6/10/2016 Route: North Face Moderate Posted On: 6/10/2016, By: dweiss2 Info: Solid freeze from Summit Lake to base of the couloir before sunrise, but snow is melting quick. Snow in the couloir is pretty solid and in good shape for climbing in the morning. half way up, about 6-10 inches of snow on top of solid ice, but bonded well. Top 200-300 feet were melted out. Overall, not worth the climb now in my opinion; plenty of better options in the area that are still in all the way to the top. |
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6/10/2016 Route: West Ridge from Echo Lake Posted On: 6/10/2016, By: Mountain Max Info: Hiked from Echo Lake this morning to the summit. A low angle snow field between the lower and upper Chicago Lakes but it was firm and no issue around 8am. Above Summit Lake, going up the West Ridge, there are plenty of patches of snow to either slog through or maneuver around. The trail appears and disappears under the snow but no real issues. Getting to the ridge over or around snow is a bit slick. Once over Mt. Spaulding, about 20% of the remaining route has snow or snow to work around. Some postholing although not as much as expected despite the warm weather and wet snow. Be smart on the snow and microspikes or an ice axe are not a bad idea although there are plenty of people who traverse without them. |
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6/9/2016 Route: West Ridge from Summit Lake Posted On: 6/9/2016, By: benc134 Info: Summitted Evans today via Mt. Spalding and the West Ridge. Still a lot of snow on Spalding and the west side of the ridge leading up to the summit. Most of the snow has been blown off on top of the ridge and the summit, but if you're taking the standard route there will still be a lot of snow. Managed without snowshoes or spikes, but waterproof boots are a must. Snowpack was great for the most part, a few spots where I postholed. Some spots were worse than others; checked out the couloir on the saddle between Spalding and Evans because we were thinking about glissading down. Postholed pretty badly up to my thighs in multiple spots. Pack on the ridge was mostly great, the sun doesn't hit it early in the morning due to it being on the west side and is very stable. Once we were near the final push though, the sun was out and the snow got softer. At one point I postholed all the way up to my waist on both legs. Snow is very icy and windblown, I was wearing shorts so during this my legs got scraped. Definitely doable without snowshoes, but somewhat of a challenge. Finding the standard route was difficult, we ended up higher on the ridge than the cairns and it made for a few tough scrambling moves and icy traverses. The rock on the west side of the ridge is usually covered in ice, so be careful. Gloves are a must; the rock can be sharp and icy. We started at 5:10 and summitted at 8:10. Snowshoes might be useful on Mt. Spalding, but the west ridge of Evans seemed too steep for them. Microspikes would be very useful. Overall: a very manageable route but BE CAREFUL WHEN TRAVERSING UNDERNEATH THE RIDGE. It is very icy and windy, and would be a brutal place to fall. Summit was gorgeous, conditions were overall great! |
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6/8/2016 Route: Snave Posted On: 6/8/2016, By: Monster5 Info: Mostly firm icy snow (summit around 7AM) with a bit of storm snow. No ice; direct is pretty much out, left start is a bit junky. We took the right couly start (moderate, 4th class top out) and traversed back left into the main Snave (lower angle snow with a couple steeper 4th class bands up top). Descended the saddle between Evans and W Evans. First 100 ft mostly dry. |
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6/4/2016 Route: Posted On: 6/4/2016, By: LilSpookies Info: We drove up to the Summit parking lot and climbed a few feet to the summit. Super easy climb if you start at the parking lot. Road is clear the entire way up and you may see some goats on the way. We wanted to watch the sunrise so we arrived early but there was still a handful of cars coming and going so I recommend going early to avoid people. You don't need spikes or anything, most of the snow is pretty packed. Beautiful sunrise. Bathrooms are open at the top as well. |
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6/3/2016 Route: West Ridge from Summit Lake Posted On: 6/4/2016, By: Meags33 Info: Summit lake start at 0730 and snow conditions were good, frozen over and no postholing. Definitely recommend crampons for the hike up Spalding, general hiking shoes don't have enough grip. I used snow shoes and didn't have any problems getting up. Some fun glissading down the Spalding-Evans saddle then about a mile of scrambling in rocks and packed snow. Started alone but was happy to join a group of 3 and we were the only ones on the trail. Be careful if you're thinking about going without a group. Tons of wildlife and people on the road. |
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6/2/2016 Route: Posted On: 6/2/2016, By: SnowAlien Info: Road is open and Mt Evans is open for business! Tons of traffic there already. Hit a couple lines on NE face - one on far right, continuous with some billygoating and one on far left - a short '50 ft downclimb is required. Ascended the line in the middle, but it's very rocky at the top and also currently requires a 70-100 ft downclimb. Summit ski is in, and goes pretty clean. Given delays in opening the road, was surprised not to see more snow up there, but it probably has to do with windloading pattern this year. Impressive (cleaned up) drifts on the road on the drive in, which explains the delays. Saw lots of wildlife out and about - baby goats, big horn sheep, right in the middle of the road or close by, completely oblivious to people and cars. |
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5/12/2016 Route: West Ridge from Guanella Pass Posted On: 5/13/2016, By: STIBungy Info: The road up Guanella was plowed about halfway to the TH parking lot yesterday. Crews are chipping at the snow daily. Snow up the gulley has a nice hard crust in the morning but gets mushy in the afternoon due to the warm temps this week. Wore microspikes and carried my ax up. Glissaded down in the afternoon and strapped snowshoes on from the base of the gulley through the willow field. Still postholed in certain spots but not too bad. |
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2/27/2016 Route: West Ridge via Scott Gomer Posted On: 2/28/2016, By: jmanner Info: Climbed Evans via the winter closure yesterday. We ascended using the west ridge via Scott Gomer Creek and then over the West Ridge to the summit. We stupidly dropped into the South Clear Creek drainage, below the road, to try to save mileage, however it only added misery. We put a pretty good trench from the Bierstadt trail/road up through Scott Gomer Ck onto Spalding, so it should be a little easier for another that goes up that way before the March Storms. The gully that offers closer access to the west ridge looked pretty dry, so I am sure that would be a more viable option for folks on snowshoes. The west ridge from the Sawtooth was relative clear of snow. FYI, the willows are the devils work. |
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12/27/2015 Route: Road Conditions Posted On: 12/27/2015, By: blazintoes Info: The Blazintoes and Fatso Mt Evans road report. If you‘re crazy like me, it is possible to ride a fat bike all the way to the summit. ~30 miles RT from Echo Lake FYI. The first 2.5 miles are packed down by snowshoes/skis. Then the black top opens up with several patches of snow to cross and three significant avy fields to consider (mile 3, 5 and 7 don‘t quote me on that). Along the avy fields, there is ~6"-8" of slab type snow on top of ice. Very sketchy (4th image). However, 80% of the road is ride-able. Beautiful winter day with lots of animal activity. A small family of sheep and a healthy elk pack. Finally, the last 200 feet to the top is cruiser. |
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11/29/2015 Route: West Ridge from Guanella Pass Posted On: 11/29/2015, By: sky_high Info: Not many people on Bierstadt and Evans this weekend. We hit the trail around 6:30 with temperatures in the single digits. The snow from this weekend was very powdery, and had not been tamped down, and going through the willows was much easier with snowshoes. By the time we left, the route up Bierstadt had been traveled by less than a handful of people but was mostly packed down and do-able in boots at least up to the first big rise. In a 14er first for us we were the only car in the parking lot before noon when the weather started to turn and the wind came up. The snow still looked pretty thin in the upper reaches, although it‘s about time to start bringing microspikes at least. Instead of going up Bierstadt we cut off the trail and went toward Evans. We battled our way through about 3 feet of fresh powder interspersed with willows up to the gully for the west ridge. There is a bit of snow in the gully, but mostly it is just covering the rocks and there is not much for crampons to get a hold on. Snowshoes are a must in the valley until the trail gets tracked a bit more, and some kind of traction or a reliable set of boots with good tread will help with the vertical portion of the trail. As far as snow conditions, don‘t bother going to Evans or Bierstadt to ski yet, they are still very lightly dusted in the upper reaches. |
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11/8/2015 Route: West Ridge from Guanella Pass Posted On: 11/8/2015, By: AlexeyD Info: Typical thin, early-winter snow cover for most of the route. Unfortunately, the boggy areas in the willows are only partially frozen, so expect slow going through there. There is fairly decent boot currently track in place along the base of the NW shoulder of Bierstadt, which can be utilized to minimized willow-schwacking. In the west-facing gully that gains the Evans massif, we mostly stayed on the south-facing slopes to climber‘s left on the ascent (which are either melted out or have only a thin layer of crusty snow), and took the middle of the gully on the descent - which had quite a bit of deep, unconsolidated snow. Would probably do the S-facing side both ways if doing it again. Above the gully, the tundra flats are a mix of shallow snow with deeper (2‘+) sections. The deep sections were just a bit too short to warrant snowshoes, but expect some postholing. For the time being, there is a pretty good boot track through there as well. The trail on the West Ridge itself is still visible, and is a mix of snow, bare rock, and a little ice. Not too bad yet. We carried snowshoes and microspikes, but did not use them. Spikes might be nice for parts of the gully, but we didn‘t find them essential. Snow cover currently insufficient for snowshoes, though this will likely change soon. A pole was very handy for the numerous creek crossings, occasional snow traverses and general balance. All in all, while there is no one single particularly awful part of it, the whole thing (the willows, the occasional deep postholing, the annoying rock-filled gully, the rather long, high-altitude traverse along the West Ridge and back) makes for a longer and more exhausting day this time of year than the gain and distance alone would tell you. A pretty fun way to do Evans though! |
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10/11/2015 Route: West Ridge from Echo Lake Posted On: 10/12/2015, By: hokiehead Info: Did Bierstadt -> Sawtooth -> Evans on Sunday. big wind, but once we were on the right/South side of the sawtooth, we were sheltered. 4 of us on the trip, one took microspikes, but only used them for a brief period. Sawtooth is 90% snow free. Notes: most snow is in the first part leaving Bierstadt, but no difficulty getting across this. as you get close to Evans and start traversing to West side (maybe just before this), there‘s a ledge with exposure to your left that‘s snow covered. I did not enjoy crossing that, but it was short and care got all four of across safely. |
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9/6/2015 Route: West Ridge from Summit Lake Posted On: 9/7/2015, By: jmjr2k Info: Temps at the Summit Lake parking lot were in the upper 30‘s at our 7:00 a.m. start time. The wind was fierce at gusts up to about 30 mph, or so which made it feel like the teens! The trail was in fine condition, and there were quite a few folks on the mountain that morning due to the Labor Day crowds. It was a partly cloudy day with no precipitation, and beautiful for enjoying the summit to Mt. Evans. There are a number of cairns which will mark your way up until you get to West Evans where you need to pay closer attention to them since there is quite a bit of talus and boulders there to the summit. There might have been about 150 people crawling around the summit at 10 a.m. when we arrived! |
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8/9/2015 Route: Posted On: 8/9/2015, By: George Mason Info: Northeast face route is starting to get a little torn up from traffic. Wildflowers are in full force and mountain goats were putting on a show. Road, Summit Lake Trailhead all in good shape. |
