Route Description

Take I-70 to the Bakerville exit (#221). Leave the highway and drive south over to the dirt parking area near the start of Forest Road 189. This is the winter trailhead and, even if the upper road is open, low-clearance passenger cars should park here. It’s almost 3 miles to the summer trailhead. Reach a junction after one mile - stay straight and follow the sign for the Grays Peak trailhead. Continue another 2 miles to the trailhead at 11,280'. There are restrooms and a few dispersed camping spots near the parking area.

Details:

Photo #1 and Photo #2 provide a distant view of the route. Start the hike by crossing the large bridge that spans the stream in Stevens Gulch (Photo #3) and follow the well-defined Grays trail up the hill into Stevens Gulch - Photo #4. Grays soon comes into view - Photo #5 and Photo #6. From the trailhead, follow the trail for approximately 1.5 miles to an information sign. Photo #7 and Photo #8 show the area. Shortly after this point, hike up through some bushes to reach a rocky area - Photo #9. After crossing this flat area, the trail then climbs to the left (Photo #10) as you hike around a small ridge that runs south up to the east side of Grays. As you hike through this area and past a basin, Torreys Peak is to your right and Grays is ahead to the southwest. Near 12,600', the remaining route to the summit comes into full view - Photo #11.

Taken from Kelso Ridge on Torreys Peak, Photo #12 shows the remaining route. Follow the trail along the west side of the ridge seen in Photo #11. The trail becomes a bit rockier in this area. Photo #13 looks back down on the route from near 12,800'. Above 13,000', the trail swings left to gain the ridge where the remaining route is fairly obvious - Photo #14. Continue up to 13,200' where you will find a trail junction. Turning right will take you to Torreys Peak, so stay left on the main trail towards Grays. Keep hiking until you come to a corner above 13,400'. This area overlooks Stevens Gulch and there is a rock tower just below the trail - Photo #15. Take a few steps to the east and you will soon be standing over some great exposure. From the corner, continue up the trail toward the upper slope - Photo #16. After some brief gain, the trail turns right and begins a long traverse west across the slope - Photo #17. Follow the easy trail as it switchbacks up the remaining slope (Photo #18 was taken near 14,000') and arrives at the summit - Photo #19. Photo #20 looks down on much of the route and Photo #21 shows the upper slope from Mt. Edwards, to the east.

Skiing?:

Ski terrain above 13k: Photo #22
Looking over at Torreys: Photo #23
A ski line along the North Ridge: Photo #24, Photo #25, Photo #26
Skiing the north slopes: Photo #27, Photo #28, Photo #29
Back into the basin: Photo #30
Looking back at the north slopes: Photo #31
Another look at Grays from Stevens Gulch: Photo #32