Black Iron Bowl

You’ll find the Black Iron Bowl on your left as you are hiking up to Palmyra Peak from the top of the Prospect Express. Many skiers and riders have started that hike and decided that this was far enough. The terrain here is difficult, and there are several small to medium-sized cliffs in this bowl.

The view from the top of this bowl is amazing and the consensus is that the hike is worth it.

Black Iron Bowl Westlake trail and Lakeview trail and cliffs with powder snow tracks
Westlake and Part of Lower Genevieve Trails
Telluride Black Iron Bowl trail map

Terrain Info

Double black diamonds and extreme terrain. Requires short to medium length hike.

Black Iron Bowl Stats

Never Enter Closed Terrain – This includes traversing across the hill into areas that are intended to be closed from above. Avalanche hazards exist here.

Just a few trees decorate this area above the treeline. It is not easy to access the Black Iron Bowl, so you can find fresh tracks here long after each snow storm. The more you want to hike, the easier it is to find fresh snow.

Black Iron Bowl Dihedral Face ski trail
The Dihedral Face rising prominantly above the Prospect Bowl. The path up Palmyra Peak can be seen ascending in the background.
view of the Black Iron Bowl from Telluride's Prospect Bowl
The ridgeline of the Prospect hiking terrain and the Black Iron Bowl, with the glades of the Prospect Bowl in the foreground.
Mountain Quail Couloir in Telluride Black Iron Bowl
Mountain Quail is the wide couloir that you see in this middle of this photo, dividing the Black Iron Bowl and Jello's Bowl

Accessing the Black Iron Bowl

To get to this bowl, find the Prospect Express and get ready to hike. You’ll see the path to the Black Iron Bowl, Jello’s Bowl, and Palmyra Peak beginning just above the top of the Prospect Express. You can hike along the top of this bowl for anywhere between just a few minutes and about 45 minutes before you decide to drop down. 

hiking above Black Iron Bowl in Telluride towards Palmyra Peak
Path above Black Iron Bowl