North Ryder Peak

CONGRATULATIONS TO 2xblack FOR THE FTF!!

North Ryder Peak is the 81st highest of the 114 mountain summits in Jackson County that have been given official “ranked” status. It’s a dandy, located along the Continental Divide bordered on the west and southwest by Grand County and on the northeast and east by Jackson County. It’s relatively remote, with no trails getting close to its summit. Dense coniferous forests need to be bushwhacked through to attain the high point of this mountain, and for essentially the entire distance the heavy tree cover obscures its presence. Suddenly, right before the top, one breaks out of the forest onto a rocky promontory that provides remarkable views of the Park Range, the Rabbit Ears Range, the Gore Range, and the high mountains of the Rawahs and Never Summers. Views of its spectacular neighbor, South Ryder Mountain, are particularly memorable from this vantage. It’s one of those “wow! places, and it deserves your time and full attention once you are up there. Photography is certainly in order! And there’s a geocache that needs finding!

Getting there takes some real effort and involves about 1.5 miles (each way) of travel through forests having snarls of deadfalls. With careful route selection some portions of the way up from the east can involve more open areas with much less bushwhacking. But in any event, you will have a workout as you ascend the 950 feet of elevation gain to reach the high point.

The cache is a small plastic bottle that’s wrapped in silver tape. It’s hanging just above the crotch of a Limber Pine tree, about 2 feet above the ground from the uphill side and about 4 feet up from the downhill side. The tree is about 20 feet downhill from the highest point, the only “large” tree close to the summit. Be certain to bring a pen or pencil for your cache log signing ceremony. During summer, also bring mosquito repellant. The skeeters chewed my puppy Orizaba and me to pieces during our hike to the top of this superb mountain!