Unscientific survey: Best 14er routes to avoid crowds

[scottrappold]

I'm at outdoors writer at The Gazette newspaper in the Springs. I'm working on a story on alternate routes up popular fourteeners that people can take to avoid the crowds, for those who have no choice but to climb on weekends.
For research, I hiked Greys and Torreys from Chihuahua Gulch and had one of my best fourteener experiences yet.
Feel free to share your favorite routes and best experiences, and what makes them so. We'll be running a story Aug. 13 in the Out There section: www.gazette.com/outthere
Thanks!

R. Scott Rappold
Reporter
The Gazette
30 S. Prospect St.
Colorado Springs, CO 80909
(719) 476-1605
srappold@gazette.com

[doggler]

Speaking in generalities here...IF one has to hike on a weekend, these are "precautions" one can take to minimize crowds.

Go further South and West. (San Juans, Elks + Sangres are much less used than Sawatch, Mosquito/Tenmile, Front Range mtns)
Take any route but the "standard" route. (you'll still deal with crowds on some summits, but the journey will be more tranquil)
Start EARLY - often times a 4:00 or 5:00 start will give you the summit to yourself if you're moving OK.
Hike early or late in the season - avoid the busy ones from mid-June to mid-September. (I had Quandary all to myself on a February Saturday a few years ago)
Climb more difficult mountains (if feasible).

Put 'em all together, doing the Needle's Ellingwood Arete in late September with a 4:00 AM start is probably going to be a little less crowded than leaving COS this Saturday at 6:00 AM to do Quandary via the standard route.

[Nathan Hale]

In the Sawatch, basically any route that isn't the standard route will be fine and you'll hardly see anyone. There are a few exceptions (Holy Cross comes to mind).

I've climbed Yale, Princeton, and Missouri on weekends via alternate routes and seen almost no one on any of them.

My faves in the Sawatch:
Grouse Canyon on Princeton -- 1000 times better than the standard route (which may be the worst standard route on a 14er other than Bross). Chest high flowers and nice waterfalls. (Click photo for larger version)

Brown's Lake for either Antero or Shav/Tab -- I backpacked in, which was nice
Missouri via Clohesy Lake -- I saw no one at all on this route (2005) and I saw beautiful Columbines all over the place.
Yale via the east ridge (there are two routes to access it) -- I saw no one until the summit

There are some alternates on the easier San Juan Peaks as well, but once you start getting into the harder peaks the number of route choices drops and you see fewer people anyway.

I'd also like to put up a vote for Snowmass Mountain's east slopes. Yes, it's the traditional standard route but these days the west slopes have essentially become the standard route, probably because of a combination of people wanting a shorter trip and it having been the only route on this site for a long time. This has happened despite the fact that the west slopes are a miserable choss heap. The east slope is a beautiful route with a nice snowclimb and a beautiful lake to camp at. And in the middle of last summer on a weekend we were the only party to climb it from that side while 3 or 4 struggled up the west slopes.

[JeffR]

But... won't those then turn into the "new" crowded routes?

[Nathan Hale]

But... won't those then turn into the "new" crowded routes?

You'd think, but those routes have been available in guidebooks for ages and people still punish themselves on the standard route of Princeton.

[badger4]

So you'll ask us where we go to avoid crowds, then write about them in a newspaper? In that case the standard route on Grays and Torreys is usually were I go to avoid crowds. Or, I hear you can go to Lincoln, Bross and Democrat now too.

[Jim Davies]

Free your mind, climb a 13er.

[doggler]

Scott,

I do hope that any article you write up stresses doing your homework, being prepared, etc. A link not only to this site (or others), but the services it provides, is critical. We all see enough unprepared weekend warriors as it is.

Cheers.

[kaiman]

Avoid the crowds: Climb a 13er instead!

[CO Native]

I'm not a big fan of popularizing alternate routes. That just leads to more trails up a mountain. The more trails the more the terrain is damaged and the more the wildlife is affected.

[scottrappold]

Yes but there are some routes that are being encouraged, with trails built - the southwest slopes of Mount Massive or Pikes Peak via The Crags. Don't these alternate routes minimize the problems caused by heavy traffic on the standard routes?
That said, I don't want to send anyone bushwacking up mountainsides. I'm just talking about reasonable alternative routes that are do-able for most somewhat experienced hikers.

[geoffirons]

Here are some of our favorites:
Grays & Torreys: Kelso Ridge
Quandary: North Ridge
Sneffels: SW Ridge
Kit Carson: North Ridge
Lindsey: NW Ridge (direct variation)
Capitol: NE Ridge (direct from Daly saddle)

If you climb the more difficult routes (sometimes only slightly more difficult, or in some cases not more difficult but simply more exposed), then you will experience fewer crowds.

[Daniel Trugman]

I'm not sure Kelso Ridge counts as an "uncrowded route"...

[cheeseburglar]

I've got to recommend going the other way - alternative routes to find crowds.
Pikes Peak Marathon - people will be standing around in different places to hand you food and fluids!
Evans via the road by bicycle - no better opportunity to harrass tourists in automobiles!

But seriously, I climb non standard routes whenever possible. That's what books are for. When I climbed Longs the first time, we rounded a corner and got in the congo line about 400 feet below the summit. We had only seen one group up until that point. And we didn't need ropes. That route is in a book.
I just flipped to a random page in Dawson's book and their are three routes for that random mountain.

[rijaca]

If you want to avoid crowds on the 14ers on weekends, climb something other than the 14ers. Or climb in the winter, spring, or fall.