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Trail Reports : Middle Fork Swan Trail

Breckenridge, CO
By: Brent Winter-Holm

This trail can be run either direction. The last time I drove it we left from Breckinridge. Take Hwy 9 about three miles north of Breckenridge to Co. Rd. 6 (Tiger Road), there is a golf course at this turn as well. You basically follow the road through a new development until you reach the woods. The trail remains easy for a few miles. Soon it heads up into the forest, it is well marked as Middle Fork Swan. There are a few old cabins standing along the way with plenty of space for a picnic lunch.

Once you come out of the trees you are appraoching the more challenging part of the trail. I have tried the steep climb in a truck with open diffs and been turned back. The first steep is best approached with the rear diff locked. It is steep and deeply rutted, very fun! After the first section there are a couple of more steep climbs and the surface is loose. Trail books list it as impassable in the wet but my wife and I did it in the rain one afternoon.

Coming down in the rain would be a bit more challenging however. Once you climb out of the beautiful valley you are on a ridge top with trails leading both directions. Both will take you back to Montezuma, sooner or later. By the same token it is a good way to get to Breckinridge from Montezuma, just go slow if it is raining. The first steep probably rates a 3 for difficulty, Not much fear of damage on this trail, and it is fairly well traveled.