| Date | Status Information Posted by 14ers.com Forum Users | Posted By |
|---|---|---|
| 2009-06-10 | See the update under Trailheads on the Forum. The new Silver Pick route is closed for the summer to allow for necessary reconstruction of the Elk Creek Road which will be the prime access to the new trailhead. | Steve Bonowski |
| 2009-05-20 | I just spoke to the Norwood Ranger district. I was told that the land dispute with the property owner has been settled, but it is going to require the forest service to relocate the trailhead further to the west. This is going to involve removal of timber from the area as well as significant work creating a new parking area for vehicles. The individual I spoke with said that realistically, access to the Wilsons via Silver Pick Basion won‘t be available until September 2009 at the earliest. | tmathews |
| 2009-04-21 | I was able to drive 4.8 mi. in yesterday to 9,400’ (2 mi. below trail head) to where this winters maintenance ended. There is a large pile of snow here courtesy of the plow driver, which will take a while to melt out. Above this blockage the snow coverage on the road was fair up to the National Forest boundary with only a few bare spots along the way. Above the National Forest boundary the road was fully snowed in all the way up to the private land closure and was in fine shape for skinning. | PKR |
| 2008-07-17 | This is a June 25 statement from the Trust for Public Land, which bought the private land along the Silver Pick access: That (Silver Pick) access route remains closed until the Forest Service can complete a new trailhead and trail reroute which will avoid the property that Rusty Nichols has retained (and on which his cabin is located). Our hope is that the Forest Service will complete the necessary environmental work for the trail this summer and the actual trail construction work by the end of the year. | Oman |
| 2008-06-13 | Road is passable to a point .2 miles beyond the Wilson Mesa trailhead, downed trees prevent any further progress in a vehicle. The road beyond this point snow free until just above the Forest Service gate at the trailhead. Sporadic snow coverage prevents skinning below tree line. Upper Silver Pick Basin is snow packed, as are the northwest and northeast faces of Wilson Peak. Enjoy your snow climbing! | PKR |
| 2008-05-11 | made it to ~9730‘ yesterday (needed hi-clearance 4WD and some shoveling to bust through a snow drift around 9600‘); continuous snow (i.e., skinnable) on the road above ~9900‘. | scotthsu |
| 2008-04-28 | The road is plowed to the switchback at 9500‘, though there is still enough snow to make it tough for a passenger car. From there, the snow is continuous except for the first few 100 yards, which you can bypass if on skis by cutting the switchback at the closure. Just go striaght up to the right of the road through the aspens, and cut back left after a couple hundred yards. | jwproulx |
| 2008-04-27 | I believe it was on Summitpost.org, but I read somewhere that this trailhead was open all the way to Wilson Peak; that the Texas mine land-owner Nichols had sold the right to lock the gate to the Trust for Public Lands in 11/07. Confirmation? | davidreynolds |
| 2007-06-05 | Road is clear up to the locked gate as of June 3, 2007 | jwproulx |
| 2007-05-27 | Road is dry up to about 1/3 mile past the intersection with the Wilson Mesa trail. At that point numerous melting snow piles stopped me. | mildly neurotic |
| 2007-05-12 | Drove within 1.5 miles of TH two weeks ago. | jcwhite |
| 2006-07-01 | Sorry about that wrong date. Went up on 6-29-06. Road is clear and in excellent condition to the gate. | hawkeye |
| 2006-07-01 | Went up on 6-29-30. Road is clear and in excellent condition to the gate. | hawkeye |
| 2006-02-18 | I went up Silver Pick on 2/16/06. I was able to make it 5.1 miles in a 4x4 with moderate clearance. | daveartusi |
| 2005-06-08 | We were able to drive up to the trailhead without issues of snow or landowner problems. We climbed Wilson Peak via the standard route without incident under heavy snow conditions. | Dan England |
| Location: | San Juan Mountains |
| 14ers Served: | Wilson Peak, Mt. Wilson, El Diente Peak |
| Road Type: | Easy 4WD dirt to the TH. |
| Winter Access: | Usually closed near the 3-way intersection. |
| Directions: | From Ridgway, leave U.S. 550 and take Colorado 62 towards Telluride. Drive over Dallas Divide and down to the town of Placerville. Turn left onto Colorado 145. Drive 6.5 miles and turn right on the Silver Pick road. It is 6.8 miles from here to the trailhead. From the start of the road, drive 3.1 miles to an intersection. The sign says "Silver Pick Basin - 5". Stay left. After another 0.7 mile, there is a confusing intersection. Do not continue on the road that goes straight. Turn right a bit to see the road that you want. Do not take the road that takes a hard right (it has a Private Property sign). Drive into the National Forest after another 2.2 miles (6.0 miles since you left Colorado 145). After another 0.1 mile, drive straight past the Wilson Mesa trailhead. The remaining 0.7 mile of the road is narrow and rough. There are a couple of steep switchbacks just before you reach the trailhead. The road is gated here. There is a parking area on the left.
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