7/9/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 7/10/2017, By: BobbyFinn Info: Snowy up high. Melted down low including the lake. |
|
7/2/2017 Route: S-Ridge (West) Posted On: 7/4/2017, By: TallGrass Info: Geneva Lake trail from LKB is overgrown at places and there are downed pines at Geneva Lake. Snow obscures trail at places farther up that you'll have to route find if doing the West Face standard. I spotted one guy ascending the West Face below while I was atop the S-Ridge, but never saw him summit (apparently turned back). Snow is solid and cupped for crossing patches and the creek. Right (farthest) gully's snow takes a axe shaft well in the lower half, for the upper switched to swinging the pick. Ridge direct snow free as is romp over to N. Snowmass. Heard some complain about West Ridge snow (too hard or soft). Everyone I met on the summit came up from the lake (East). I used crampons but spikes would probably be fine with good boots and technique, and you'd only need them in the gully shown if taken up and back. Regardless of footwear, bring an axe, and if overnight, a bear canister. Trail is in good enough shape that you can do it in a day if you start real early and bring extra headlamp batteries. Might also bring river socks for creek crossing in case the snow bridge falls or you descend from the Snowmass-Hagerman saddle and have to cross the creek via the trail on the N side of Geneva Lake (no bridge, can be two-feet deep). |
|
6/24/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 6/24/2017, By: jladderud Info: Log jam is crossable without getting wet (if you're careful--waterproof shoes help, too). Patchy snow between log jam and the lake. Almost entirely snow from lake to summit (except for the boulder field and the backside of the summit ridge). Direct route is in. Lots of sun cups in the snow. I was happy to have mountaineering boots and crampons; but others summited today in trail runners and micro spikes. Get up earlier if not using crampons. I gained the summit ridge at 9:15 and the snow was getting soft. Lots of sitting and standing glissade opportunities, so bring an ice axe! We didn't post hole at all on the descent (out of the snow by about 11:30). The trail around the lake is mostly covered in steep snow banks, so just choose your own route to the boulder field. |
|
6/18/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 6/19/2017, By: MichiganBrian Info: Water is running high and it's impossible to make it across the logjam right now without getting wet. We started just before 4am and snow conditions were good most of the way. We reached the ridge on the standard route around 7am and I would not have wanted to be much later as the snow was deteriorating rapidly at that point. West side of the ridge on the standard route up until the direct route notch is in poor condition. The snow fields are un-supportive under an ice crust and did not feel stable (we opted to drop down to rocks and generally avoid them). Due to conditions it's very slow going right now between ridge top on standard route and summit. Recommendation would be to leave a little earlier and take the direct route to avoid that for the time being (we felt we were too late for the snow conditions). Departing the ridge for the return at the first notch was soft and stable. |
|
6/14/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 6/15/2017, By: ndff3681 Info: Almost no snow up to the log Jam. In the pine trees after the log jam had a difficult time route finding in a few spots due to snow and downed trees. Snow shoes were not needed. Climbed standard route in good snow conditions. The west face is still very icy and makes the climb feel uneasy for sure. On the descent, we glissaded down the standard route in soft, afternoon snow conditions. The cornice on the direct route can easily be bypassed to the right. |
|
6/11/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 6/12/2017, By: Jdplatt Info: Backpacked in to snowmass lake Saturday. A few minor snow patches before the log jam. Continuous snow starting about half a mile after the log jam all the way to the ridge. Carried snowshoes and never used them. Started about 4:30 Sunday morning and the snow on the snowmass was solid most the way up. The snow started getting noticeably softer around 7:30. Plenty of slide debris. Did not like how the standard route up to the ridge looked so we took the direct route. Once on the ridge there was a mix of snow and ice to make the route pretty sketchy feeling. Tried to stay ridge proper most the way. Spoke with another part who took the standard route to the ridge and did not feel comfortable continuing to the summit. Crampons and ice ax were mandatory from the lake to the summit. Had some very enjoyable glissades coming back down the snowmass. Also note there are a LOT of downed trees right now in the woods making finding the trail plenty interesting. |
|
5/27/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 5/29/2017, By: globreal Info: The TH is totally clear and easily accessible. The snow level is now up to 10,000' (Memorial Day weekend). You'll want snow shoes or skis above the log jam if going up to Snowmass Lake. There is still 3-5 feet of snow at the lake. There is tons of snow in the "mass" of Snowmass and the ridge to the summit is also loaded with snow. |
|
5/16/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 5/17/2017, By: Gueza Info: Skied the E face direct from the summit in excellent corn conditions. Was also able to start skinning continuously about 5 miles in from the TH. |
|
4/15/2017 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 4/16/2017, By: ajlavigne Info: Intermittent snow, mud, and dry trail for the first several miles. Continuous snow from (about) 10,000', through the Snowmass Creek valley, and all the way to the summit ridge with the exception of a few steps through the shallow runoff where the trail crosses E of Snowmass Lake, which is completely frozen and snow-covered. Nothing too crazy from the lake to about 13.6k at about 8am, where the snow got pretty soft; crampons or aggressive snowshoes work fine to this point, then crampons are a must for the ridge. We took the direct line up, just to the S of the summit, as there were no cornice concerns. The snow on the W side of the ridge-proper was pretty loose in places and there were a few loose rocks, but the class 3 mixed ridgeline was awesome. We were off the summit ridge by 9:30 and even then were a bit concerned with the immediate descent sliding underneath us. The snow heats up fast and the descent was a bit loose with loads of plunge-stepping down to the lake. |
|
3/12/2017 Route: West Slope Posted On: 3/13/2017, By: SnowAlien Info: Got lucky with conditions, but not lucky with the weather. Storm moved in at 9am on Sunday, not giving us much of a window. No summit views and snow was ice with 2 inches of freshies when we descended. Top 300 ft are not in (rocks). We skied down from 13k down to the car via Lead King upper route (Crystal approach had too many ups and downs and melted out patches to be a viable ski route). Just under 19 hr RT car to car in 2 days with extra 1,200 ft gain for the upper route. With Matt Bourget |
|
11/13/2016 Route: West Slope Posted On: 11/14/2016, By: pbergmaier Info: Attempted Snowmass via the West Slopes route on Sunday. Had a late start but still made it up to 13,000' before turning around due to time. Despite there being quite a bit of snow on the peaks to the south, Snowmass itself was relatively snow-free. The hike up past Geneva Lake to Little Gem Lake was mostly dry. There were a couple ~100-ft-long sections of snow in shaded areas, maybe 6 inches deep. On the arduous climb up the west face, there was quite a bit of ice right at the beginning of the first class 3 section below the main gully that the route ascends. After that, there were areas of snow on north-facing aspects to climber's right of the gully (see third photo below). These are easily avoided by sticking to the route description, which takes you up the center or left side of the gully (which are snow-free). With significant snow likely later this week, I expect these conditions to change drastically by Thursday or Friday. |
|
9/10/2016 Route: West Slope Posted On: 9/12/2016, By: mdavenport2 Info: Approach trail and climbing route were dry and ideal for climbing with the exception of the grassy wet area that had ice on much of the rocks in the morning. Avoided the ice by climbing to the right of the grassy area. The ice had melted from this area later in the day and presented no problem on the descent. |
|
9/10/2016 Route: S Ridge Posted On: 9/13/2016, By: jonharadon Info: The S Ridge on Snowmass is a fantastic route on almost entirely solid rock. The position on the ridge is excellent, and if you skirt a couple of crux sections to climber's left, the climbing never has to exceed Class 3. I think this is the best route on Snowmass, and would strongly recommend it over the West Slopes. |
|
9/10/2016 Route: West Slope Posted On: 9/13/2016, By: jonharadon Info: Caveat: I only descended this route after going up the S Ridge. This route is a teetering pile of misery that should never be done by anyone. Ever. After crossing the stream beyond Gem lake, fully 50% of the steps you take will be on awful, loose, shifting, sliding scree or larger rocks, with frequent danger to either yourself or people below you. If you are thinking about ascending this route, you should immediately reconsider and do anything, anything, else. If climbing Snowmass from the west, definitely choose the S Ridge. If you aren't sure if you are up for sustained, somewhat exposed Class 3, wait until you are, don't ascend this route. While not one of the 'formal' routes on 14ers.com (as of 9/13/16), the S Ridge is well detailed in the Trip Reports section. It has easy route-finding (stay on the ridge), a beautiful position, excellent Class 3 climbing (any class 4 is easily avoided), solid rock (large, deep fractures make for enormous handholds - but do make it appear loose). It's a top 5 class 3 ridge that should be on everyone's to-do list. The West Slopes route is a one-of-the-worst and should be avoided at all costs. |
|
9/9/2016 Route: East Slopes Posted On: 9/10/2016, By: mcklarry Info: Snowmass, left Aurora at 3:00 am, drove and hiked up and came home. How can a mountain with trees, shrubs to climb through, some mud, flowers everywhere, be so try and so much only rock for the last 1900 feet. The class three gully by grass earlier in morning with a little water had ice on it, so I ended up going just to the left and around. Should have gone straight to class four gully. I ended up in the class three gully for a bit but then went straight up to avoid the lose small rock. To encounter lose big rocks. Sigh. Large rocks that have no business moving do. And of course the little rocks move easily along the scree. Check holds and footing carefully. The road up was rough as stated, stream crossings are low, no snow, very dry. I found I liked North Maroon gullies less trouble. |
