COSTILLA COUNTY — After almost four full years of closure, Mt. Lindsey, one of Colorado's 14ers, is reopening!
The Colorado Fourteeners Initiative, in collaboration with the Trinchera Blanca Ranch, has been able to legally allow people back onto the mountain, as long as visitors sign an electronic waiver.
The waiver states the following:
- Access is only allowed from the Gully Route and the Ridge Route, which are both accessed from the primary trailhead. Entering from any other access point will be considered trespassing.
- You cannot hunt, camp, or stay overnight
- The use of motorized vehicles, motorized equipment, and any other form of mechanical or wheeled transport and the operation of any drone on or above the Property is strictly prohibited.
- The trails are not maintained or supervised, visitors are hiking at their own risk.
Waivers should be completed in advance, but there will be a QR Code on the ranch property to fill out a waiver.
The CFI is asking that people refrain from removing or vandalizing any legal signage since it protects the ranch and protects hikers' ability to climb the mountain.
The organization also reminds people that the route is "one of the worst in the state and is a high priority for reconstruction."
CFI wants to remind hikers that access to Mt. Lindsey can be revoked, so hikers should remain respectful and mindful when on the trails.
Mount Lindsey cresting at an approximated 14,048 feet is nestled in the San Isabel National Forest in Costilla County.
The Colorado Fourteeners Initiative and Fix CRUS Coalition have been working with landowners for years to reopen certain mountains for public recreation. Court cases and liability concerns brought toward and by private landowners across the state have seen landowners close off land use agreements to certain hiking areas across the state for years.
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