El Diente Peak (South slope) versus Mt. Wilson Southwest slope)

[IronMike]

Anyone have a recommendation which of one of these 14ers would be best for my first class 3 14er. I've climbed Mt. Sneffels (class 2.5) but I'm in Telluride for a few days and looking to try one of these class 3's. Thanks Happy trails !

[JGiffinPhotog]

Really, Wilson Peak would be much better than either of these for your first class 3 around there. Wetterhorn is a great beginner Class 3 als. If you're hell bent on one of the two, then El Diente is going to be much shorter & easier route finding than Mt Wilson from the Kilpacker approach.

[greenonion]

Really, Wilson Peak would be much better than either of these for your first class 3 around there. Wetterhorn is a great beginner Class 3 als. If you're hell bent on one of the two, then El Diente is going to be much shorter & easier route finding than Mt Wilson from the Kilpacker approach.

I mostly agree with Wilson Peak being the better choice if you compare that to Mt Wilson's standard route on its north side. BUT, Mt Wilson via its southern route from Kilpacker Basin is quite easy aside from being somewhat steep and loose as you get closer to the summit. Cannot yet speak to El D in this context.

[IronMike]

Really, Wilson Peak would be much better than either of these for your first class 3 around there. Wetterhorn is a great beginner Class 3 als. If you're hell bent on one of the two, then El Diente is going to be much shorter & easier route finding than Mt Wilson from the Kilpacker approach.

I mostly agree with Wilson Peak being the better choice if you compare that to Mt Wilson's standard route on its north side. BUT, Mt Wilson via its southern route from Kilpacker Basin is quite easy aside from being somewhat steep and loose as you get closer to the summit. Cannot yet speak to El D in this context.

I appreciate the recommendations. I will have a closer look at Wilson Peak. Just in the last couple days there was a Wilson Peak trip report that pushed me towards El Diente or Mt. Wilson. Being in Telluride for a few days, I was hoping to bag a 14er without a 3 hour drive, which leaves me with one of these class 3's. Wetterhorn sounds ideal and maybe later this summer I will get up there. The distance of these 14ers isn't of great concern, but the steepness and exposure is until my courage increases. Thanks

[mtnkub]

If exposure is a main concern, i would recommend Mt Wilson (via SW slopes / Kilpacker) much over Wilson Peak. But maybe that's just my perception. Mt Wilson indeed requires careful route finding, but the description on this site is excellent and should make this sufficiently easy.

(However, i will say that on Wilson Peak, while the looks of the remaining route from the false summit are pretty terrifying, the actual exposure when your on the route is not quite as bad, if you pick the best line. Imho, in the description on this site, the best line is indicated well in pic 17+18; however, in pic 20, it is much further to the right hand site in the picture, essentially climbing up and slightly to the right from the middle of the line of the lower arrow. Then, the exposure on the lower "short-cut" class 3 section after the Gladstone saddle is actually worse).

[Alpine Guy]

I did Wilson Pk last weekend and agree that the summit push is not nearly as bad as it looks in photos - actually some of the only solid rock on the whole route (the steep loose scree gully just above the stone ruins is the worst - no fun at all but fortunately no exposure). If this is your first class 3 my only advice would be to pay close attention to your return path as you go up - the summit area is quite steep and you can't really see the correct way back down from the summit plateau. Same for the class 3 section near the Gladstone saddle. This may save you some time and frustration.

[bmcqueen]

I’ll add another vote for Mt Wilson if the choice is between Mt Wilson and El Diente. There is rockfall potential on the SW slopes route, but there is very little class 3 climbing required (and not much exposure). There are other better first class 3 routes in the San Juans though like Justin pointed out (Wetterhorn, Sneffels SW ridge).

[IronMike]

Thank you all, on the recommendations and advice regarding the Wilson 14ers. We ended up doing a great hike up Mt Wilson via Kilpacker . From a distance the summit looked very intimidating, but once in the gulley it was fairly easy and a lot of fun. We only saw a handful of people the entire Sunday hike, which was a treat. Great summit! I wish we would have had more time to climb El Diente Peak, but we"ll get back soon. Love the San Juans.