Longs Peak

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 11/16/2025, By: khmayer
Info: Very warm and dry for this time of year and awesomely wind free on the summit! Route was dry up to the keyhole and mostly dry with some patches of snow along the narrows. The trough was filled in with snow, and I was glad I brought my crampons and ice axe. No snow or ice on the homestretch. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 11/9/2025, By: soupman85
Info: Looks like I may have been the only one crazy enough to take on the wind at the summit today (didn't see anyone else attempting). I started at 5am and winds were already starting and progressed throughout the day, but we're only really bad before the boulderfield, right at the keyhole, at the top of the trough, and at the summit. Calm to light wind in all other spots. I made it back right at sunset.

I think crampons and ice axe are a must for the trough, but it's manageable without everywhere else, just sporadic spots of snow. That said, also bringing microspikes was very helpful for ledges, narrows, and homestretch (especially combating the worn down rock).

I'm excited this is a pretty unique first ever 14er for me and it all went smoothly!

Attaching pics (boulderfield, ledges, trough, homestretch, summit) 

Route: Lambs Slide
Posted On: 11/4/2025, By: Whitemtnskier
Info: Got up on Longs for a full ski descent of Lambs Slide on 11/01! Truly awful snow for skiing, but so much fun. Here's a video of some footage if anyone is interested to see current conditions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SK6thXd51Y 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 10/29/2025, By: skeater912
Info: Sunday 10/26 so storms monday might have obsoleted this already.

Keyhole route, started just before sunrise. Turned around ~1/4 up the trough. Windy past the keyhole.
Very little snow/ice on the ledges, doable in just my trail runners. Variable snow and ice in the trough. Some sections of slicker hardpack and ice, and some sections of calf deep facets. Saw three (I think) other folks on the decent, got a far-off pic of you below.

Had made the decision when packing to take only spikes/runners and bail if it needed more than that, which for my taste, it did. Up was going to go fine, down seemed a little more complicated. Easily done with some crampons, or with more of a stomach for the ice + microspikes than I had. 

Route: North side
Posted On: 10/26/2025, By: Ben
Info: Pic obtain from the morning of 10/26/25, around 9 am on the approach to DEN. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 10/12/2025, By: Koehtx
Info: Started at 8:00am, as the early AM called for Snow and Wind. Windy it was and visibility up to the peak was not great, however it cleared up on the return.
No significant snow up until through Key Hole. Thereafter, some accumulation and the C0 traction devices were sufficient until the Trough. Thereafter, lots of snow, mostly solid and some ice, so I switched to C1 crampons which worked great. Hardly any snow or ice on the homestretch, only the upper 100ft.
It was cold with all the winds and gusts, and once the sun came through, turned into a lovely hike back. Compared to the 5:30hrs in August, it added an hour today. Very nice experience. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 10/8/2025, By: dakotasmama
Info: Weather was forecast clear but frigid, so I waited until 5am to start and give the sun some time to work its magic on any ice on the Narrows and Homestretch. The full moon made for a magical hike below treeline, streaming through the trees. Wintery-ish conditions up to the Chasm Lake junction (crispy mud with some snow patches, only one stream crossing is running) and after that WINTER HAD COME. Ankle-to-mid-calf snow depth with several knee-deep areas of postholing (though once you reach the boulder field there’s lots of opportunity to bypass the deepest sections by rock-hopping). I stopped at the warming hut and added gaiters and microspikes. Past the Keyhole, the snow was knee-deep all the way to the Trough, except for when I was scrambling over the bigger rocks. The entire Trough was socked in with waist-deep snow between the larger rock piles. I ended up doing a lot of zig-zagging to get out of sections where I couldn’t stop sinking. It took me two hours to get from the Keyhole to the top of the Trough, and it was physically and mentally exhausting. The Narrows were mostly clear, but I used my ice axe on two sections where the snow made a steep pile that covered the trail all the way to the exposed ledge. The Homestretch was nearly snow-free, with a few small snowmelt trickles running down in various places. Snow on the summit was ankle-deep, but all of the geographical markers were clear and easy to locate. Descending the Homestretch was borderline terrifying but only because my legs were so tired and shaky. I don’t think the snow in the Trough was firm enough to glissade (I didn’t try) but at least postholing on the descent is way less strenuous than on the ascent. Summit back to Keyhole took me a little over an hour, and then it seemed like it took 5 business days to get back to the parking lot (around 7:30pm). I found one like-new red Black Diamond hiking pole and a knitted hat and left them both at the trailhead This was my official 14er finisher 🥳 and even though the snow made it 100 times harder, I couldn’t have asked for a prettier, more perfect bluebird day 🩵 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 10/5/2025, By: Caitlin123
Info: Be prepapred for winter conditions beyond the keyhole. There's snow and ice all the way up, with the homestretch surprisingly being the clearest section, though with snow forecast for this evening, that's likely to change. I wore microspikes from the keyhole onwards. Spikes were perfect for today as there was still a lot of bare rock, but the Trough was fairly filled in and if there's a freeze-thaw cycle, crampons might be necessary. I didn't have an axe with me and never felt like I needed one as there was enough rock to stop a long sliding fall, but with a bit more snow, it'd be good to have one. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 10/4/2025, By: jeffmpls
Info: Snow free to the campsites in the boulder field, then spotty snow to the Keyhole. The Ledges are 30-40% snow free, and the Trough was 100% snowed in. The cover in the Narrows & Home Stretch was also mixed. I kept my micro spikes on from the Keyhole up and used my ice ax up & down the the Trough. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 9/30/2025, By: Karanpi
Info: We had great conditions today, storms rolled in while we were at the summit around noon but they stayed on the north/east side. We started at 430am, not many other people at trailhead, finished at 445pm. Snow started to cover the trail just before the Boulder field, but people got to the keyhole without spikes. Microspikes were pretty mandatory after the keyhole. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 9/26/2025, By: jeffmpls
Info: Snow began below treeline and increased with elevation. I hiked to the lower Boulder Field where snow depths were knee deep, 12" to 14". 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 9/23/2025, By: Rhodestrip
Info: I completed Longs on 9/19/25 starting at 4:30am and hiking for about 2 hours by headlamp, there were strong winds above treeline until sunrise. Plenty of parking and bathrooms at the start. The trail was in good condition up until the steep shoot after the keyhole. There was snow and ice up this shoot and took a lot of careful steps to avoid slipping. Now that it has snowed, spikes are likely needed and it still might not be enough. 

Route: Cables
Posted On: 9/19/2025, By: Kremit
Info: Dusting of snow from boulderfield up, the approach has decent snow coverage though deep (6 inches in some places), and is very icy(crux is iced over in many areas, the slabs though icy have many dry rock spots), definitely a mixed route now, traction and axe necessary, a couple small screws 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 9/14/2025, By: Caitlin123
Info: Went up via the Loft and descended the Keyhole. Started around 6 a.m. The slabs in the Loft Couloir were mostly dry and fine to walk up. It started snowing consistently as I left the Loft and continued steadily for at least a couple of hours. The snow was dry and grippy, but the rock on the Homestretch was slick beneath the snow and it would slide when stepped on. I didn't use spikes on the way up, instead just sticking to the cracks, which had good snow accumulation, or used rock features. I put on spikes for the descent for traction on the rock beneath the snow, and they worked well -- the snow was sufficently dry it would just slide off even when it was deeper. Lower down after the trough the snow was wetter and started balling a little on my spikes. As the snow melts and refreezes, it'll be very slick up the top.
The parking lot was nearly full at 6 a.m. I saw quite a few people on the way up, but after Loft Couloir I didn’t see anyone until below Granite Pass; most people likely most turned around once the snow started, or started early and were already descending by the time it really started snowing. 

Route: Keyhole Route
Posted On: 9/6/2025, By: Rowelljdwofford
Info: We hit the Longs Peak trailhead at 2:45 a.m. and were surprised to still find a few parking spots open. A light rain greeted us on the first mile, but it blew through quickly. By the time we reached the Keyhole, the mountain had wrapped itself in heavy fog, and we seriously considered turning back. Other climbers reported about 1.5 inches of snow up on the Homestretch, which didn’t exactly boost our confidence.

Still, we decided to push on—and it turned out to be the best call of the day. The weather held steady, and just as we reached the Homestretch the clouds began to lift. By the time we topped out, the summit was clear and calm. We stood on top of Longs at 10:00 a.m., soaking in views we hadn’t expected to get.

The descent reminded us just how fast conditions can flip up there. Back at the Keyhole around 1:00 p.m., the snow rolled in, and from there it was a mix of snow and graupel all the way to the trailhead. An unforgettable climb—fog, snow, clear skies, and all.