If you searched for “Trollstigen” and Vail, Colorado in the same breath, hoping to find six giant wooden trolls scattered through the forest, here’s the honest answer: that trail doesn’t exist. The real Trollstigen is a short, well-loved path in Breckenridge, not Vail, and it’s home to exactly one troll, not six. His name is Isak Heartstone, and his real story is even better than the rumor.
Let’s sort out where this mix-up probably came from, and then get you pointed toward the actual troll, in the actual town, on the actual trail.
What Is Trollstigen, Really?
The Trollstigen Trail in Breckenridge, Colorado, is where art and wilderness meet, a gentle woodland path named after the Norwegian word for “Troll Path,” winding through pine forest on the south end of town. It’s accessed via the Trollstigen Trailhead right next to the Illinois Creek Trailhead, on the far end of the parking lot for the Stephen C. West Ice Arena, and it sits within the White River National Forest.
It’s a genuinely easy outing. The Trollstigen loop is considered an easy hike covering about 1.1 miles with roughly 114 feet of elevation gain, taking about a half hour to complete. This is not a backcountry slog. It’s the kind of walk you can do in sneakers with a toddler on your shoulders.
Meet Isak Heartstone, the Only Troll on the Trail
Here’s where the “six trolls” idea really falls apart. Isak Heartstone, the troll sculpture, was completed in 2018 as an exhibit for the Breckenridge International Festival of Arts. Artist Thomas Dambo, who has built dozens of similar trolls during his career, made Isak out of scrap wood as a way to demonstrate the importance of upcycling and reusing materials. That’s one troll. Singular.
The naming story is genuinely sweet. A group of visitors reportedly brought a heart-shaped stone to the troll as a gift, and Dambo, believing it a perfect fit, made the stone a permanent part of the installation, giving rise to the name Heartstone.
Isak also has a bit of a scrappy history. He was left in Breckenridge as a permanent installation after the festival, but publicity and a social media craze brought thousands of visitors, and local residents quickly began to complain, resulting in plans to dismantle and destroy him. Plaintive pleas went out to Dambo, who was busy with a special art project in Belgium, but he heard them and made a quick return to Breckenridge to reinstall Isak in a location where people have to hike or bike to see him. The sculpture was relocated to its current position on the Trollstigen Trail in 2019, where it continues to be a popular destination and photo-op.
For scale: his body is made of scrap wood and pallets from around town, and his hair is made from downed tree branches. He stands about 15 feet tall. One troll. One trail. Not six.
So Where Did “Vail” and “Six Trolls” Come From?
A few threads probably tangled together here. First, Vail and Breckenridge are both glossy Colorado ski towns roughly an hour apart, and it’s an easy slip to mix them up if you’ve only half-heard the story secondhand. But it’s worth checking the record directly: the town of Vail’s public art collection includes over 70 works of art, with over half of the collection created by Colorado artists. That collection includes pieces like Forest Light by HYBYCOZO, the art collective’s first public art installation in Colorado, comprised of larger-than-life sculptures celebrating geometric form and pattern, and Hodgepodge, an installation by environmental artist Patrick Dougherty, who has spent over 35 years bending and weaving natural materials into monumental interactive installations. Wonderful stuff, but no Dambo trolls in the mix.
Second, the word “Trollstigen” itself is genuinely famous, just for something else entirely. Trollstigen is a serpentine mountain road and pass in Rauma Municipality, Norway, part of Norwegian County Road 63 connecting Åndalsnes and Valldal. It was opened on 31 July 1936 by King Haakon VII after eight years of construction. Breckenridge borrowed the name for its own troll trail, but plenty of people searching online land on the Norwegian road first and then get their wires crossed.
Third, and probably the biggest source of confusion: Dambo really does build in sixes elsewhere. In 2016, he found fame with giant trolls, The Six Forgotten Giants, in the Copenhagen area. In 2018, six large sculptures called Troll Hunt hid in the landscape at Morton Arboretum in Illinois. A 19-foot Ole Bolle Troll near Portland, Oregon, is one of six trolls installed in natural areas around the Pacific Northwest. Before North Carolina took the crown, Maine and Washington were tops with six trolls apiece. Six-troll trails absolutely exist in Dambo’s world; they just aren’t in Vail, Colorado.
How to Actually Find Isak Heartstone
If Breckenridge’s real troll is what you’re after, here’s the practical version. You can hop on the Gray Route of the Breck Free Ride shuttle service for a direct, complimentary ride to the Trollstigen Trailhead, or board the free Main Street Trolley for a charming ride to the trailhead. There is limited parking available at the trailhead, and parking at the nearby Ice Rink’s lot is not permitted, though a few spots next to the trailhead are marked by a sign that says “Troll.”
Once you’re there, it’s a short stroll. It’s a quick walk of about 400 feet through the trees to the famous troll. Bring a camera. Leave the trekking poles at home; you genuinely won’t need them.
Colorado Does Have a Second Troll, Just Not in Vail
If you want more than one Dambo troll on your Colorado itinerary, the state does deliver, just not on the Trollstigen Trail. Rita the Rock Planter, unveiled on August 4, 2023, near an old 19th-century gold mine, was Dambo’s 119th troll sculpture. She is a breathtaking 21 feet tall, created out of recycled wood, making her the tallest of the Colorado trolls. According to the sculptor, the kindly troll noticed all of the holes in the ground and worried about humans or small creatures falling into them, and she can be seen patching up the earth. You’ll find her on Little Grouse Mountain, just outside Victor, Colorado, and just south of Cripple Creek.
That’s two trolls, in two different mountain towns, neither one anywhere near Vail. It’s a smaller, quieter story than the six-troll rumor, but it’s the real one, and honestly, that makes it more fun to go find.
NOTE TO THE ADVENTURER: This guide is meant to spark curiosity for what lies beyond the horizon — not to serve as a guarantee. Roads fall into disrepair, buildings are torn down and rebuilt, and properties change hands; 'tis your responsibility to do your own research before setting out. Always heed local and regional law, and always respect ground that isn't your own. Take every entry here as a suggestion, not a decree. This guide's contents were gathered with the aid of artificial intelligence, and like any scout, it will from time to time lead you astray. You assume all risk in following its counsel, and neither this blog nor its author is liable for any loss, injury, or misfortune that results.
