Weston Peak From Weston Pass

[kaiman]

Here are some photos and a route description from SummitPost for Weston Peak:

http://www.summitpost.org/image/532264/ ... -peak.html

Looking at the picture taken from the southeast on the Weston Pass road (titled "Weston Peak from Weston Pass Road"), if you stay to climbers right, you will climb through the trees to the wide ridge (at least several football fields in width) and avoid most of the steepest/cliffy stuff. I personally don't remember it being real steep or exposed when I climbed it several years ago.

I think the author's "steeeeeeeeep" comment is an unfortunate overstatement as it gives the wrong impression. The route is definitely no steeper then any of the longer 14er routes in the Sawatch (LaPlata, Missouri, and Harvard come to mind) or other peaks in the Mosquito Range, and being that Weston Pass is at 11,920 feet you are only climbing 2,000 feet rather then 4-5,000 like many of those other routes.

So my advice is to get out there and do it!

kaiman

[Presto]

Actually, that photo you have linked is not even showing where you start the climb (which is from Weston Pass ... and, there are no trees at all on the route); additionally, it's only about 1600 feet from where you park to the top.

[Jim Davies]

I did this hike for the first time a few weeks ago. It is painfully steep until you reach the ridge, but it's all grassy. I inadvertently spooked a herd of elk on the way down, below Ptarmigan - that's the first time I've ever done that. They squeak like birds when they're running, that was strange to hear.

[kaiman]

Actually, that photo you have linked is not even showing where you start the climb (which is from Weston Pass ... and, there are no trees at all on the route); additionally, it's only about 1600 feet from where you park to the top.

Presto, thanks for the correction. I meant 1,600 feet not 2,000. I actually started my climb from near where this picture was taken (as I had no intention of climbing Ptarmigan) and found the climb to be fairly straight forward albeit a bit of a talus-hop once I reached the ridge in the photo. You are correct this is not the standard route, but gets the job done and doesn't require the longer ridge walk.

Sorry for the confusion,

kaiman

[Presto]

No problem, kaiman ... just wanted to clarify for others. I think I'll try your route the next time we go up there. Thanks for the beta! :D

[Sugar Madison]

Thanks for posting the great photos!! pbakwin and I are headed up there next weekend to hike some of that, so it was great to see a bit of the terrain we'll encounter.

Slight highjack:
Does anyone know how far you can drive a standard passenger car up Mosquito Pass (east side)? Trying to figure out the best resupply points. From what I've found, looks like the North London mine is the end of the easy part.

[Doug Shaw]

Does anyone know how far you can drive a standard passenger car up Mosquito Pass (east side)? Trying to figure out the best resupply points. From what I've found, looks like the North London mine is the end of the easy part.

If I recall, and you'll probably want to call it good at the first switchback where it starts to climb toward the mine...

[cwm]

If you look at a map, I use the Latitude 40 Summit County version, it shows County Road 12 coming from near Alma. It is shown as a black road. It goes up the valley and then changes to a red road. A black road is basically a relatively easy gravel road. Red is for high clearance vehicles and even 4 x 4. That is the point where the road becomes much steeper and rougher.

You are down in the valley from the London Mine. It is probably the better part of a mile up to the mine and you could have some problems in a passenger car.

[Sugar Madison]

Thanks for the info! So, erring on the safe side, I'll say we park at the 3-way intersection below the mine (and below the switchback) and hike up from there. Looks to be about 3 miles to the pass from that point, which is a reasonable distance to hump a big load. We have a couple of Subarus and a minivan in the support vehicles, so maybe we'll take the van up Weston and the Subarus up Mosquito and Kite Lake.

Thanks again.

[perryw]

We went pretty much straight up the fall line under the power lines from the parking lot and it wasn't that steep (see pic w/ parking lot to the left).

Then hang a right and follow the ridge down to a saddle and up the easy grade to the summit. (the other picture was taken on the summit looking back along the ridge we just hiked)

We drove to Weston from the Fairplay side in a 1994 Ford Escort. There were a few tricky spots, but doable.

[BobbyFinn]

This might be helpful to you. I just posted it.
http://www.14ers.com/php14ers/tripreport.php?trip=8530" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[timf]

The steepness on Weston and gang was more of a pain coming down.
It's been a few years, but seemed comparable to the slope going up Bethel.