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We got a really late start (8am) but lucked out as it turned out to be a beautiful day all day long, I think I spent more time on this peak than any other, and it was well worth it.
The vally is great, and there are great views of the surrounding peaks. We only saw maybe 4 other hikers on the way up and a couple more on top (around 1:00 pm)
The route was easy to follow all the way up to the top of the valley at 12800 . The mud was a pain but with some thought and care, can be easily avoided.
As it says in the route description the next pull up to 14000 is a pain because of the lack of any trails, and I found it easiest just to make a line for the top and go strait up scrambling through the boulders. On the way back down you can see a bunch of different trails, and we all took different paths back down. This is the most difficult part, but it wasn‘t too bad, just watch for moving rocks under your feet. Once on top of this section, then the summit is only about 15 minutes away.
We summited around 1:00, and luckily the weather was great we spent a long time on top admiring the views which were incredible , you could see Elbert, Massive, and it was clear enough to see Capital, Snowmass, the bells, and Pyramid peak as well . We took our time getting down and reached the car around 3:30 I think.
All in all it was probably the best 14er I have done yet (#15) and I really liked the southwest route, cant speak for the standard route as I haven‘t done it. But this route was relatively easy and could have been done much faster but we really took it slow.
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The roads up to the th were not bad at all, we were in a suburban and didn't even need 4X4. We did hit bottom on a couple of rocks but it wasn't bad. Any higher clearance vehicle would do just fine. A sedan might have a hard time of it though, with some of the ruts and bigger rocks.
Kimmarielovescolorado: If you car isn't able to make it up for this Southwest Ridge route, try the standard Northwest ridge route. The trailhead is right off Highway 82 (paved) past Twin Lakes. I did the Northwest route and really enjoyed it.
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