Snowmass Mountain

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/23/2022, By: ReggieBop
Info: Took my day off this week to scamper down to snowmass - the approach to the lake is stunning right now. Log jam is totally fine, not a problem. The rock scree is as joyous as scree can be. The snow approach to the notch is not awesome, I wore microspikes but crampons would have been better. Mountain axe was a great tool to have. Ice axes not necessary. The notch has a cornice, I bypassed in on the right, hugging the rock, but I punched through the snow, and my feet were "dangling" down for a second, as the snow gave way under my feet- my axe was firmly gripping the snow, thank goodness. Due to the deteriorating snow, take caution if doing this modification to the Easy Slopes route. Gorgeous views from the summit. Car to summit to car in a few hours, fun day! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/22/2022, By: logan18er
Info: Summited Snowmass on the solstice. Conditions were pretty similar to previous reports. The logjam was no big deal, as long as you have hiking poles- no need to get your feet wet if you don't want to. Plenty of dry camp spots by the lake outlet, but there was still significant (and annoying) snowdrifts around the lake, although they're melting fast. The scree slope is dry (and a pain). Conditions on the Snowmass were excellent- it didn't feel like there was any danger of postholing (or avalanches), but it was soft enough to glissade down. Ice axe is mandatory. My Dad and I had no trouble getting up using just spikes, but another party with crampons seemed to have an easier time. Go and do Snowmass now, before the snow melts! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/17/2022, By: JBORDEN1503
Info: Logjam is totally good. Snow around the lake makes the going a little bit slower. Overall conditions very similar to the previous report. The traverse was mostly clear and all snow can be avoided on the traverse. In our group I had crampons while my partner had micro spikes. While we both made it just fine we agreed that crampons would still be the smart choice, and an ice axe is definitely required. We also found hiking poles very helpful on the snowfield and logjam. 16 hours car to car for our group, although we heard others say it took longer. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/12/2022, By: Christensenje
Info: Logjam continues to improve and we/many other groups seemed to pass it just fine. Brought chacos, hiking poles, and good balance. Feet barely got wet.

Some snow on the trail around the lake. Was able to follow footsteps before us and barely postholed. But a second pair of socks isn't a bad idea if shoe aren't completely waterproof.

The scree slope is pretty dry. Above the scree slope, snow was awesome to walk on top of. Only brought hiking poles and micro spikes. Someone who wants more security could bring crampons but we didn't feel like it was mandatory.

From the ridge, very few snow patches to work around. Made a few sections a little more than what they would be than if dry but thought it was fine and not a big issue if your comfortable in that terrain.

Glissaded/shoe ski'd back down to the screw slope. An ice axe was nice to have for this part. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/10/2022, By: JROSKA
Info: We planned a Saturday summit but did not make it due to issues with the logjam. I won't describe it as “impassible” because while we were mulling it over we did observe two parties cross it. They both got wet and so while it is possible, the only way is to spend some time in the water. Can't stay on the logs. Water shoes are a must. The current is really strong now and if you went in the water in an unexpected way in all those logs in water that cold you could have a problem. The ford crossing 150 feet downstream (or any other option) didn't seem viable for us. Again the current is too strong. Today, the logjam was the only option but we viewed it as a bad one so we turned back. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/13/2022, By: danpayne17
Info: Hiked up to the lake the evening of the 5th. Patchy snow starting about halfway up. Followed the boot pack so didn't put on gaiters or snow shoes, although I had both. The logjam was passable, but barely. I took off my boots and socks and rolled up my pant legs. I was able to navigate about the first 80% of the logjam without getting wet, but the last part I had to dip into the water. Extremely cold water! All told it took me about 7 hours to make it to the lake. The downed trees, logjam, snow patches and my heavy pack slowed me down. Camped at the lake along with a couple other teams. Started my climb the next morning at 2:15am. Snow conditions were perfect. Followed a boot pack trail around the lake. Put my crampons on at the base of the gulley. Crampons and ice axe required in my opinion. The ascent from here is steep and continuous snow until the ridge. Once near the ridge line, I took the standard route. Due to the way the snow had accumulated on it, it was extremely steep. I actually descended the direct route as it was less steep. The ridge itself is mostly clear of snow. I left my crampons on for the traverse. Spent about 30 minutes on the summit and then for descent, went the direct route. It has a small cornice on top of the notch, but this is easily avoidable by going climbers right of the cornice. There's a slot to get onto the ridge line from there. Anyway, for my descent, I glissaded down the direct route all the way to the lake. Absolutely fabulous glissade! By now the sun was out and getting back around the lake was a slog. I'd stashed snow shoes at the base of the gulley for the return but wasn't able to locate them. If you find a pair of snowshoes, please DM me. I'd love to get them back. All told from the lake it took me 10.5 hours RT including 30 minutes on the summit. Great day for a climb with perfect weather and excellent conditions. On the hike back to the TH, the logjam had changed and was able to cross it without taking my boots off or getting wet. Be sure to bring hiking poles or find a walking stick or two to help you get across it. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/6/2022, By: ltwagner
Info: Planned an overnight trip at Snowmass lake and had planned to summit today (6/6). As mentioned in previous posts, the logjam is just not a safe option right now. We chose to cross about 100 ft downstream (photo attached, pointing to where we crossed) and the water was about knee deep. Poles and water shoes are a must. The trail after the logjam, towards the lake is in bad condition. Lots of fallen down trees and large snow piles. I'm 5'5 and would posthole past my knee. The last mile before the lake is predominantly these snow piles (photo attached). Good water proof boots are a must and gaiters may be helpful.

Camped at Snowmass Lake. Lake is mostly frozen. Only enough room for about 3 tents (photo attached). We decided not to summit the next morning because the weather was not ideal, was worn out from the previous day of postholing and had other hikers described less than ideal snow conditions on the mass. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/5/2022, By: jfm3
Info: I attempted a 1-day climb of Snowmass today. I left the trailhead at 12:45 AM and turned around at the logjam. The logjam cannot be crossed without at least 2 steps in the water. Snowmass Creek is an absolute torrent right now and the pond is several feet deep. Most of the logs are not anchored in place but are just floating in the water. Many of them would move several inches up and down when I stepped on them. I tried to cross 2 different places and couldn't do it. I also looked downstream and didn't see anything. I was at the logjam at ~3:30 AM and in the dark I was unable to assess the fording location of the previous condition update- the water was smooth and flowing and I couldn't tell how deep it was. I recommend wading/fording at this spot instead of trying to cross the logs. I might try again next weekend with some water shoes. The water level in the pond needs to drop several inches to expose enough logs to allow a dry crossing. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/5/2022, By: 14ercooper
Info: Easy hiking up to the log jam. Attempting to cross the log jam itself was pretty sketchy - wound up taking a dive into the water by mistake because a big part of the jam decided to break free - I found fording the river about 100-150ft downstream was much easier on the way back.
A fair bit of snow once you get into the trees near the lake, and pretty continuous snow from the far side of the lake up to the ridgeline - either hang more left on the standard route or be prepared to deal with some cornices to gain the ridge (though the notch variation is traversible, there was still a fairly problematic cornice for me). Still had some great snow conditions for hiking/climbing. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/28/2022, By: Alpinefroggy
Info: Per a bit of educated guessing on my part, the storm would have avoided the elks. It did.

The approach is good until the logjam. The logjam itself is kinda sketchy. I did it and the easiest way to cross was to use hiking poles and get at least one foot wet. The logs are unssportive in general so test them and go slow. I was fine.

Once past the logjam things get absolutely heinous it's consistent snow in the forest with a mixture of bootpack, postholing, deadfall jumping etc. easily took the longest and was very unpleasant at the end of the approach.

Lake is completely snowed over. No campsites besides some small areas are currently snow free.

On snowmass: the first gully is getting sketchy. Snow coverage is starting to be an issue. There are good lines though. I found myself postholing on a few occasions and saving myself with a well planted ice axe.

Altitude sickness came in for me at 12,500 (booo) but my partner and others that did successfully summit reported that the cornice is still there on the direct line and the backside has similar conditions to the conditions report 2 weeks ago. There is plenty of evidence of wet slides on the upper snowmass so start early end early. 2 am from the lake seems to be a great time.

Snowshoes might have been helpful but my partner and I didn't have them and didn't think you needed them. Only big issue with postholing was coming back around the lake after the sun is up.

Overall a great weekend up on snowmass even if I had to turn around. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/29/2022, By: bsiegs
Info: Climbed 5/28 with Alpinefroggy, who recently posted a great conditions report. I'll add a few more details and photos here -

- Started towards the direct route to the ridge, but the cornice was still there. Instead, I gained the ridge midway between standard and direct routes. Once on the ridge, it's essentially all rock to the summit.
- Coming back I opted to stay on the ridge longer and descend the standard route. The initial ~150 ft off the ridge was quite steep, but once the angle eased a bit, I had an awesome series of glissades from ~13.5k to ~12.2k.
- Visible evidence of previous wet-slide activity, and I was very happy with the 2am start choice. Summited at 7am and was back to the lake at 10:45. Snow was already softening as I was making my way down.

Awesome climb overall - mountain is in great shape! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/29/2022, By: Wigwam5
Info: Snow was dirty, but stable on the way up in the basin after the couloir. Getting to the ridge required climbing on a cracked and steep snow face. Ridge was still mixed climbing, but do not need crampons at this point. Most of the couloirs on the way down were corniced, but I was able to drop in one and ride down on the splitboard. Another group decided it was easier to head north from where we accessed the ridge to where I had droped in. Great riding down to the lake. Did see a slide on the south aspect, but nothing too concering around the peak. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/16/2022, By: Danger_D
Info: Mud season is in full effect. Muddy with sporadic snow up to the log jam, and consistent snow above 10,500. The logjam itself looks dicey. There was a snowbridge when we went up on saturday, but it was broken on sunday. We found a knee-deep ford about 50 yards downstream from the logjam which was an easy crossing. Snowfield up from the lake is in great shape, but the direct approach has a massive cornice on it. Snow on the west side of the ridge was very supportive, and we left some booters for the next group. Once you gain the ridge this route is no joke, so go in knowing it has mixed scrambling and steep snow in high consequence terrain.

Photo 1 is the approach from the lake. Photo 2 is the steeper than expected climb up the standard route to the ridge. Photo 3 is looking back on the west side of the ridge. Photo 4 is looking at the summit block from the west side of the ridge 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/2/2022, By: gatorquest
Info: Summited and skied via East Slopes on 4/31 (hiked in on 4/30). We were able to drive within .2 miles of the TH - it's melting fast so I suspect you can make it up soon. We kept our skis on our packs until ~4.5 miles in where there was continuous snow all the way to the summit. You will want to throw your skis on earlier but trust me when I say it's not worth it. Trail is melting fast but it's post hole city until you finally reach glorious continuous snow. If you're not skiing, bring snow shoes or be prepared for misery!

Log jam is fully covered in snow making for easy passage (note that area is melting fast, make sure you stick to the trench/skin track on the far edges of the creek). Snowmass lake is still frozen but it's starting to melt a touch on the edges. Easy to grab running water at the lake.

Upper mountain is fully covered from the lake to the summit - note there's a solid sun crust that unfortunately didn't warm up on Sunday. We heard from others who summited Saturday (much warmer and full sun all day) that the crust at the top wasn't warmed even at 2pm. We took the direct route to gain the ridge - there's a solid bootpack all the way up. I found the ridge to the summit to be sketchy - good amount of unconsolidated snow so be careful. Crampons + ice axe is a must imo 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 4/30/2022, By: RickDalton
Info: Parking within .25 of TH, some vehicles were creeping closer to summer TH which is pretty much snow free. Right hand turn to TH has patchy snow fields.

Approach is 80% snow, this morning the snow was firm all the way to Snowmass Lake, no spikes or flotation needed. Left TH at 6am and got to lake around noon. Too late for summit attempt, snow on the descent was mostly soft. Wore flotation until the north snowmass view. Slow going with patchy snow back to parking. Today was warm, a lot snow melt and a little more than a dozen people I encountered, trail was pretty chewed up.

There is avy debris between 2-3 miles in that I don't remember from last year. Has a clear trail through towards the bottom. Log jam is snow covered. Area above log jam/switch backs over the blue pond is kind of sketchy.