Snowmass Mountain Trip Report – July 31 – Aug 1 2010

I had only been to Snowmass Lake many years ago in the winter, so when the opportunity came along to join Jenny in a summer ascent of Snowmass Mountain to boost her 14ers list, I was in. Colorado’s Elk Range Peaks are notoriously difficult characters while at the same time being some of the most stunningly scenic mountains in the USA.

Where it all begins, at the Snowmass Maroon Trailhead outside of Snowmass.

Because the standard route on Snowmass is roughly 23 miles round trip, we decided to hike in and camp at Snowmass Lake on Saturday and do the climb on Sunday. The weather report was good for the entire weekend, so it seemed like a good call. The 8-mile backpack into Snowmass Lake was gorgeous, with epic fields of wildflowers lining the mountainside and the crisp water of Snowmass Creek rolling transparently over grey and white granite bedrock.

Approaching the Snowmass Lake basin.

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Jenny navigates the infamous log jam en route to Snowmass Lake.

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If you want to live out here, you have to hunt your food. Jenny killed a bag of instant rice, Reese's Pieces and a Gala apple.

We made good time into camp, covering the distance in a little under 3.5 hours. Luckily, there were still plenty of campsites to be found and we set up shop in a flat site with nice views of the lake. It was a good thing we were prompt getting our camp set up because around 5:30 a light drizzle began to fall. The drizzle intensified to a steady rain that didn’t cease for the rest of the weekend. After a peaceful night of sleep serenaded by raindrops, I awoke at 4:45 AM to start breakfast and get ready for the ascent.

Bad news.

Mist hovered in the dark, starless sky and before I could fire up the stove, rain began to again fall in heavy sheets. The summit of Snowmass was beginning to be in doubt. Despite the forecast of clear weather, a storm had moved into the region and settled right over the Elk Range. I waited for a window of clearing, but it never came. By 8:15 AM, we had to make a decision so we made the call to at least hike to the far side of the lake and see what was happening.

The best view we got of Snowmass Mountain on the morning of our ascent attempt. Note that Snowmass Mountain is hidden in the mist to the right, the peak in the foreground is Hagerman.

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Despite the overcast day, a beautiful spectrum of colors was alive in the myriad of wildflowers.

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The loose slope above the west end of Snowmass Lake is the most unstable part of the climb.

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Jenny shows us how it's done, grinding out the loose slopes at the base of Snowmass Mountain.

As we climbed higher, we were teased with small pockets of blue sky and swirling layers of opaque fog that gave just enough encouragement to keep climbing. Once above the loose slopes of the initial hill, the rock bands to the base of the direct route were surprisingly solid and fun to traverse. Because the summit remained shrouded in mist, we navigated to the melted out snowfield by bearing readings (old school!) and made it to the summit ridge in good time.

Snowmass Mountain rock bands. Not THOSE kind of rock bands.

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Jenny from the notch.

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Snowmass Mountain's foggy summit ridge.

There wasn’t much in the way of views, but once we gained the ridge via the direct route, the spine to the top offered some fun scrambling. Amazingly, the rocks were dry enough to offer decent holds. A little over two hours after leaving camp, the summit was ours.

The summit marker on the summit of Snowmass Mountain 14,092 ft.

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Jenny and I pose on the bleached out summit of Snowmass Mountain, 14,092 ft. Note that the date on our sign reads July 31st despite the fact we summited on August 1st. Minor clerical error.

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Snowmass snowfield on the descent.

We knew we didn’t have time to linger on top, so we hustled off the summit and back down the talus field of the direct route. The boulders are more stable than I would have expected, especially for an Elk Range peak. Moving quickly, we had to abandon our search for Jenny’s stashed poles at about 12,600 ft. (if you find a pair of Leki Tours, let me know!) As we got to the talus slope, the sky turned more sinister and a few claps of thunder boomed through the air as we reached treeline. Several barrages of large, loose rocks slid uncomfortably close by to add to the excitement. We made it back to camp right as the clouds opened up a rain that would last the rest of the day and night.

Packing up our soggy gear, we knew we had stolen a summit on a sketchy weather day. If we had decided to skip the climb, that would have been the right decision too. The 8 mile pack out went smoothly and offered a special treat–we saw a bear munching on raspberries in the willows about a mile from the exit! Overall a great and challenging day, good company and a successful return visit to the summit of Snowmass Mountain!

The beauty of the flower festooned slopes belies the lurking danger in the dark sky above.

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