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The Coliseum

Colorado > Lyons > St Vrain Canyons > S Fork of St Vrain Ca…
Warning Access Issue: MM 23-29.5 - now ended daily CO 7 highway closure/delays DetailsDrop down

Description

The Coliseum lies in the midst of a collection of crags referred to as The Talus Fields in Bernard Gillett's new guide. Climbs on The Coliseum itself are north-facing and lay in the shade throughout most of the day making this an excellent summer crag. Established climbs on this feature range from about 5.7 to 5.11 and contain a mixture of traditional protection and bolts. Most routes top out at about 200' and have bolted belay stations.

Although this wall contains some quality climbs, the traffic appears to be limited. This may be due to the longer approach or because of quality walls located nearer to Lyons. Despite being only a 15 to 20 min hike from the road, this wall has a more wild feel - on any one climb, you may find loose rock, lichen and bushy vegetation. But, as Gillett points out, this is just the entry fee for all new routes (most of these routes were established around 2001 and 2002).

Getting There

To get there, park at the pullout located approximately 7.9 miles from Lyons on the south side of the road. This pullout resides on a curve in the road and is 0.2 miles [up] the road from the Upper Rest Area (also located on the south side of the road). The Coliseum will not be visible from the pullout. According to Gillett, you should travel about 50 yards up the road and cross near some grey boulders, just above which will be located a cairn marking the start of a "well marked trail" that actually runs between another formation (The Arch of Titus) and The Coliseum. The well marked trail consists of downed branches forming a little path and some cairns (not entirely as obvious as the description would suggest as there are downed branches everywhere). About 200' up the trail, the trail will split - take the left branch toward the now obvious talus field across a ravine. I also found that, being a bumbler, one could also just kind of hack their way up the ravine itself after crossing the river toward the talus field. Either way, once at the base of the talus field the wall should be apparent and one can either traverse the talus itself or cross under the field to approach the wall. With the former option, keep your partners prone to trundling below you as the talus is loose and it is not unlikely that one could knock off fair size block if one is not careful.

Mountain Lion Alert

Good-sized mountain lions have been seen in the area.

Routes from Left to Right

5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
 86
Unleash The Lions
Trad 2 pitches
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
 27
The Lion's Face
Trad
5.10b/c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b
 67
Ionic Column
Trad, Sport
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c
 18
Gladiator
Trad 3 pitches
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
 97
Hollow Man
Trad, Sport 2 pitches
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
 21
Planetary Pull
Trad
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a
 18
Vrainavore
Trad
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
 119
Handcrack-a-rete
Trad 2 pitches
5.10 6b 20 VII- 19 E2 5b
 42
Lost in Time
Trad, Sport 2 pitches
5.9- 5c 17 VI 16 HVS 4c
 7
Wrinkle in Time
Trad
Route Name Location Star Rating Difficulty Date
Unleash The Lions
 86
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad 2 pitches
The Lion's Face
 27
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad
Ionic Column
 67
5.10b/c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b Trad, Sport
Gladiator
 18
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c Trad 3 pitches
Hollow Man
 97
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Trad, Sport 2 pitches
Planetary Pull
 21
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad
Vrainavore
 18
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a Trad
Handcrack-a-rete
 119
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad 2 pitches
Lost in Time
 42
5.10 6b 20 VII- 19 E2 5b Trad, Sport 2 pitches
Wrinkle in Time
 7
5.9- 5c 17 VI 16 HVS 4c Trad

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

In the interest of preventing erosion from 100 different "trails," there is a well-traveled, easy trail with cairns starting from this block/ramp. It's just upstream from the pullout.
[Hide Photo] In the interest of preventing erosion from 100 different "trails," there is a well-traveled, easy trail with cairns starting from this block/ramp. It's just upstream from the pullout.
The Coliseum as seen from the approach.
[Hide Photo] The Coliseum as seen from the approach.
Coliseum from the base of Roadeo Crag.
[Hide Photo] Coliseum from the base of Roadeo Crag.

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

climber76
Loveland/Vail, CO
[Hide Comment] The Coliseum would be a good area for working on hand crack skills. Hollow Man, Handcrack-a-rete, Planetary Pull, and Galdiator (to the tree) all have excellent sections of 5.7/5.8 jamming for 50-70 foot stretches. Jul 2, 2012
Kevin P
Loveland
[Hide Comment] If you hit mile marker 25, heading up the canyon, you went a little too far. Jul 22, 2012
[Hide Comment] Note that there is now a nicely cairned trail that skirts the right hand side of the talus field as you're going up to Coliseum. This seems much more solid than tackling the talus field head on. Aug 6, 2012
Tony B
Around Boulder, CO
[Hide Comment] Considering that so many people go here, I am surprised at the lack of attention/traffic at The Pantheon, the obvious 200' tall chunk of NW facing rock just uphill. Went there Sunday and had it to ourselves, linking pitches to do all the routes as single pitch trad and mixed lines. The place will clean up (lichen on a few lines) a little more with some traffic, but it is already good/worth doing. I'll put it on line over the next day or two. Aug 5, 2013
Savannah R
Fort Collins, CO
[Hide Comment] We were up here yesterday, and a good size mountain lion wandered up the trail mid-afternoon. He/ she appeared well fed and didn't seem to think much of us, but be aware of your surroundings when in the area. Jun 5, 2018
Matt B
Boulder, CO
[Hide Comment] The Tyrol is no longer up. All the hardware is still there I think but no rope!

Also, I couldn't find a place to cross in high water without it.... Good luck! May 15, 2019
Carl Sampurna
Boulder, CO
[Hide Comment] The Tyrolean is currently up, though it's just a single rope. Jun 3, 2020
plantmandan
Brighton, CO
[Hide Comment] The tyrolean is still up as of today. It would be difficult to cross this time of year without it. Very nice climbing spot. Jul 9, 2023
Wild Cat
Lyons
[Hide Comment] This has to be the most underrated crag for moderate trad climbs in the Front Range. Oct 8, 2023