Anvil Mountain
Difficulty Moderate
Length of hike 4.4 mi. RT
Starting Elevation 12080 ft.
Top Elevation 12300 ft.
Type of Vehicle Regular
Distance to Trailhead 29.7 miles
GPS track download Anvil Mountain Track
Hiking time up 2:30 hour
Hiking time down 1:30 hours

Directions to Trailhead
From the Traffic light in Ridgway, drive 26.7 miles south on Highway 550 past Ironton and over Red Mountain Pass. Look for a gravel road on the left with the sign for Cty. Rd. 14. Follow this road for 3 miles and park as the road levels off in a small turnout on the side of the road.

 

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Highlights

This track starts out fairly high at 12’080 feet, descends about 300 feet, and ends up at North Anvil Mountain with an elevation of 12’300 feet. You can continue for another mile on the ridge towards Anvil Mountain, but the views from North Anvil are quite impressive. Hiking is easy if you stay on the trail, which for the most part is just a barely discernible animal track.

There are flowers in the meadows in spring, but much of the walk is through a spruce forest, followed by scree on the way up to the peak. Crossing the few minor creeks along the way is easy during the dry season.

 

Looking east from the parking area you get a good look at Ohio Peak, an easy trip described in this site, which provides impressive 360 degree views and overlooks Cement Creek.

 

For the return trip from the trailhead you may want to continue on San Juan County. Rd. 14 all the way to Red Mountain Pass for a spectacular drive through the high country. A high clearance vehicle is recommended for this section of the road.