Snowmass Mountain Trip Report 07/23/2014

Peak(s):	Snowmass Mountain - 14,105 feet
Date Posted:	07/23/2014
Modified:	07/23/2016
Date Climbed:	07/17/2014
Author:	CHWitte
Additional Members:	Markwise, dennywitte

Summer Glissade on Snowmass Mountain! #50
If you would like some more detailed information about the trail, please visit my brother's trip report here: (July 16) On Wednesday, July 16 and Thursday, July 17, my dad, brother and I set out and accomplished Snowmass Mountain. For my brother and I, this completed #50 for us and #49 for my dad. I flew into Denver from sea level late Tuesday night and drove into Frisco where I stayed for the evening. In the morning I woke up early to climb Mount Royal in Frisco to give me as much acclimation as possible before heading up to 14,000 ft plus. Later that morning I drove up to Leadville to meet my dad and brother who were just finishing up a backpacking trip with my brother's three children. We grabbed some Subway and then headed for Snowmass Village where we hooked up with the dirt road into the Snowmass Creek trailhead. The trailhead had plenty of cars parked there with a majority (as we found out later) of the folks backpacking the loop or just going up to the lake for some fun. Only a handful were actually climbing Snowmass. We backpacked in on the 16th, passing the obligatory three gates on the trail that you must open and close as you pass through private land. We made it through the "log jam" which is actually quite a large stream crossing that you must keep your balance on so you don't fall in the river. If you fall, the water is 3-4 feet deep and not a pleasant place to get wet as the water around the log jam is a mosquito breeding ground. You will be swarmed and you will be wet! As you balance your way across the stream, you are not far from Snowmass Lake. We were late getting up there due to our late start from Leadville and the three hour drive just to get to the trailhead. So, needless to say, we were looking for a campsite pretty quick. We found one about a half mile or so before the lake and about 200 feet below the lake in the woods. This was truly the best spot we could have found as all the campsites at Snowmass Lake seem like they are right next to each other and they were filled as we found out in the morning. We saved ourselves a half mile and 200 feet elevation of lugging the heavy pack. I recommend camping below the lake in order to stay away from the tourists there. That night we went to bed early and got up early around 5:00 AM. (July 17) We hit the trail at 5:15 AM and were quickly up to Snowmass Lake. The (actual) trail that follows the left side of the lake is hard to find in this area as there are about 3-4 trails that head out of the campsites from the lake. We ended up picking the right trail that stays pretty close to the lake, but missed a turn in the willows about halfway through. There is no way any reasonable person would find this turn. Be aware, that the trail cuts off to the left about halfway through. If you miss the turn, you will end up right next to the lake (a trail actually takes you one step into the lake) and then more or less ends at a soggy bog of mush that is flowing down the side of the mountain into the lake. Here is the turn to the left in the willows that you don't want to miss: The willows are a bit crazy going along the left side of the lake so you will probably get wet and muddy. Have a jacket and gaitors on! Once you make it to the far west side of the lake, you will start to head up. Stay on the trail as you hit the boulder field. The boulder field is not too bad as you head up but the key is making sure you don't head up too high as the boulder field turns into the gully on the left side of the stream. Here is what the boulder field looks like: Two individuals we spoke with on the way down Snowmass stated that they followed the gully up higher than they should have an got bogged down in the loose scree on the left side of the stream. The key is to CROSS THE STREAM at the right point. As you can see in the following picture, the left side of the stream starts to get steep with lots of dirt and scree. Cross the stream to the grass on the right side that has a decent trail going up. I added a pretty nice rock cairn at the point of crossing over the stream so you don't miss it! Once you cross, the grass is steep but the trail is pretty easy to follow. It's also a great view back down of the lake! After you reach the top of the steep grass, you are about halfway up the face of Snowmass. The ground mellows out a little bit as you head for the beginning of the snowfield. As of July 17, the snowfield is melting quickly. There are rocks popping up all over the place. As you can see from the picture, you have to weave through the snow in order to find a path that keeps going up without hitting rocks. At this point, we put on our crampons and grabbed our ice axe so we could head straight up the snow. You don't necessarily need crampons lower down on the snow as it is not super steep. However, we are always extra safe in what we do. The snow was starting to melt and we post holed a few times when you get close to the rocks. Gaitors help out a lot when you post hole! Here is what the snowfield looks like from the bottom: Here is a video showing our ascent of the snowfield: Climbing up the snowfield is fun and quicker than scrambling the rocks! Here is a picture of my dad and I about halfway up the snowfield: Heading up the snowfield in crampons: Once you get near the top of the snowfield, it gets a little steeper so be careful. This is what the top looks like: Looking back down the snowfield: Once you top out of the snowfield, you begin a steep boulder scramble to the top of the ridge. The rock is pretty good but there is loose scree and dirt mixed in. The ridge to the top took us a lot longer than what I expected. It's not technically difficult but it does seem to go on for a long time. Here is what to expect on the back side of the ridge: Follow the ridge up and enjoy the climb! The summit of course has some great views, especially of Capitol Peak! Summit Panorama: This is a picture from the summit looking back at the ridge where you come up. As you can see, the saddle of the ridge is a long ways away. Be ready for a pretty long ridge climb to get to the top. USGS marker on top of Snowmass The highest point on the top of Snowmass is this boulder. I, of course, had to sit on top of it to say I was on the highest point. I did the Sunlight leap of faith so this was nothing! We enjoyed 5-10 minutes on the summit and then started our descent. Here is a shot coming off the summit area: Still on the summit ridge coming down... Alright, we've finally made it to the point of the trip that I was looking forward to the most. There is just something about glissading that is fun, glorious, and fast compared to hiking down talus. We enjoyed glissading to its fullest! My dad glissading down from the top of the snowfield: Here we are glissading the middle of the snowfield. Be aware that at this point, the snow is very wet and sloshy (early afternoon) so you will have to get up and walk to re-position yourself so you can continue down the snowfield and not hit any rocks. After two of us glissaded a portion, we had created a little chute for the third person. It was like going down the alpine slide! The sun was in the right spot for this picture to get all the beautiful colors in of Snowmass Lake and the surrounding peaks: Remember, there is good trail on the right side of the stream in the grass! Back down at the lake, we saw this deer in and amongst the willows which are plenty! Now that the sun is out and you can see everything better, here is a shot of the slope up to the summit ridge (and the deer in the willows) Snowmass Mountain from Snowmass Lake East side of Snowmass Lake Overall, this was an exhausting two day trip with a total of 22 miles of hiking. A majority of that is done with a heavy pack to get close to Snowmass Lake. However, the glissading was fun and we enjoyed the hike. Be aware that the snow is melting quickly from Snowmass so from here to the end of the summer, you may not have much to glissade down. The sooner you can get up there the better if you want to glissade! This peak was #50 for us and we are happy to check it off our list! Enjoy the climb! My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload): Login required to view this map... Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Summer Glissade on Snowmass Mountain! #50

If you would like some more detailed information about the trail, please visit my brother's trip report here:

(July 16)
On Wednesday, July 16 and Thursday, July 17, my dad, brother and I set out and accomplished Snowmass Mountain. For my brother and I, this completed #50 for us and #49 for my dad. I flew into Denver from sea level late Tuesday night and drove into Frisco where I stayed for the evening. In the morning I woke up early to climb Mount Royal in Frisco to give me as much acclimation as possible before heading up to 14,000 ft plus. Later that morning I drove up to Leadville to meet my dad and brother who were just finishing up a backpacking trip with my brother's three children. We grabbed some Subway and then headed for Snowmass Village where we hooked up with the dirt road into the Snowmass Creek trailhead. The trailhead had plenty of cars parked there with a majority (as we found out later) of the folks backpacking the loop or just going up to the lake for some fun. Only a handful were actually climbing Snowmass. We backpacked in on the 16th, passing the obligatory three gates on the trail that you must open and close as you pass through private land. We made it through the "log jam" which is actually quite a large stream crossing that you must keep your balance on so you don't fall in the river. If you fall, the water is 3-4 feet deep and not a pleasant place to get wet as the water around the log jam is a mosquito breeding ground. You will be swarmed and you will be wet! As you balance your way across the stream, you are not far from Snowmass Lake. We were late getting up there due to our late start from Leadville and the three hour drive just to get to the trailhead. So, needless to say, we were looking for a campsite pretty quick. We found one about a half mile or so before the lake and about 200 feet below the lake in the woods. This was truly the best spot we could have found as all the campsites at Snowmass Lake seem like they are right next to each other and they were filled as we found out in the morning. We saved ourselves a half mile and 200 feet elevation of lugging the heavy pack. I recommend camping below the lake in order to stay away from the tourists there. That night we went to bed early and got up early around 5:00 AM.

(July 17)
We hit the trail at 5:15 AM and were quickly up to Snowmass Lake. The (actual) trail that follows the left side of the lake is hard to find in this area as there are about 3-4 trails that head out of the campsites from the lake. We ended up picking the right trail that stays pretty close to the lake, but missed a turn in the willows about halfway through. There is no way any reasonable person would find this turn. Be aware, that the trail cuts off to the left about halfway through. If you miss the turn, you will end up right next to the lake (a trail actually takes you one step into the lake) and then more or less ends at a soggy bog of mush that is flowing down the side of the mountain into the lake. Here is the turn to the left in the willows that you don't want to miss:

The willows are a bit crazy going along the left side of the lake so you will probably get wet and muddy. Have a jacket and gaitors on! Once you make it to the far west side of the lake, you will start to head up. Stay on the trail as you hit the boulder field. The boulder field is not too bad as you head up but the key is making sure you don't head up too high as the boulder field turns into the gully on the left side of the stream. Here is what the boulder field looks like:

Two individuals we spoke with on the way down Snowmass stated that they followed the gully up higher than they should have an got bogged down in the loose scree on the left side of the stream. The key is to CROSS THE STREAM at the right point. As you can see in the following picture, the left side of the stream starts to get steep with lots of dirt and scree. Cross the stream to the grass on the right side that has a decent trail going up. I added a pretty nice rock cairn at the point of crossing over the stream so you don't miss it!

Once you cross, the grass is steep but the trail is pretty easy to follow. It's also a great view back down of the lake!

After you reach the top of the steep grass, you are about halfway up the face of Snowmass. The ground mellows out a little bit as you head for the beginning of the snowfield.

As of July 17, the snowfield is melting quickly. There are rocks popping up all over the place. As you can see from the picture, you have to weave through the snow in order to find a path that keeps going up without hitting rocks. At this point, we put on our crampons and grabbed our ice axe so we could head straight up the snow. You don't necessarily need crampons lower down on the snow as it is not super steep. However, we are always extra safe in what we do. The snow was starting to melt and we post holed a few times when you get close to the rocks. Gaitors help out a lot when you post hole! Here is what the snowfield looks like from the bottom:

Here is a video showing our ascent of the snowfield:

Climbing up the snowfield is fun and quicker than scrambling the rocks! Here is a picture of my dad and I about halfway up the snowfield:

Heading up the snowfield in crampons:

Once you get near the top of the snowfield, it gets a little steeper so be careful. This is what the top looks like:

Looking back down the snowfield:

Once you top out of the snowfield, you begin a steep boulder scramble to the top of the ridge. The rock is pretty good but there is loose scree and dirt mixed in.

The ridge to the top took us a lot longer than what I expected. It's not technically difficult but it does seem to go on for a long time. Here is what to expect on the back side of the ridge:

Follow the ridge up and enjoy the climb! The summit of course has some great views, especially of Capitol Peak!

Summit Panorama:

This is a picture from the summit looking back at the ridge where you come up. As you can see, the saddle of the ridge is a long ways away. Be ready for a pretty long ridge climb to get to the top.

USGS marker on top of Snowmass

The highest point on the top of Snowmass is this boulder. I, of course, had to sit on top of it to say I was on the highest point. I did the Sunlight leap of faith so this was nothing!

We enjoyed 5-10 minutes on the summit and then started our descent. Here is a shot coming off the summit area:

Still on the summit ridge coming down...

Alright, we've finally made it to the point of the trip that I was looking forward to the most. There is just something about glissading that is fun, glorious, and fast compared to hiking down talus. We enjoyed glissading to its fullest!

My dad glissading down from the top of the snowfield:

Here we are glissading the middle of the snowfield. Be aware that at this point, the snow is very wet and sloshy (early afternoon) so you will have to get up and walk to re-position yourself so you can continue down the snowfield and not hit any rocks.

After two of us glissaded a portion, we had created a little chute for the third person. It was like going down the alpine slide!

The sun was in the right spot for this picture to get all the beautiful colors in of Snowmass Lake and the surrounding peaks:

Remember, there is good trail on the right side of the stream in the grass!

Back down at the lake, we saw this deer in and amongst the willows which are plenty!

Now that the sun is out and you can see everything better, here is a shot of the slope up to the summit ridge (and the deer in the willows)

Snowmass Mountain from Snowmass Lake

East side of Snowmass Lake

Overall, this was an exhausting two day trip with a total of 22 miles of hiking. A majority of that is done with a heavy pack to get close to Snowmass Lake. However, the glissading was fun and we enjoyed the hike. Be aware that the snow is melting quickly from Snowmass so from here to the end of the summer, you may not have much to glissade down. The sooner you can get up there the better if you want to glissade! This peak was #50 for us and we are happy to check it off our list! Enjoy the climb!

My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload):

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Comments or Questions

Jay521	Very nice 7/23/2014 5:52pm I enjoyed this report very much. Congrats!
Trotter	wow 7/23/2014 6:59pm great photos
rickinco123	I take no pleasure... 7/23/2014 7:24pm nn the fact that your Trip report will cause anti-glissaders to have steam coming out of their ears. Looks like a fun time! What an awesome thing to do with your family BTW.
CHWitte	Safety First 7/23/2014 7:36pm We are always very safe in our calculations of what we can and cannot do. We would not have glissaded if it had been ice. However, as you can see from the pictures, it was slushy. We did have fun! As far as climbing 14ers as a family, we've been doing this for 23 years and we are almost done!
Aggieclimber86	Nice report! 7/23/2014 8:12pm Looks like a great time as a father/son outing. We ran into you guys on Friday night at Kilpacker TH and were on the summit of El Diente with you on Saturday. It was nice to meet you guys!
CHWitte	Aggieclimber86, 7/23/2014 9:43pm I just posted my El Diente report. You are in it! Nice to meet you too!
dennywitte	footwear 7/23/2014 11:54pm My boys, CHWitte and Markwise, and I are still debating what footwear to use on this trip. I wore light Asolo hiking boots and they both wore Salomon trail runners. I liked the hiking boots because of the stability on the long hike in, for kick stepping with and without crampons on the snowfield, and the best chance (Goretex) for keeping my feet dry. They preferred the nimbleness of the trail runners. There is no right answer. I would use the light hiking boots if I had to do this again. Normally, I am trail runner advocate on 14er hikes and climbs.
CHWitte	Gaiters 7/24/2014 12:28am I wore gaiters over my trail runners which helped when glissading and post holing. I would consider Asolo boots if they were well broken in and comfortable for this hike.
zdero1	The melt off 7/24/2014 3:35am in the last two weeks is incredible. Barely and rocks coming out of the snowpack July 5th. Congrats on a great trip!
ylingli	Thanks! 7/24/2014 3:47am Thanks so much for posting this! My friends and I are climbing Snowmass tomorrow and Friday, so this was very useful! Btw, my name is Ling, and I met Denny and Mark on Pikes during February (we all stayed at Barr Camp on our descent). Congrats to you all for getting closer to finishing the 14ers!! I plan on being there for your Evans finisher!!!
CHWitte	Ling, 7/24/2014 2:30pm Enjoy the climb of Snowmass today and tomorrow! I have heard your name before as my dad and brother speak highly of you! We would love to have you on Evans next year! Thanks!

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