Mt. Princeton

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 4/21/2017, By: bmcqueen
Info: Road is dry to about 9,600', but had to start from last pkg spot I could find without blocking the road at 9,480'. We took winter route up and over Tigger. No snowshoes required if you elect that option right now - just spikes. Rest of ridge is windblown snow. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 3/19/2017, By: tcphoto87
Info: Didn't get to summit, but plan on bringing snowshoes as it was nothing but postholing from the TH to the towers and beyond. Spikes didn't help. It was super hot outside so a lot of the snow was melting. People coming down told us it was more of the same the whole way up (they didn't have snowshoes either) so after the towers we gave up. Took us 3 hours and 15 minutes to do the 3.2 miles to the towers. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 3/19/2017, By: LoveThisSite
Info: Beautiful day in the mountains. Very very tiring with all the soft snow on the way down.
On the way up:
I made the mistake of trying to traverse the rocks and avoiding Tigger. Don't do this! Going up and over Tigger is far more efficient than what I did. The ridge from Tigger to Princeton has some snow, but even microspikes are unnecessary for that part.
On the way down:
I didn't think the remaining snow on the standard summer route would slide, but use your own judgement. My partner wasn't comfortable with the summer route so we ended up going over Tigger again. One other party did come down the standard summer route.

Equipment: snowshoes mandatory unless you enjoy postholing. Still tons of snow up there near tree line. Microspikes weren't very useful overall. An axe could be useful if you decide to glissade. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 3/19/2017, By: jdroche135
Info: My buddy and I hiked Princeton on Saturday and we tried to descend on the standard route from the saddle around 13,000' (NOT a good idea). I don't recommend this. We made it across, but the snow was not that stable and the slopes were pretty steep. My buddy picked up more speed than was comfortable to watch on his glissade down, but made a good self arrest. I made it down to about 12,400' and across two of snowfields on the descent and then completely abandoned the attempt when I saw the 3rd snow crossing. Instead of messing around with any of the snowfields, I climbed up loose rock to Tigger Peak at 13,250'(?). My buddy continued on the standard route and when we re-convened, he admitted that it was not a good idea to continue (he crossed a total of 6 sketchy snowfields on the standard trail from the ridge to treeline).

Taking this 'shortcut' cost us probably an extra 90 minutes (and a lot of extra energy and frayed nerves). Try this route at your own risk.

The route up was through a ton of snow and since it was early, we didn't posthole much, but on the way back we must have postholed a couple hundred times.

Also, at 11,800', make sure to turn right on the trail (which was not visible). We mistakenly hiked further up along the road (across a steep snowfield) and after realizing our mistake, hiked up the steep snowfield which cost us quite a bit of energy. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 3/12/2017, By: RyGuy
Info: Road is fairly snowpacked from the TH to the radio towers. Snowshoes not required to the radio towers, but highly recommended. Large tree down across the road at 38°44'35" N 106°11'33" W. Pretty easy to get though on foot. From the radio towers up to treeline, snowshoes required. We took the ridge directly up Tigger to avoid avalanche danger on the upper road. Trench should be there awhile. Above treeline, the ridge is fairly windblown with big snow patches. No need for snowshoes. Summit pretty dry. Lots of wind scouring. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 3/8/2017, By: BillWright
Info: Put in snowshoe/ski track up road to ridge. Above there, no floatation needed. Road is icy/crusty snow and some tricky sidehill stuff on rock-hard snow. Full report here:

http://billwright510climbing.blogspot.com/2017/03/mt-princeton.html 

Route: Other
Posted On: 2/6/2017, By: Eagle Eye
Info: Starting at the lower TH, I left the 322A Road at about 11,800 for Tigger Peak's NE Ridge, then reached Mt Princeton on the Tigger Peak - Mt Princeton connecting ridge, and returned the same way. I used micro spikes from the start up to the radio tower, snowshoes on the rest of the road and up onto the NE Ridge, then often used micro spikes for traction beyond. Lots of hard crust snow and windblown drifts on the Tigger Peak - Mt Princeton connecting ridge made it slow going. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 12/12/2016, By: Jessiahbram
Info: The road up to the towers is snowy up until the point where the trees clear out facing south. We parked on the road where the first pull-off is available and the closure sign (between December 1st and April 16th (?)) is located. No substantial snow anywhere, and as such, snowshoes were not required. Despite indicators stating that the NE/E face of the standard route is prone to avalanche, the reality is that there is nowhere near enough snow for any avalanches. We put on microspikes shortly after coming off of the road, and even then we were going back and forth between stepping on the rocks and being in the snow. Managed to make it up to the saddle but turned around because of incoming snow from the north. It may have got a bit more from that storm (dropped during the remainder of Saturday and Sunday), but as we were descending the snow, for the most part, missed the peak. Overall, very doable when we went - we estimated that RT was likely ~11 miles. Will put up images when I get them off the camera :) 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 11/25/2016, By: lkk8815
Info: Trail is completely dry except for a pathetic amount of snow scattered throughout. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 11/22/2016, By: connorhodes
Info: No snow as of 11/20, no need for snowshoes or any winter equipment 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 11/15/2016, By: prddraper
Info: Great day for a hike up Princeton! Like one of the previous people posted it was summer like conditions. No snow except perhaps in some shady sections on the way up. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 11/13/2016, By: CVAC
Info: No snow in grouse canyon. Route is clean until trail turns east from point 13,971. Light snow to summit, nearly all avoidable. Traction not necessary with good shoe tread. Footwear worn Salomon Sense Pro. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 11/12/2016, By: merrion13
Info: Minor snow between 12-13K, no traction needed on shoes. Summit was clear of snow. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 11/12/2016, By: JQDivide
Info: Recommend Traction... is it a must? No. But with cold temps and northern shady exposure some people will want traction, microspikes. Snow and ice on the rocks/trail from the Tigger saddle to the grass slopes.
If you have spikes, take 'em you may want them.
And if it snows anytime soon, you'll really want traction. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 11/13/2016, By: vanessasherk
Info: Completely summer time conditions. In the few spots in which snow existed, it was soft and very avoidable. You would be more likely to ruin your traction by wearing them on the exposed rock than you would be to fall because you weren't wearing it. The summit was a bit windy, but there are several rockwalls built up to block the wind while you rest/enjoy the view. After Princeton, we summited Tigger Peak, starting at the saddle, then descending towards where the trailhead left the road via the stair case. Completely dry.