Humboldt Peak from North Colony Lakes

[swegner14]

Has anyone climbed Humboldt from North Colony Lakes? What are the conditions like? Based on maps it looks like there is a reasonable line that gains the standard route on the west ridge. I know South Colony Lakes can get pretty busy during the summer so I'm looking for other options.

[daway8]

I would recommend you turn on the sattellite view - while I've not attempted that approach, from the satellite view it looks like your line would cross some wicked looking cliff bands and possibly close to 1,000ft of loose scree. Not my idea of a fun climb.

Might have slightly better odds if you gain the ridge to the NE first then scramble along the ridge to the saddle. But satellite seems to make it look like you might have to go through willow hell to get back there.

Not trying to be a killjoy - just pointing out some things worth noting. If you do give it a go, be sure post a trip report or conditions report or such since it looks like it could be a neat area. But that particular line looks horrible on satellite...

[dwoodward13]

I feel like this comes up once every couple years. Some cursory searching found the following thread from 2018, but with more digging I'm sure you'll find more.

https://www.14ers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=54763

[9patrickmurphy]

Looking at satellite imagery and photos from the linked 2018 thread, I'd say this route looks doable. Way more effort than the standard approach, and you'd have to use the south colony road as the trailhead (unless you want tons of road walking from Horn Creek). So, doable, but doesn't have that much going for it in my opinion.

[Marmot72]

I can’t speak to the approach but the upper part of the route marked by the red line is nothing but a steep tundra walk. I did that from the basin back in 2009 -before I had gps -on a day where fog rolled in and I found myself on the ridge N of N Crestone Lake.