Pikes Peak

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 6/29/2025, By: GUTstring
Info: Small patches of snow in last 300' of route and below Little Pikes. Can be avoided or stomped through with minimal postholing. 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 6/27/2025, By: outerbanksdad
Info: I got to the trailhead at 9:00 pm and the parking lot was empty. I car camped and I left the trailhead at 1:30 this morning.  The temperature was warm enough for a sun shirt and hiking pant but I did wear gloves. The only snow I saw was just past Devils Playground. I crossed on snow field around 3:30 and it was solid but it was early. No spikes were needed and no post-holing either way. I ended summited at 5:30 am and beat the sunrise by minutes. Incredible views. Route finding was very easy on the way up but I did stray off the route towards the summit and lost 30 minutes of overall time. My overall time was 7 hours with a 15 minute stop at the summit. Beautiful day! Oh, forgot someone lost an Iphone and they put it on a cairns approximately 20-30 min from devils playground on the lower end. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/23/2025, By: BRadleyC
Info: Near summer conditions on the Barr Trail. Only a few small/short snow crossings. Had microspikes and didn't bother to put them on. 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 6/24/2025, By: mcosby
Info: Route is in good shape. Some patchy snow near the top, but nothing of note. 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 6/16/2025, By: lang_daly
Info: Micro spikes still very helpful for last 900 foot or so pitch to the summit. Was still frozen when I descended around 9:45. 

Route: Y Couloir Direct
Posted On: 6/30/2025, By: Jonathan Deffenbaugh
Info: Perfect snow conditions ascending the Y Direct, over 2K vertical. Front point conditions near the summit after taking the direct option. Standard snow climbing gear, ice axe, crampons, helmet. Approach trail good to Bottomless Pit, some snow crossings but avoidable as well. Descended via Barr Trail. Just some snowy sections near the top at the 16 Golden Stairs, but shouldn't be a hazard much longer, had microspikes for that section. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/16/2025, By: krull543
Info: Great day for an up and down! Hit the bottom of the Barr about 5:45am. Perfect conditions. Above 13k there was still a lot of snow and ice. Some sections the trail was not discernible. Thankful for poles for extra stability. Very clear from the top! 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 6/11/2025, By: johnfegy
Info: I hiked Pikes Peak from the Crags Trailhead up the Northwest Slopes route. I hiked the entire route in trail runners with no other equipment (I started at 6:00 am). From the trailhead to the Devils playground it was clear of snow other than a few small drifts. From Devil's Playground there were a handful snow slopes that I had to traverse but they were all soft enough that I didn't have any trouble at all just walking across them. Occasional snow on/off from miles 4-5. The final pitch (~800ft) was quite snowy, but I stuck to the leftmost ridge spine and was able to move from rock-to-rock with no trouble (see red line in stock photo for reference). I took the same route down and it was a breeze. Total roundtrip summit time at a casual pace was about 6 hours. The second photo I took today at the bottom of the final pitch and you can see I did have to walk on some snow between rocks at the very bottom. Massive thunderstorms rolled in right at noon so I was glad I was back at my car by then. 

Route: Y Couloir
Posted On: 6/7/2025, By: Been_Jammin
Info: Climbed the Y Couloir via barr trail and bottomless pit. Used jmanner’s GPX starting at the Y split. Bomber beta. Perfect Conditions. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/3/2025, By: jjmirk12
Info: I started at 4:15 from barr trailhead, the parking lot was nearly empty. There was no snow until the very end of the tree line where there were 2-3 small patches. There were a few larger snowfields after about 10ish miles but nothing too crazy. The last mile and a half from the summit was maybe half snow. I didn't use my microspikes on the way up and it felt completely fine. I put the spikes on for the descent which was nice, even though the snow was already quite soft (this was around 10am). I would say spikes or poles would be nice for maybe the next week of two but I'd imagine 80% of the current snowpack melts in the next 10 days. 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 6/2/2025, By: pastro
Info: Started from Crag’s Trailhead. Parking full by 0830 but other spots available nearby. Trail conditions were great. Snow above 10,000’, mostly compressed/melting. Spikes aren’t necessary but could help. Frequent storms at the peak this time of year. Be prepared to take a shuttle or the train down the mountain. 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 5/31/2025, By: Da Legit Master
Info: The trail is in good shape up to around 11,900' when you exit treeline. Intermittent snow from here to the road crossing just after Devil's Playground. After you cross the road it's pretty much solid snow to the summit. I was happy I brought my ice axe for the final steeper snow slope on the West face of the summit. Bring crampons/spikes and an ice axe if you expect firm conditions. On the way back down I was post holing up to my waist in a few of the unconsolidated sun baked flat areas. If you have warm conditions be prepared for miles of post holing that will significantly slow you down. Great water source at around 10,850'. Also options for water collection from snow melt on the west facing bowl just above treeline in the afternoon. The summit facility has a water fountain if it is open.  

Route: Y and Railroad Couloirs
Posted On: 5/27/2025, By: Jcinco
Info: Skied the Y Direct and ascended/exited the Railroad. The Y was quite dicey to enter with ice and new snow on rocky steps. Absolutely bring an axe and crampons for the entrance, or consider a rappel if you aren’t comfortable on that stuff. I was able to keep my skis on, just barely, for the cliffy section where the various chutes merge. Despite 2 guidebooks describing downclimbing to skier’s right, I was able to do it only far skier’s left. Skiing was excellent below this part. One could scratch together a ski of the Railroad, but only if you’re looking to check a box. The upper third is mostly talus but you could pick your way through on snow. Not my thing, especially on such a moderate pitch. Best to wait for a big upslope year. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/25/2025, By: Nukf4ce
Info: We started 5:40, Barr camp around 8:10, hard snow patches start shortly after but is easy to walk across til about a mile past tree line, then continuously pretty mushy snow until summit (ankle deep before 12, little deeper after), summited around 11:30 I believe and made it back to car around 6, sky’s stayed clear for the most part 

Route: Northwest Slopes
Posted On: 5/21/2025, By: butlerer
Info: Good conditions for hiking. Didn't need snowshoes. Used spikes for the top half bc of slippery, windswept slopes. There's a good track for most of the route that's easy to follow

The forecasted high winds did not disappoint! Super gusty (30-40 mph was forecast) above 13,000 ft between 7:30 and 10:30 a.m.

Parked at the winter gate about 1.1 mi from the crag trailhead.