01/25/14 North Table Mountain 6575' #14

The true summit of North Table Mountain

I stopped in Golden on my way from Denver to climb North Table Mountain on the 25th of January.  I parked near the North Table Mountain Trailhead and followed a nice trail up to the top of the table.  From that plateau, I could see the high point.  I thought I was going to have to go off trail to get to the true high point, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a very nice trail heading up that way.  The trail had a name and a sign, but I forget it now.

View north to the peaks west of Boulder

I followed the nice trail all the way to the top of the large and closest rock outcrop.  As the morning was sunny and clear, the views were great.  I especially enjoyed the views north to the peaks outside of Boulder as they were my old stomping ground.  My map had a bench mark labelled as Table Mountain on the northeast side of the table top and I wanted to go there.

I reversed my route back down the trail and to a trail that cut across the plateau.  This was very easy to follow and would make for great trail running or biking if you were so inclined.  I worked my way along trail to the extreme northeast and found the high point.  I left the trail and ascended to the top, where I found the bench mark.  The views were great here as well, especially of Denver.

View to Denver

I enjoyed my time and the sunny morning and then headed back to the trail.  From there I followed the same trail back to the junction with the summit trail and then the first trail I had climbed back to the car.  This had been my first peak in the Golden area and is a great one for a half-day or post-work hike.

 Elevation gain:  740'     Total gain:  20,720'