Rampart Range Down South
Details
You've probably done Mount Herman and Raspberry Mountain down by Monument. They've got some nice steep vertical to offer for early season. But have you done much else down that way? There are a bunch of seldom-used trails that push back behind these peaks and on into Limbaugh Canyon, all the way to Rampart Range Rd if you like. Let's go get some training miles and see what exploring we can do, including off-trail.
We'll start at the Mount Herman Trailhead on FS 320. Meet there, or we can synch up on carpooling as the date gets closer. There are only a handful of spots, so carpooling is advised. And if we can't all get parking, continue further along 320 to the Limbaugh Canyon Trailhead. We'll be walking to / past it first thing anyway.
A little over a mile on trail, we'll reach Monument Creek. Turn left and follow the creek 2.1 miles. This section is an actual trail on FS maps, but it is sounding like it's overgrown and will require bushwhacking and route-finding. Then there's a mile of up hill to get to Balanced Rock Rd. We'll follow this Jeep road about 3 miles back before dropping down the R&B trail back to Monument Creek trail. We'll finish by climbing up Raspberry Mountain and traversing to Mount Herman.
Day's totals:
14 miles
3,200 vert