Mar 22, 2019 — Boundary Cone is likely one of the most well-known buttes in the area, but still doesn't get much visitation. It's on the west end of the Ute Mountains, a minor range with very interesting peaks. I parked at the junction of a dirt road with the Oatman Highway at a small pull-out. I crossed the street and walked up an old dirt road past an open mine to the base of Boundary Cone's western cliffs. You can likely park farther north along the Oatman Highway and ascend directly to this critical spot, but using the dirt road made gaining some of the vertical elevation less effort.
Once at the base of the cliffs, I continued along their base, located a social trail, and followed it up through a Class 2 gully on loose rock. Above the gully I found myself on the west ridge of Boundary Cone, now above the initial set of cliffs. Cairns helped mark the path of least resistance along the west ridge ascent, but there was a section where route-finding was a little more tricky. A series of possible weaknesses comes into view, and after playing around on the options I decided a single Class 3 move around a chockstone was my best bet. Past this move, the route went at Class 2 to the summit, first wrapping around the north side of Boundary Cone. There are a few Class 3 weaknesses, but a Class 2 option exists if you just keep heading along the north side and wrap around almost all the way to the peak's east ridge. The views are very pretty, especially to the east toward Ute Mountain.
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