LoJ: #585 (Pre-LiDAR #580) / 13,080' Keller Mountain

Keller Mountain is another Gore Range summit which is easily accessed from the Bighorn Creek trailhead near Vail, or for Front Range hikers, the Rock Creek TH north of Silverthorne. On the Vail side, a three mile hike places you at an old cabin from which the real ascent begins. Done from this direction, to reach the summit, there is a long ridge walk. The climb should not exceed Class 2+ unless you deliberately find some scrambling you want to do. The trailhead is accessible to all passenger vehicles, but parking is extremely limited. Done by itself or even combined with North Traverse Peak, Keller can be completed as a longer day hike, but there's also an excellent backpack approach possibility as well. From Rock Creek TH, Keller makes a good day-hike by its east ridge and can also be combined with North Traverse Peak. If you do not return by Keller's east ridge, expect a difficult bushwhack in beetle-kill forest. Lidar reduced elevation by 5 feet.