Hike Thomas Range Thomas Range BLM, UT

Jun 09, 2023 — Much of the Thomas Range is riddled with mines, but fortunately the range is on BLM land and therefore accessible to hiking without red tape. Colorful and unique, I thought the area was gorgeous and a nice change from the otherwise typical hilly or limestone peaks found in the Great Basin Desert. I wish I were more into rockhounding, since I'm sure lots of cool specimens could be found here. I started my hike on the west side of the range from just below Colored Pass. From the main road, there are two options to reach the trailhead. I recommend using the northern option here (39.74909, -113.17096) since the southern road is in much worse shape. I parked where I did since the road got much more steep, but it ended shortly after anyway. You'll want some clearance regardless, but a Crossover vehicle is fine.

I started up the old road and when it ended, continued ascending toward Colored Pass using an animal trail up a gully. There were neat formations on the north side of the gully, and the ground was bright white. I headed south from Colored Pass, taking the undulating ridge directly south. Thomas Range High Point came into view, a picturesque mountain surrounded by steep and colorful slopes. Along the way the terrain was generally solid, but a couple of Class 2 sections had poor footing on loose dirt/rock. Some exceptionally cool white rock formations led along the ridge as well, pocked and twisting clusters that seemed more breakable than they were.

After a steep few hundred feet, I reached a false summit and I took a long look back toward Thomas Ridge, the second peak of my hike. The ridgeline leading from here to it was totally unexpectedly cool-looking and inviting, and I immediately looked forward to hiking over there. From the false summit, a straightforward ridge walk led to the high point, flattish and lightly brushy. There was lots of obsidian scattered around the summit.

I backtracked to Colored Pass and then headed up a steep Class 2 slope, now making my way toward Thomas Ridge. As I reached the first hump above the pass, I noticed a dark cloud quickly approaching, so I hustled the rest of the way. The crest was somewhat narrow and introduced bright oranges, whites, and a variety of other colors. Past the extended colorful ridge, I was then assisted by an animal trail up a couple of steeper ascent sections. Now most of the way to Thomas Ridge, I found myself hiking along a flat section for a quarter mile. Past here there was a steep Class 2 slope with some light brush that finished at a Class 2+ move to gain the summit block.

On my way back, I decided to drop off the ridge to escape the looming thunderstorm. My descent ended up being quite nice, a faint animal trail taking me down to a scenic canyon hugged by the same unique outcroppings I'd noted when starting the hike. There was some boulder-hopping and a couple of dryfalls to bypass, but it was more efficient than going all the way back along the ridgeline to Colored Pass.