Peak Condition Update | Mt. Columbia

Peak:	Mt. Columbia
Route:	West Slopes
Range:	Sawatch
Posted By:	momndaughter
Date of Info:	6/17/2016
Date Posted:	6/18/2016

Details
We climbed Columbia and traversed over to Harvard yesterday. Columbia is in summer conditions with only one little patch of snow at the base of the gully. The traverse, however, is covered in snow. The suggested route at the base of the slope is all snow and too steep to cross so we had to drop much lower and do a lot of bouldering to get across. Added a lot of time to our trip (worse than picture looks, of course). I would definitely never do that traverse again until the snow is gone.

Details

We climbed Columbia and traversed over to Harvard yesterday. Columbia is in summer conditions with only one little patch of snow at the base of the gully. The traverse, however, is covered in snow. The suggested route at the base of the slope is all snow and too steep to cross so we had to drop much lower and do a lot of bouldering to get across. Added a lot of time to our trip (worse than picture looks, of course). I would definitely never do that traverse again until the snow is gone.

Comments or Questions

JK Hatasaki	Snowshoes worth it? 6/18/2016 10:52am Thank you for the information! I am planning do the Columbia and Harvard June 27, I am wondering if you think it is worth bringing snowshoes for the traverse section?
momndaughter	Snowshoes 6/18/2016 11:24am The snow is really steep in that area. I'm not experienced with snowshoes but I'm not sure it would help.
JK Hatasaki	Spikes? 6/18/2016 12:35pm I understand you circumvented the snow patches, do you think you could you stand atop them in spikes/chains or would it be too brittle? Love to avoid post-holing and detours but if it's unavoidable I'll travel light instead! Thank you for the response!
climbnowworklater	Nice! 6/18/2016 12:37pm Good job on the traverse in less than ideal conditions.
momndaughter	Spikes 6/18/2016 2:08pm We had spikes with us but didn't use them. By the time we got to the snow (9:30 after summiting Columbia and into the traverse) it was way too soft. Still deep enough to sink an entire leg into though. My daughter is 19 and weighs 100 pounds and couldn't stay on top.
Herbert	Congrats! 6/18/2016 8:16pm What I am hearing is that you made adjustments, persevered and got the job done. Good work!
momndaughter	Thanks! 6/18/2016 10:51pm You hear correctly....but it was miserable!
sibyllec	Harvard? 6/19/2016 3:05pm We were thinking of doing the combo, but may wait. How were the conditions on Harvard ( your descent route?) Thanks
momndaughter	Harvard 6/19/2016 4:43pm The most recent condition update for Harvard is accurate. Lots of snow crossings make for a messy hike, but not too difficult. Still able to get in a few glissades on the descent.

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