Mt. Elbert

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 7/3/2026, By: BillMiddlebrook
Info: The standard, north route (NE Ridge) on Mt. Elbert is closed due to the Willow fire. This is because they closed the Halfmoon Creek road. Other, southern, routes on Elbert are technically open but we strongly recommend staying away from Elbert entirely, for now. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 6/30/2026, By: aholle88
Info: All routes/trails for both Mount Elbert and Massive are closed. This includes Black Cloud, Echo, south Elbert, halfmoon, etc. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 6/20/2026, By: dakotaw
Info: Great conditions for the Northeast Ridge. Full summer mode out there. No snow on the trail. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 6/19/2026, By: RedBullEnjoyer
Info: Very clear, no snow on trail whatsoever although there is ice visible on the mountain near the couloirs. It can get very hot up there (especially with three false summits), so try to leave early. The access road to the trailhead is AMAZING and very well-maintained, and so is the trail itself. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 6/6/2026, By: flintel
Info: Arrived at the trailhead at 5 am, lot was about half full. Trail almost entirely clear of snow except two very short stretches near 13,400' and 13,600'. We did not bring spikes or poles and were totally fine, just had to step carefully in the snowy patches. Perfect weather to boot! 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 6/1/2026, By: jmburkett
Info: Left the upper 4WD trailhead at 7:30AM and the lot was full. The route was free of snow with the exception of three short sections above 13,000 ft of less than 30 feet each that were easily crossed without spikes or poles. One section at tree line was muddy for about 300-400 feet. Weather was perfect with no precipitation the whole day. 

Route: Southeast Ridge
Posted On: 5/24/2026, By: samirchopra
Info: Excellent conditions. Some snow patches on the ridge to South Elbert and the main summit but no issues at all getting across them. We had spikes and poles and didn't use them. It was a bit blustery at times (got a bit chilly) but otherwise, we enjoyed great weather all day (there was a time mid-afternoon when it looked snow showers were coming in, but everything settled down nicely.) Go get it folks. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 5/22/2026, By: jakeandorbake
Info: for everyone asking nervously about sawatch conditions ahead of memorial day, here's elbert's standard route above treeline in pretty good detail. clear. looked like it was gonna snow this evening but must have only been a dusting up there. YMMV since actual reports seem to indicate ridges and north-facing trails are significantly more clear than the rest (see recent yale guy experience). will update from mt massive send tomorrow 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 5/23/2026, By: Sando
Info: Hiked standard route 5/21. Great conditions despite snowfall the day before. Limited snow patches that can easily be navigated without traction but spikes are were helpful. Bottom 3/4 is almost entirely clear trail no snow at all. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/18/2026, By: turbocat
Info: Trail in good condition. A bit muddy in sections above tree line. Most snow avoidable or easily crossed without traction. Blast of snow squall @ 8am was spicey on the summit, but it passed quickly. 

Route: Southeast Ridge
Posted On: 5/16/2026, By: mtoensing
Info: Summer like conditions with a small snowstorm that came through on the summit at 8:00am this morning. Didn’t accumulate anything and was mostly just wind.

Trail is in excellent shape. Shout out to the CFI for their amazing work on the switchbacks up there. They are steep but excellent.

The ridge to south Elbert has minimal snow, more snow on the push to the summit of the main peak. It was consolidated and made for easy travel. I brought spikes but didn’t use them and all the snow is avoidable.

I really enjoyed this trail. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/15/2026, By: theolubke
Info: The trail is mostly snow free. There are several sections at higher elevation where you need to navigate through snow for 10 to 20 steps or so. Most you can avoid by going over rocks off trail. Only one section - at around 13,375 feet - precipitated thoughts of a long slide to doom. But there are good footprints to follow if its iced over. In today's sun, it was slushy enough by mid-morning to prevent sliding. (Full disclosure - this is speculation. I did not test.) I didn't use traction.

There were 8 other people and 2 dogs on a sunny day with moderate winds.

4WD trailhead is open and road is clear. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 5/12/2026, By: Cogwheel4755
Info: Great conditions. Patchy snow starting at 11250' converting to almost all snow at 12750'. I did not use any traction devices but had mountaineering boots. Most people were using microspikes with lighter shoes. The snow started to soften at 10 am. No need for snowshoes. There were around 15 people total on the route. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/5/2026, By: samfarmer789
Info: Great route up Elbert, I liked it more than the standard route. Easy to follow trail the whole time. We made it about a half mile up past the 4WD TH and had car to car 12.8 miles & right around 5000ft of gain. Some snow but easily trekked through / avoided. A bit annoying on the way down when it was getting slushy/melted out. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/4/2026, By: DCicha
Info: Did not need spikes. Snow slowed us down MAYBE 30 minutes. I would consider the snow/slush negligible.