Another puzzle piece of the DeCaLiBron Loop trail near Fairplay has been purchased by The Conservation Fund, along with dozens of other parcels on 14,178-foot Mount Bross.
Its summit will remain off limits to fourteener hikers, however, for the foreseeable future.
The Conservation Fund acquired 58 parcels of land owned by John Reiber last week, totaling more than 480 acres. Included is a small trail segment on Bross that is part of the DeCaLiBron Loop connecting that peak to Mount Lincoln, Mount Cameron and Mount Democrat. Most of the parcels purchased last week are south of the summit and are not part of the loop. Terms of the sale were not announced.
The DeCaLiBron Loop links four 14,000-foot peaks, making it one of the most popular fourteener destinations in Colorado. Two years ago, Reiber sold 289 acres on Democrat and the Kite Lake Trailhead to The Conservation Fund. They were later conveyed to the U.S. Forest Service, as last week’s acquisition will be.
“Sometimes, to save a mountain, you have to buy it,” said Kelly Ingebritson, senior field representative at The Conservation Fund. “It secures hiking access between Mount Lincoln and Mount Bross. It protects its southern face and viewshed. It’s near the critical headwaters of the South Platte River.”
Ingebritson said parcels south of the summit also are important wildlife habitat for Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, Canada lynx, elk and moose.
“And,” she said, “the Mosquito Range is a botanical hotspot with rare plants that are endemic to the area.”
Land on Bross and neighboring peaks is a bewildering array of 10-acre mining claims dating back to the late 1800s.
“Our role is like (connecting) a puzzle,” Ingebritson said in an interview. “This is a national forest with thousands of acres of private land and we are helping to put the pieces back together. The land ownership is fragmented. We’re providing a solution. On Mount Bross we purchased 58 separate parcels of private land, all within the national forest boundary.”
The DeCaLiBron Loop currently skirts the summit of Bross due to landholder concerns that have kept it closed for years. Adding the summit to the loop will require more than negotiations with them. There also are safety concerns due to fears that 19th-century mining tunnels near the summit could collapse.
“I’ve heard the land up there described as Swiss cheese,” Ingebritson said. “It is important to avoid the summit. It’s currently closed, and it’s still privately owned by multiple unrelated parties, so it’s difficult to get an agreement up there.
“But,” she added, “the U.S. Forest Service and The Conservation Fund are interested in acquiring the summit, and we stand ready to work on acquiring it if there can be a consensus.”
The Conservation Fund made the acquisition in partnership with the forest service, Park County, the Mosquito Range Heritage Initiative and the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative.
“Colorado’s 14ers drew 265,000 hikers last year, including almost 20,000 to the Decalibron Loop, one of the most popular mountain hiking routes in the state,” said Lloyd Athearn, executive director of Colorado Fourteeners Initiative, in a news release. “This acquisition preserves a key parcel along the loop trail, which will help with ongoing trail access and sustainability. The acquisition also protects other important lands on the flanks of Mount Bross that will preserve alpine tundra ecosystems.”
