Peak Condition Update | Huron Peak

Peak:	Huron Peak
Route:	North Ridge from Lulu Gulch
Range:	Sawatch
Posted By:	E_A_Marcus_949
Date of Info:	10/1/2016
Date Posted:	10/1/2016

Details
Made it a little past the 2WD TH in a Subaru Legacy... parked about 0.3mi from the fork in the road to the main 4WD TH and to the left for Lulu Gulch. Lulu Gulch was a gorgeous hike - the road is switchbacks up... Middle Mountain is easy to see with the swithbacks, but we decided to skip that and go off the switchback road to climb up toward Browns Peak. Somehow, we did not follow the arrow in Photo 6 in the route description - we went farther over to the right - do not do this (see photo attached). It is steep, with lots of loose and unsteady rock (which also happened to be icy). We reached the ridge, realized where we were supposed to be, and followed the route. The traverse between Browns Peak and Huron (where the route meets with the standard route, NW slopes), is also full of unsteady rock (photo below). Pick your lines very carefully and test each rock (I think I was below the route in Photo 13). I did not traverse across the ridge, not sure if that would have been better. These rocks were also very icy and slippery. Amazing views of the backside of Huron though! Didn't see another person until meeting up with the standard route. When you meet up with the standard route, it's a nice steep shot up to the summit - took about 20/30 minutes from the trail junction to the summit. There was no snow on any of the route - it was clear. Lots of amazing views of the apostles, La Plata, and more - including the Lulu Gulch route (see photo). Probably the last few days for some gorgeous aspen colors. The road hike/walk down from the 4WD TH to the 2WD TH isn't too bad. We started a little before 7 and with our detour up Browns Peak and some serious scrambling, it took about 3.5/4 hours to summit... half that on the way down. Gorgeous day - sunny, no wind, not too cold. The clouds and rain started coming in early afternoon, but we avoided it. Keep an eye on the sky though - saw a few people heading up too late for comfort.

Details

Made it a little past the 2WD TH in a Subaru Legacy... parked about 0.3mi from the fork in the road to the main 4WD TH and to the left for Lulu Gulch. Lulu Gulch was a gorgeous hike - the road is switchbacks up... Middle Mountain is easy to see with the swithbacks, but we decided to skip that and go off the switchback road to climb up toward Browns Peak. Somehow, we did not follow the arrow in Photo 6 in the route description - we went farther over to the right - do not do this (see photo attached). It is steep, with lots of loose and unsteady rock (which also happened to be icy). We reached the ridge, realized where we were supposed to be, and followed the route. The traverse between Browns Peak and Huron (where the route meets with the standard route, NW slopes), is also full of unsteady rock (photo below). Pick your lines very carefully and test each rock (I think I was below the route in Photo 13). I did not traverse across the ridge, not sure if that would have been better. These rocks were also very icy and slippery. Amazing views of the backside of Huron though! Didn't see another person until meeting up with the standard route.
When you meet up with the standard route, it's a nice steep shot up to the summit - took about 20/30 minutes from the trail junction to the summit. There was no snow on any of the route - it was clear. Lots of amazing views of the apostles, La Plata, and more - including the Lulu Gulch route (see photo).
Probably the last few days for some gorgeous aspen colors. The road hike/walk down from the 4WD TH to the 2WD TH isn't too bad. We started a little before 7 and with our detour up Browns Peak and some serious scrambling, it took about 3.5/4 hours to summit... half that on the way down. Gorgeous day - sunny, no wind, not too cold. The clouds and rain started coming in early afternoon, but we avoided it. Keep an eye on the sky though - saw a few people heading up too late for comfort.

Comments or Questions

MikeK	Huron Redux 10/4/2016 7:49am I had the same experience trying to find the next-to-Brown's Peak route on Sept. 26, owing to the fact that I couldn't see the red line on on my phone, even when I shaded it. In my case I went too far left and found myself amid rocks that were less stable than I like. If there is a trail per se that leads to the correct route up, I missed it. Thanks for posting, especially the 411 on the Brown's-Huron Ridge -- I plan on going up there again Saturday, if only for spite. 😉 (I commented on my misadventures in greater detail as an attachment to someone else's post under Trip Reports last week -- it's a resume of my ineptitude.) 😎
E_A_Marcus_949	Re: Huron Redux 10/4/2016 8:13am I don't think there's a trail... more 13er-like in that you have to route-find and pick your line. We got on the less-stable rocks as well to the right. Just keep your eyes open for the more mossy area to go up... Sounds like it's between both of the routes we took. We thought about following the mossy area up the peak but couldn't tell what was over the ridge since it looked to disappear... However, that was the small upper basin that the route description talks about. Keep an eye out for that... It's still a fun time!

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