longest snow climb in CO?

Colorado peak questions, condition requests and other info.
Forum rules
  • This is a mountaineering forum, so please keep your posts on-topic. Posts do not all have to be related to the 14ers but should at least be mountaineering-related.
  • Personal attacks and confrontational behavior will result in removal from the forum at the discretion of the administrators.
  • Do not use this forum to advertise, sell photos or other products or promote a commercial website.
  • Posts will be removed at the discretion of the site administrator or moderator(s), including: Troll posts, posts pushing political views or religious beliefs, and posts with the purpose of instigating conflict within the forum.
    For more details, please see the Terms of Use you agreed to when joining the forum.
User avatar
Robbie Crouse
Posts: 104
Joined: 7/26/2004
14ers: 33  5 
13ers: 22 7
Trip Reports (0)
 

longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Robbie Crouse »

With couloir season here, I just thought it'd be interesting to debate what the longest continuous snow climb in CO is. (Obviously it depends on conditions for that year...) Not really debating the steepness of the snow (though that would be another worthy debate ... Pacific North Couloir?), just how long a single section of snow goes for.

Would you say that Tuning Fork (Torreys) or Emperor (Torreys) or the Trough (Longs)? Those are the ones I'm most familiar with.

Robbie
User avatar
jmanner
Posts: 1417
Joined: 5/26/2009
14ers: 58  28  10 
13ers: 55 14 3
Trip Reports (15)
 

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by jmanner »

I’ve not done Tunning Fork, but its several hundred feet shorter than emperor and doesn’t top on the summit. I’ve done the other two. Emperor is over 1,000 meters long(like 3,400’) from the creek. Trough isn’t nearly as long and it doesn’t top on the summit. Both are fun though.
A man has got to know his limitations.-Dr. Jonathan Hemlock or Harry Callahan or something F' it: http://youtu.be/lpzqQst-Sg8

'Life is too short to ski groomers'

"That man's only desire was to stand, once only, on the summit of that glorious wedge of rock...I think anyone who loves the mountains as much as that can claim to be a mountaineer, too."-Hermann Buhl, Nanga Parbat Pilgrimage
User avatar
Scott P
Posts: 9436
Joined: 5/4/2005
14ers: 58  16 
13ers: 50 13
Trip Reports (16)
 
Contact:

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Scott P »

Would you say that Tuning Fork (Torreys) or Emperor (Torreys) or the Trough (Longs)?
I haven't climbed it yet, but the East Riverside Slide route up Abrams Peak has 3400 feet of vertical, which would beat the ones you mention. I have been thinking of that one lately.

Bell Cord on the Maroon Bells might beat East Riverside Slide as far as vertical goes though, but that would depend on where you counted the start of the couloir. I haven't climbed that one either. Any commments from anyone on the Bell Cord?
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
User avatar
jmanner
Posts: 1417
Joined: 5/26/2009
14ers: 58  28  10 
13ers: 55 14 3
Trip Reports (15)
 

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by jmanner »

Scott P wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 1:17 pm
Would you say that Tuning Fork (Torreys) or Emperor (Torreys) or the Trough (Longs)?
I haven't climbed that one either.
I don’t believe this! You’ve climbed it all!

In other news, I heard you live in Craig. Which explains your 8,000+ (Edited because holy shut 8,000!)posts on the forum. If I had to live in Craig I’d be on Internet forums all day too. Literally the worst place I’ve been to in Colorado. Luckily my work has moved out overnights toSteamboat now instead of Craig.
Last edited by jmanner on Mon May 03, 2021 1:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
A man has got to know his limitations.-Dr. Jonathan Hemlock or Harry Callahan or something F' it: http://youtu.be/lpzqQst-Sg8

'Life is too short to ski groomers'

"That man's only desire was to stand, once only, on the summit of that glorious wedge of rock...I think anyone who loves the mountains as much as that can claim to be a mountaineer, too."-Hermann Buhl, Nanga Parbat Pilgrimage
User avatar
Jonathan Deffenbaugh
Posts: 28
Joined: 4/28/2016
14ers: 58 
13ers: 83
Trip Reports (0)
 

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Jonathan Deffenbaugh »

Other good candidates would be the Grand Couloir on Mt Aetna, that one starts from the dirt road you walk up the trailhead. I do recall some of Quandary's couloirs (i.e. Cristo and Quandary Couloir) being long as well. Now if you're interested in what may be the longest snow climb in the lower 48 than Mt Moran's Skillet Glacier is where it's at, where 6,000 ft of vertical snow climbing awaits, in addition to having to walk or kayak across 6 miles on Jackson Lake, depending if it's frozen or not. Definitely on the bucket list for next year! Now if you're interested on what snow route can offer the longest continuous glissade after a snow climb look no further than Mt Shasta's West Face; that can offer 4,000 vertical feet of relief with a good snow line on it. :thumbup:
User avatar
aholle88
Posts: 368
Joined: 3/24/2015
14ers: 57  24  26 
13ers: 300 29 3
Trip Reports (1)
 

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by aholle88 »

Emperor. Maybe Dead Squirrel. Landry if one were to climb it. Bell cord is actually pretty short itself, we skinned up the garbage chute and half way up the cord one day. It’s long if you count the garbage chute and cord from the bottom and you hit it right. The Y would also be the same. Cristo isn’t the longest by any means but is decent vert as well, at least by Colorado standards being over 2k. Really any of the routes >2k are long by CO standards.
User avatar
Scott P
Posts: 9436
Joined: 5/4/2005
14ers: 58  16 
13ers: 50 13
Trip Reports (16)
 
Contact:

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Scott P »

Jonathan Deffenbaugh wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 1:24 pm Now if you're interested on what snow route can offer the longest continuous glissade after a snow climb look no further than Mt Shasta's West Face; that can offer 4,000 vertical feet of relief with a good snow line on it. :thumbup:
I have done longer glissades than that in the Wasatch. The avalanche chutes reach a realitively low elevation so you can get a lot of vertical. Blue Cliffs Creek on Timpanogos is a continuous glissade line of 4350 feet. Ginsu is 4100 feet; maybe even longer with the right conditions. Stairs Gulch is 4500, though if I remember right there's one bypass? Tanners Gulch is also 4000 feet.
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
User avatar
Hiking_TheRockies
Posts: 119
Joined: 11/11/2020
14ers: 22  1 
13ers: 19
Trip Reports (4)
 

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Hiking_TheRockies »

I always thought that the Dreamweaver couloir on Meeker looked really long, but I've never actually climbed it. I tried searching a bit on google, but I couldn't find the exact length of the route up the couloir. I'm sure that some other couloirs, like the Emperor Couloir, are longer than Dreamweaver, though.
Hiking when possible
User avatar
supranihilest
Posts: 719
Joined: 6/29/2015
14ers: 58  42 
13ers: 709 1 8
Trip Reports (112)
 
Contact:

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by supranihilest »

Hiking_TheRockies wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 1:56 pm I always thought that the Dreamweaver couloir on Meeker looked really long, but I've never actually climbed it. I tried searching a bit on google, but I couldn't find the exact length of the route up the couloir. I'm sure that some other couloirs, like the Emperor Couloir, are longer than Dreamweaver, though.
Probably 2,000 feet or less based on a topo map.
User avatar
gb
Posts: 989
Joined: 12/12/2006
14ers: 56  54  6 
13ers: 67 54
Trip Reports (26)
 

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by gb »

Landry and Trilogy both go over 4K. Just did Twin Peaks, that was 3500'
User avatar
Scott P
Posts: 9436
Joined: 5/4/2005
14ers: 58  16 
13ers: 50 13
Trip Reports (16)
 
Contact:

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Scott P »

jmanner wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 1:23 pmIn other news, I heard you live in Craig. Which explains your 8,000+ (Edited because holy shut 8,000!)posts on the forum. If I had to live in Craig I’d be on Internet forums all day too. Literally the worst place I’ve been to in Colorado. Luckily my work has moved out overnights toSteamboat now instead of Craig.
I moved to Grand Junction 2.5 years ago.

Craig has a lot of cool stuff around it, but the town isn't so great. It's too bad. Craig isn't far from some of the best scenery in Colorado, but it can be a tough place to live if you aren't far right.

PS, my post still only average 1.42 a day. It looks like I have been here 17 years as of tomorrow. :shock:
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
User avatar
Scott P
Posts: 9436
Joined: 5/4/2005
14ers: 58  16 
13ers: 50 13
Trip Reports (16)
 
Contact:

Re: longest snow climb in CO?

Post by Scott P »

I haven't climbed it yet, but the East Riverside Slide route up Abrams Peak has 3400 feet of vertical, which would beat the ones you mention. I have been thinking of that one lately.

So has anyone here actually climbed this or heard of anyone who has? It looks like the perfect snow climb, at least when things are stable, but I've never heard of anyone doing it (though certainly people have?).

This is the huge chute that crosses Highway 550 south of Ouray where there is a big concrete structure so the slides can go over the highway.

So many huge avalanches slide down that thing that they pile up there below the highway and the massive snow pile stays year round, even during drought conditions. This has got to be the lowest elevation permanent snowfield in Colorado.

Anyway, it looks like an awesome climb-3400 vertical feet of snow with easy access. The couloir literally crosses the highway.

Would anyone here want to give it a shot this season?
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
Post Reply