage.com
If you enjoy the red-colored mountains in the Ouray area you will really enjoy Corkscrew Gulch. There are three red mountains on Red Mountain Pass -- their names are Red Mountain Number 1, Red Mountain Number 2 and Red Mountain Number 3. This trail climbs between Red Mountains 1 and 2 as it connects highway 550 to highway 11. It is also short enough to make a nice shortcut.
On Highway 550 south of Ouray there is a large, flat rocky area that looks like a dam very close to the road. It's marked "Tailings Ponds" on the topo map and it's not actually a dam. The trailhead is on the left side of the ponds and the trail runs along the left side and up and around the ponds. The trail is easy to find if you remember to circle the ponds.
You will start to climb right away and the climb is pretty steep though it is not technically challenging. If wet, this could be a mess.
Once you come out of the big trees you'll see the Red Mountains. They tower over the trail and are very impressive. You'll be able to see the trail as you climb up the Red Mountain in a series of switchbacks. These switchbacks are tight but not as tight as many others on trails in the Ouray area.
Once you get to the top you can take a spur road to the very top. There is parking on the side of the narrow trail for about three vehicles. The top is level. If you do not continue on the trail past this part the trail retains a low rating.
You can, however, continue past this flat area and work your way down extremely tight switchbacks to an overlook. The road does not continue and you have to go back the way you came. These switchbacks are dangerous because they are tight and the edges are very loose. Do not get near the edge.
The view from this optional overlook is amazing, but it does not provide much more than the original top of the mountain. You should really only take this optional spur if you are looking for the challenge of the switchbacks.
Continue along the main trail and you will head down quite quickly. There is a modern pit toilet on the right. The road is steep but fairly smooth.
Continue on your way down and you will come to the intersection with county road 11 and a sign pointing up to Corkscrew Gulch the way you came down. Turn right here to go to Silverton, or left to go to Hurricane Pass and the intersection of Poughkeepsie Gulch and California Gulch.
External Links
TrailDamage.com pictures, movies, maps, GPS coordinates and additional trail information.
Maps and GPS Coordinates
A comprehensive list of GPS waypoints and tracks in Google Earth format can be found here: Corkscrew_Gulch.kml
Corkscrew Gulch Coordinates: 37.9393° -107.672°
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
- Find nearby Geocaching locations
- Find this location with Google Earth
