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I'd been anxious to hike this highpoint for a good while, waiting for the snow to melt. Mount Zirkel is the 14th most prominent peak in the state and most prominent on the Continental Divide in the state. Originally I planned this weekend in particular to join Ryan and Erin. It proved to be a rough final work week for them and they were not able to make it. At 2:00 am, I set out for Steamboat Springs, and started the hike from the Slavonia Trailhead at 6:00. The vegetation here was uncommonly lush, and several crossings of Gold Creek kept the hike from becoming monotonous. After an hour, I reached Gold Creek Lake, with water poised perfectly still. It was here mosquitoes first made their presence known. Continuing on, I came unto the crux creek crossing, and followed the guidebook suggestion to head east 100 feet to look for the crossing. I didn't see one, and there was no path further on after about that distance. I rolled up pantlegs and chilled my toes. I saw a cairn on the other side marking the correct crossing, which was near a pseudo-campsite. That crossing wasn't easy either in retrospect, entailing a crawl on a log under a leaning tree on the descent.
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After a short while, Flattop Mountain revealed itself and the trail began its northern trend toward Red Dirt Pass. Wildflowers were extremely abundant, as well as insects. Continuing up to tree-line, I was surprised to see open tundra at 10,500', with few straggling krumholtz. An expansive snowfield abounds below the ascent of Red Dirt Pass. There are fantastic views of the peaks on the Continental Divide to the south, very lush on their north slopes. I was a the top of Red Dirt Pass at 9:00 am. The elevation gain from here is neglible after topping out on the first slope. Many of the peaks in view seem to be high twelvers or low thirteeners, when in fact just crest 11,900'. The hike to the summit boulders reflects the namesake of its southern neighbor, Flattop Mountain. After crossing a few small snowfields, there is a final short stroll on grass before the talus takes over.
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The ridge is very straight-forward and doesn't take much effort. The west side of the summit ridge was incredible with plenty of exposure and eccentric curly volcanic formations. The view of Big Agnes to the west was spectacular (photo below), still relatively covered in snow, and it looked like it would be a rather difficult peak to ascend. I traversed the series of bumps to the summit knob, which had no register and a drill-hole for a benchmark. It was really nice weather at 9:30 am, and for now mosquito-free. The descent back to the trees passed by quickly, and I enjoyed a few standing glissades. I started to see the first people of the day once back on the Gold Creek trail. As mentioned before, the creek crossing was not much better where it was marked. Soon I was back at the lake where people were yelling about something. I arrived at the trailhead at 12:30, 6 hours and 30 minutes after 17¼ miles. I was now feeling pretty confident about fitting Black Mountain of Moffat County in the day.
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