Colorado trails · Calico South Trail
Calico South Trail
A 12.1-mile out-and-back in Colorado, with 4,058 ft of climbing, topping out at 12,093 ft. Reaches Twin Fir Spring and other spring/summit destinations. Managed by USFS Dolores Ranger District.
Elevation profile
The climbing leans toward the first third: 51% of the ascent falls between mile 0.0 and mile 4.0.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Twin Fir Spring (spring)
- Aspen Spring (spring)
- Storm Peak (summit)
Getting there
Priest Gulch Trailhead — parking nearby. About 59 min drive (36 mi) from Cortez. 37.58688, -108.16388 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:53 a.m., the sun rises at 7:19 a.m. and sets at 6:37 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 7:03 p.m. (MDT) — 11 h 17 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 24.1-mile round trip works out to roughly 13 h 00 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- Priest Gulch Trail + Priest Cut Off Trail + Calico South Trail — 4.2 mi loop, 1,223 ft gain
- Priest Gulch Trail + Calico South Trail + Priest Cut Off Trail — 15.8 mi loop, 3,358 ft gain
- Horse Creek Trail + Calico South Trail + Calico Basin Trail — 8.2 mi loop, 799 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Stoner Mesa Trail — 7.8 mi