Mt. Sneffels

Route: North face
Posted On: 9/23/2026, By: nohandz
Info: First snow on Sneffels! 

Route: South Slopes
Posted On: 9/23/2026, By: Syde0004
Info: Great trail. Parked at 5:45am and had plenty of available spots. Hiked the extra couple of miles to avoid the AWD road. That last 3/4 of a mile is so steep and so much scree. The scrambling was fun though. Be mindful of rockfall and causing rockfall. Would recommend a helmet. V notch wasn’t bad on the way up but was a bit of a challenge on the way down. I wouldn’t let it scare you away from the summit though. Dilly dallied on the way down taking in the view.

Trailhead 5:45am
Summit 8:50am
Back to car: 11:03am 

Route: South Slopes
Posted On: 9/8/2026, By: FeiAFei
Info: My group was able to drive a stock 2004 LX470 and a stock 2020 4Runner TRD Pro all the way to the upper trailhead. Looks very scared but doable.

Didn't pay attention on if there is any sign to prohibit camping but we did see people camping here and there.

Trail repair crew was there and thanks for their hard work to improve the trail condition. However, the climbing and coming down wasn't pleasant with all those loose rock. Have to pay extra attention on what under the foot.

We started at 9:30am and was able to summit at 11:30am. Very beautiful view on the top, and a large group of college kids on the top.

Just remind everyone to pay extreme caution on the safety. One lady broken her leg bone when came down from a 2-feet high rock. Mountain Rescue team and helicopter was called to send her to hospital. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 7/30/2026, By: garfieldvevo
Info: Monsoon season has made the dirt on the approach and some parts of the mountain proper muddy as well as rocks slippery, just something to be aware of 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 7/28/2026, By: EvanKBlack
Info: Ascended ridge, no snow whatsoever in the short gully (which I did not like and found surprisingly loose, just like a previous poster). Started to descend the standard Gully but ended up tagging along with a guide from SJ Mtn Sports and his clients. It is possible to bypass just about all of the really gross stuff on the descent by proceeding to the climber's right of it on a series of ledges. (stay tuned for TR where I shall share the GPX) 

Route: South Slopes
Posted On: 7/22/2026, By: aldsw
Info: Yankee Boy Basin is a beautiful area! I found the hike to be an easy 6 miles. The scree field was soft from recent rains making it easy to dislodge rocks but we didn't have issues.

The gulley above the scree field was fun climbing. We almost turned too early into a chute on the left side around half way up - keep going past that, the v notch is higher.
A couple climbers in front of us passed the v notch and went all the way to the ridge before coming back down.
The v notch was an easy move that felt worse down climbing than going up.

One piece of advice is to take the trail that leads to Blue Lakes Pass and Wrights Lake instead hiking the road for that stretch. The is much more peaceful as it meanders along small waterfalls on Sneffels Creek and the lake. It was nice to hike on trail instead of road and to get away from all the jeeps, trucks and side by sides for a bit and I don't think it adds any mileage. 

Route: Snake Couloir via YBB
Posted On: 6/29/2026, By: Boggy B
Info: Went over Dike Col. One patch of neve in the steepest section. Awful when dry, 0/10 stars.
Snake was quite nice, bulletproof snow and no wind until the top.
40-50mph wind on the summit. Better than Saturday. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 6/25/2026, By: notidealbutfine
Info: Quasi-legal car camped just below the Yankee Boy Basin 2WD TH Tuesday evening and got started the next morning at 5:00AM. The whole approach, southwest ridge and south slopes are totally void of any snow and are in full summer conditions. Both routes are way chossier than I was expecting though. Today felt like an apocalyptic scene with the massive amount of smoke, but I still managed a nice time and was feeling really good; the advantages of smoking cigarettes perhaps. Camp Bird road was already infested with Jeeps, dirt bikes and OHVs even at 9:30AM when I wrapped up. Sneffels didn't really live up to the hype for me, but was a nice easy day after Wilsons/Gladstone. #87!!! 8.43 miles / 3,366' gain / 4 hours, 20 minutes 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 6/21/2026, By: wsaunders11
Info: Up the SW ridge from blue lakes. No snow, all clear. Down the south slopes - still some snow in the gully but totally avoidable. 

Route: Snake Couloir
Posted On: 6/16/2026, By: Jonathan Deffenbaugh
Info: Trail clear of snow till you get to the base of the Snake Couloir. Took advantage of the switchbacks leading up to the apron. Once on the apron experienced minor postholing with snow conditions improving to solid step kicking conditions. Equipment included helmet, crampons, ice axe (hybrid), and an ice tool in case conditions warranted. Ended up only needing one ice axe while my climbing partner used both ice axe/ice tool. This was his first time climbing Mt Sneffels. Steepest section was near the chokepoint before the turn left for the final homestretch. Cornice was only prominent on the right side as we exited the chokepoint, solid snow climbing conditions there. Turning left on the dogleg though did require kickstep traversing however there were rock sections where we could take a break at least. Initially the final 500' was near the same angle as the climbing through the chokepoint during the gully's initial section however the angle eventually wore off as we approached the final summit tower. Near the summit tower though the snow was soft so make sure your steps are good kicking in and be ready to self arrest in case your feet give out. As mentioned in prior condition reports there are multiple variations of climbing the summit tower (approx 100-150' of climbing). We ended up climbing center right, which involved sections of climbing, traversing ledges, until we finally ended up on the NW ridge and solid climbing to finish the climb. Descended via the standard route where the upper gully still has a snow section left over. Recommend having a helmet, ice axe, and microspikes at least. Once we arrived at Lavendar Col, ended up scree surfing until we finally reached some prominent snowfields that was actually glissadable which made our descent more bearable till we reconnected with the trail leading down Blaine Basin. Hit some weather (rain) on the way down but no more biggie. One of the best lollipop routes on a 14er you'll get to experience, guaranteed! 

Route: South Slopes
Posted On: 6/13/2026, By: MyProject58-4
Info: Here are some conditions on the trail and trailhead-
The trailhead is muddy, and we had to park beneath the summit signs on the side of the road due to a large snow patch covering the final stretch of road to the trailhead sign. As for the lower part of the trailhead, it's decent, with streams starting after the restroom station. Saw at least 20 deer on the way up, there's a load of them.
As for the climb itself, lower sections are clear of snow. The hilly, choss-field of ascent is snow-free and very loose. We had a very large, car sized boulder move on us while ascending via the right side (looking up). I recommend ascending-descending closer to the left side (looking up/north) rather than the right (further south), because the rock is much steadier. As for the couloir prior to the V-Notch section of the route, snow is most prevalent on the left side, with some present on the right side. However, the right side is less steep, and has good suncup's which are stable in morning, before the sun hits it and softens it. Unfortunately, the accident from Wednesday is still apparent, as there are the occasional splotches of blood present during the ascent. As for the V-Notch, it's dry and clear, and the remaining route to the summit is great. I highly suggest ascending early and descending the snow in the couloir before the sun hits it, as I personally almost tumbled after a snowcup broke on me, luckily saved by another much harder cup and a self-arrest with my ice axe. Micro spikes and an Ice Axe highly recommended. I highly suggest ascending/descending the east side of the couloir. 

Route: Ridge ascent, standard descent
Posted On: 6/10/2026, By: AlejandraOutside
Info: Road is snow free nearly to the upper trailhead with a notable exception in pictures below.

Trail up to the ridge is largely clear of snow, but some snowfields up to a couple dozen yards wide do persist. These stayed frozen, allowing travel without post holing even upon the descent.

The ridge is largely clear of snow, but the gulley at 13.6k feet continues to hold snow as mentioned in a prior report. I personally was glad to have my crampons and axe in hand. I found the snow to be losing integrity, with some crust but sugary underneath. The sun in this gulley after 10am worsened the snow quality, so we stuck to the right side of the gulley in the shade.

Upon descent the v- notch was snow-free. But the standard gulley down… shewee, that was unpleasant. Snow filled the upper gulley for a substantial portion of it, making for slippery, slow progress downward. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 6/4/2026, By: owen_farkas
Info: Up SW ridge, down South slopes.

Ridge route is mostly dry, except in the gully at 13,600' where there is hard pack snow. I used microspikes + ice ax here and wouldn't be comfortable ascending without it. The rest of the route is dry and enjoyable.

South Slopes: V notch is clear. The gully leading up from the col has packed snow beginning around halfway up. So many steps have been kicked into this slope that it is easy to ascend/descend with just microspikes. Rest of the descent is dry and loose.

Trailhead is dry to the outhouse parking. Snow still on the road above 12000' 

Route: South Slopes
Posted On: 5/24/2026, By: Caleb_airport
Info: Conditions are similar to the last post. Small snow patches that can be avoided until the gulley. I found it easier to climb and descend the snow patches on the steep scree climb. I recommend microspikes for the descent. I submitted without spikes and put them on for the descent. Snow was coming down around 10:30am so conditions better or worse this week. 

Route: South Slopes
Posted On: 5/19/2026, By: wolfemann
Info: 2-12" fresh snow (depending on drifts) on the trail above ~12,000 ft, but melting off quickly. Enough snow in the gully to take the edge off the loose garbage, and then pretty nicely textured firm snow/ice from saddle at top of lower gully to v-notch, some ice in v-notch (which only really made it easier with microspikes). Ice axe and at least microspikes recommended above lower gully. Very little snow above the v-notch.