Snowmass Mountain

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/25/2024, By: emself
Info: Snowshoes not needed as snow below the mass is inconsequential. Walking around lake was better than I expected from prior reports: there is a trail and it's fairly easy to follow. Gully was fine up until about 11,600 where we crossed the waterfall. Was ultimately happy with this choice, but this section seems unpleasant whichever way you go. On the snow, we took the standard route, but it has a minor cornice and still gets steep - very happy to have crampons instead of microspikes. Noticed a couple spots on this pitch where axe plunges hit rock, but it still goes for the time being. I strongly concur with others' recommendations to stay close to/on the ridgeline when possible. Lower = more loose rock and uncomfortable moves. 

Route: East Slopes - Direct Route
Posted On: 6/24/2024, By: qkuech
Info: Trail is dry (except for occasional stream crossings) and clear of snow until about 1 mile below Snowmass lake, most sites on the right of the lake from approach are also free of snow, some sites on the left of the lake are snow free but definitely wet. Started at 3AM, summited around 645AM. Trail from lake to talus field is a mix of snowfields and really wet sections but we did not bring or need snowshoes, trail isn't hard to follow once you find it after crossing the log bridge about 25 yards below the lake shoreline. Talus field is pretty easy as well, no major issues with route finding. Once you cross the talus field waterfall its a straight shot to the snowfield start. At snowfield we put on micro spikes and make a straight line towards the notch for the direct route. Climbing never gets unmanageable, and is easy if the snow is firm. Once making it through the final section on the direct route I would suggest taking the ridge direct. On our way up we continued on the standard route and had to cross a pretty slick snowfield which was fine, but on the way back had much more fun scrambling on the ridge, just make sure to test your holds before fully weighting them. Return to Snowmass Lake via same route! There are only three areas that pose a risk of getting soaked with high water right now- the log jam, Snowmass lake log crossing, talus field waterfall. Other than those areas its a pretty cruiser route! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/24/2024, By: colin j
Info: Campsites at the lake are dry and the approach trail is a little muddy in spots but otherwise summer conditions. Snow around the lake is patchy and has a good bootpack. Ascending from the lake to the snowfield is loose and crossing the stream is pretty sketchy right now. Continuous snow starts near 12,000' and the direct finish is in and the path up is pretty beaten in. Staying on the ridge crest to the summit is dry and is much better than traversing on the west side. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/19/2024, By: zerosignal28
Info: What a beast of a mountain this one is. Hiked in Monday and camped at the lake. Campgrounds are dry. Tuesday morning we were on the trail by 2:30. By far the biggest issue of the day was navigating around the lake. The trail is hard enough to find in daylight, but in pitch black conditions with only headlamps it was quite the challenge. What little trail that does exist and isn't covered in snow often times leads into unavoidable patches of trees and brush. Though the trail stays close to the lake at times, we opted to go higher and just plow through the snow, especially further around to the southwest side of the lake. Not sure how long these conditions will last, but snowshoes absolutely were helpful! Walking on the slope in snowshoes was not easy but it beats post-holing every step. Once past the lake and out of the brush we dropped our snowshoes and headed toward the gully. There is a lot of ugly scree if you make your turn up the mountain too soon, but on our way down we discovered it would be easiest to go as far to hiker's right as possible, cross the couple of waterfalls down low and boulder hop straight up until you reach snow. Did not need to put crampons on until the last push up to the summit ridge. A few switchbacks made things easier. Snow is very easy to climb up the direct route with an ice axe. A nice glissade made for quick work of a good part of the way down. Go get it while the snow lasts! If anybody is up there in the near future, my buddy lost one of his crampons. It's a yellow grivel and we think he may have dropped it on the glissade and would be much appreciated if someone finds and returns it. Thanks! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/16/2024, By: Ryan987
Info: What an amazing hike. Definitely my favorite so far. Camped at the lake last night (we were the only ones on a Saturday night!!!) and summited today. Left camp at 2:30, summit at 7, and back to camp at 10:30 The good: snow in the snowmass bowl was incredible if you don't start later than 3. Very firm and warms up well by 7-8 for excellent glissade to the gully. Direct route is still in and is an easy snow climb compared to other 14ers. Approach is gorgeous. Log jam crossing is no biggie for us. The bad: the gully leading up to snowmass is a mess. Awful, especially descending. Nothing but a scree fest and you aren't able to use the summer trail right now as it is hidden under sloppy snow. The trail around the lake is very post holey. Go get after it soon, the snow is amazing right now and should be for another two weeks 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/16/2024, By: gusbatcho
Info: Skied Snowmass on the 15th. Mostly melted to snowmass lake, then I chose a continuous snow chute to climbers left of the summer trail. Started from the Snowmass trailhead at 11:40PM friday night, got back to the car at 12:40PM Saturday which was a long day but I spent a couple hours lounging at the lake (1 hour each way). Overnight freeze was good enough to avoid postholing up top and a 7:30 summit, ~8:00 drop was pretty optimal corn. Video Summary: https://youtu.be/z72tpPmRxyY?si=zDc_XNxmdki0zYIs 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/9/2024, By: Pcypher
Info: Trail in is mostly completely snow free other than minor clumps which you can navigate easily until about mile 6.5. Snowshoes very very handy going up and we used microspikes coming down; depends on the timing of the day. A few spots at camp are clear of snow (pretty wet) on the right side of creek. Left side still covered in snow. Trail from lake is hard to follow, especially in the dark. Summer route still covered in snow and puts you on some precarious slopes. Would recommend crampons from lake. Staying low by lake is difficult in the dark and because the lake shore is melting fast; it is possible to stay above lake but its not a fun slope. Everything in gully is still covered; some post holing occurred but not bad. We heard some rockfall below snowmass peak a few times. I did hear whumpfing once. All slopes have evidence of wet slides, but not deep wet slides. Snow in snowmass was good quality so we continued. We gained the ridge on the left side of bump; large cornice on the right and didnt feel comfortable climbing steep direct route with avy forecast. Ridge sides/slopes are holding still quite a bit of snow and ice and clouds started changing so we called it just beyond the cornice realizing the ridge to be traversed would take more time than we had. Descending from about 12:00-5 (back at camp) the snow was wet sliding as we glissaded often and post holing increased. Boot pack is in tho; please go and get it so at least someone can tag this beast! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/5/2024, By: aksean22
Info: Skied Snowmass yesterday via the East face. Trail is bone dry for the first 5 miles. There are a few snow patches and running water on the trail before the river crossing that will get your feet wet. Water is still low enough that we had no issues getting across the log jam. Patchy snow starts a little past that and continuous snow starts about a mile before the lake, but it was firm and supportive so we just stayed in trail runners the whole way to the lake. Good snow the first 1000' past the lake, lots of clumping above that. Sunk in knee deep when we switched to booting, crampons needed the final 300' to the top. Skied the East Face directly off the summit, which is super steep for the first 100' and then mellows out into an enjoyable cruise all the way back to the lake. We were able to keep skis on almost to the logjam before switching back to shoes. Take this with a grain of salt, but I would be very hesitant about climbing this in the near future. We had a pretty good freeze Monday night and good cloud cover in the morning, and the snow was still wet and heavy. I would expect there to be significant shedding/wet slide activity up high with the higher temps that are forecasted this week. That plus the 17 miles of walking in shoes with skis on my back might mean ski season is over. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/3/2024, By: JeffWilli
Info: Lots of snow coverage, and climbable. At least 4 parties summited over the weekend. Popular with skiers. One party skied from the summit. Overall good conditions, with full snow. Boot track in on the upper standard route. Got soft fast, we had snowshoes and were happy to use them at times. Started at 3:15. A couple dry spots at lake but mostly snow. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/27/2024, By: sean23
Info: We hiked to the lake Sunday night to camp. We needed snowshoes from around 10k upwards. We attempted the climb this morning but turned around due to sketchy snow conditions (e.g. snow collapsing). There also appear to be substantial amounts of wind-drifted snow above the initial gully. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/19/2024, By: jadamso1
Info: Attempted Snowmass Mountain but turned back in the early AM when encountered avalanche risk we werent willing to take. There is significant snow last 4 miles and in the warmer parts of the day post holing is a significant issue (snowshoes a must) though we left a nice trench to the lake. There is still a snow bridge at log jam which is nice. We were the only ones at Snowmass Lake other than some pesky foxes. Significant snow in gulley and up to the ridge. See attached photo. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/6/2024, By: hokiehead
Info: 18"+ fresh snow on our way out Monday, so conditions definitely changed. Saturday, booted about 1/2 way from TH to Snowmass Lake, skinned from there. Sunday, skinned to just up the base of the snowmass, then used ski crampons as well to just shy of the ridge, then transitioned to boot crampons and ice axe. Mixed snow and rock climbing along ridge. We caught the worst ever snow conditions for the descent, crust over wet slush -- couldn't turn. Fresh snow before we left made navigation out a challenge. A group before did ski from the summit. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 10/21/2023, By: doeeth
Info: I only got 3.5 miles into the route and encountered a moose, and got creeped out. Kinda realized I was just trying to check off a box instead of fully considering the serious undertaking of this mountain. Of what I did see, it looked real snowy up there. The amount of snow would definitely make progress higher up slow, would necessitate crampons, and then also even enough snow to possibly trigger a small avvy although the pack should be decent if it has done enough freeze thaw cycles. The elks are definitely snowed in. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 10/8/2023, By: jklammer
Info: Great hike but I did not summit. The snow below the ridge blocks was just too soft and airy. I had spikes but when it got steeper, I couldn't get traction. The snow was just enough on the boulders that it no longer seemed smart to keep going. Overall great day and great conditions. Note: I started from the trailhead so it was about noon by time I decided to turn around. If you camped and could get near the summit earlier in the day, you would have more time. Aspens and foliage were still wonderful. 

Route: West Slope
Posted On: 10/3/2023, By: EmmaClaire5280
Info: Summited Snowmass peak from the West Slope this past Sunday! I was a little concerned as most other reviews that I have read raved about the insane rockfall danger, however my group and I experienced none. The West Slope was a pleasant route. You essentially walk through a gorgeous valley past a few lakes and then are straightened up a few gullies right to the summit! When you reach the grassy patch about a quarter of the way up the west slope, there is a waterfall that runs through it that has frozen over and become icy. Other than that conditions are CLEAR COPY. A fantastic little scramble and marvelous summit. It for sure beats the 22 mile haul of the standard route and avoids the crowds. Peak 45/58:)