Snowmass Mountain

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/20/2023, By: pika_squeaka
Info: TL/DR: still all snow from the lake, start before 3am unless you are super fast, bring crampons (or microspikes minimum), ice axe, warm/waterproof gloves, gaiters, rain coat, down jacket, rain/snow pants, extra socks, extra shoes/crocs for camp. Snow shoes not needed. Prep for scary ridge hike of ice/snow climbing mixed with rock scramble, and try to glissade off ridge into bowl but beware glissading into rocky creek near lake. Snow looks prime for skiing but a hefty slog to get up there..... The trail is still all snow from Lake Snowmass and mostly snow from the log jam. There was room for about 12 tents the night we stayed (June 17), but everyone was pretty tightly packed in the dry spots. It snowed about 6 inches on the mountain June 17 and no one we met on their way down was able to summit that day due to storms/snow. It rained, snowed, and hailed on most people on their way up to the lake June 17, but we started first around 7 and set up camp at Lake Snowmass before the snow/hail at 3. Definitely still got rained on and boots were wet for the whole trip. Fortunately, the weather cleared on June 18 and we started for the summit at 1:50am that morning and summited at 7:15. We were the first to start June 18 as well, and had to break trail for most of the ascent until a fast guy passed us near the saddle as my partner was having a brief break to puke, lol. My partner and I were able to summit with microspikes, 1 set of poles (used like axes in sections) and 1 axe between us, but everyone else on the summit had crampons. We would have preferred crampons. Bring warm/waterproof gloves to grab snowy rocks and plan on your boots getting soaked!! We wished we had gaiters. No one we met with snow shoes actually used their snow shoes, and as long as you start very early while the snow is firm, you should not posthole too much. We did meet a couple who started at 5am and got back to camp maybe an hour after us, so if you are pretty quick and do not have to break trail in the snow you could start later. An ice axe is extremely useful, especially for traversing snowy sections of the ridge, and glissading down steep and slushy sections of snow on the descent! The ridge is pretty intimidating, especially after a fresh 6 inches of snow. We almost turned around, but pressed onward knowing we could skip a lot of the return ridge hike by glissading down the direct route. We worried that downclimbing the ridge would be more difficult than climbing up, but were pleasantly surprised that downclimbing was much easier/quicker. If you can make it to the summit, you should be able to make it back down, but keep in mind that the snow gets slippery and slushy as the sun bakes it. You climb along the SW side of the ridge, so it is still shaded longer into the morning (compared to the bowl/saddle you glissade down), but I would personally want to be off the ridge by 9 or 10am, when there is still this much snow. A wet slide on the SW side of the ridge would carry you down into steep and rocky shit and you would probably die. We were the first to start hiking to the summit, and had to break trail in fresh snow for most of the ascent. This definitely slowed us down and tired us out. A speedy guy passed us a bit below the saddle of the standard (non-direct) route, and this saved us from having to navigate the class 3 snowy ridge without a leader's tracks. (Thanks, dude.) The ridge is a mix of scrambling and snow/ice climbing so crampons and an ice axe are very helpful, but there were sections where I needed to tie up my axe and use both hands like axes and rock grabbers along snowy / rocky traverses! Definitely wear warm clothes and gloves, and pack extra socks because your boots will get DRENCHED. I was freezing on the summit and only hung out long enough to tap the top and take a few pics. GLISSADING: this was definitely my favorite part of the hike! Along the ridge, there are a few points where you can look onto the NE bowl and assess a potential glissade. The spot we chose had the signs of a prior wet slide, but since it was still early and fairly firm (probably 8-8:30 as we glissaded) we thought the chances of a wet slide were pretty slim. I think the cornice pictured on 14ers.com was not a good place for a glissade because there was a steep drop and large crevasse close to the nearby cliffs that would have been bad to fall into. We probably downclimbed half to two/thirds of the ridge before finding a good glissade spot and sliding down. My partner had a successful glissade off the ridge but I spun backwards and scorpioned down the last part of the bowl. There is still such an abundance of snow and easy, mellowing slope that if you do glissade off the ridge and tomahawk to a stop, you probably wont feel it. If you downclimb all the way back to the saddle and glissade down where you hiked up, I think you need to be more careful of drops on either side and hikers climbing up/down. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/18/2023, By: tiffts16
Info: Gave snowmass an attempt on 6/17 after hiking up to snowmass lake on 6/16. The hike up to the lake was as others have said, snow clear until about 1-1.5 miles before the lake. The logjam is passable though a bit spicy with some of the logs so test them well before stepping. Not much snow has melted from the lake area so there's really only space for about 4-5 groups of less than 4 people. Started from the lake at 4:15. Getting around it is spicy and would recommend to stay higher than the buried trail if you don't want to fall in the lake. Going up the gully was fine as there was a couple who bootpacked it before us. We got to the traditional "snowmass" at about 5:45 when the weather started to turn and snow began to fall. With the rising sun we pushed on for another 30 minutes hoping that it would burn the clouds off but the snow only became more intense and we turned around at 12.7k'. The descent was difficult and traction is needed. Poles and/or ice axe are suggested...even better would be skis or a board. After arriving back at camp with about 2" of new snow (estimating about 6" fell above 12.5k') we packed up and out noticing snow level was about 10k'. I think snowmass would be a little more enjoyable with another 1-2 weeks of snow melting and a better weather window. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/12/2023, By: Abowser7
Info: Perfect conditions for Snowmass Mountain. Log jam is passable and completely free of snow. Snow conditions start around 2 miles before the lake. There is still one large dry spot that can fit about 6 tents to camp by the lake. No postholing on the way up, snowboarded down to the lake. started at 1 am 6/11, summited at 7:00, got back to the car just before 5:00pm. Crampons are a must. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/11/2023, By: Alexarcher
Info: Camped at the lake, still pretty much one big dry camp spot which is very shareable. Did the direct variation along with approx. 8 others who all summited I believe. Started at 2 am and the snow was perfect all the way to the notch. Mostly rock after the notch but some snow fields below the crest make the scrambling a little more sketch so I tried to stick the crest as best I could since I took off my crampons at the notch. Made the summit at 5:45 am so the snow was still good for the way down. Consistent snow starts a little after the logjam and was fairly supportive I thought, a little post hole action here and there. Beautiful trip. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/4/2023, By: ryantasto
Info: Hike up to lake on the 3rd. Approach is free of snow for first 4.5 miles. Then some patchy snow till jog jam which is crossable. Then mostly free of snow till top of switchbacks from which snow covered till lake. One main dry spot by lake that can fit a few tents. Started on the 4th at 2am. Snow had hard/stable conditions. Then at 4:45 reached 13,600 where took a turn for the worse.(right below the bump approach)Sinking past knee with a 3-4" surface crust with 10" soft crystal layer beneath. Turned around due to avy concern. 4/5 groups that day turned around. Was able to pick up a 2'x2' piece of the slab in hands Needs to go through a few more freeze/thaw cycles to consalidate the softer layer 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/5/2023, By: Raccoon40
Info: My friend was saying ideal conditions to climb this peak would be about 2-3 weeks from now - there's still a lot of snow up there. Snow free basically until the log jam, a few members of my team did a little bridge construction and we were all able to cross the log jam without getting our feet wet. Pretty consistent snow I'm guessing about 1 mile after the log jam. Still really just 1 dry spot to camp - I think people managed to fit 4 tents in this area (it was really nice that people were willing to share this space). Started our summit push at 230am. Only needed crampons (one of my friends was able to do it in microspikes) an ice axe and hiking poles because the snow was pretty firm up until we were post holing (in snow like the other report mentions above). We also had concerns about the snow and the area being avy prone so we turned around. I uploaded a picture of roughly the route we took, where the line ends is where we had concerns about the snow and turned around. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/30/2023, By: blonde_dinosaur
Info: Backpacked to the lake on Sunday, 5/28. It is 9 miles to the lake, not 8. Not much snow until about 5.5/6 miles in, then we put on snow shoes. On Sunday, there was still a snow bridge. On our way back out Monday, it was gone. Your options are to cross one of multiple log jams with high water, or to bring shoes to cross in. Water is pretty high and I crossed in my boots and it went up to my knees (I am 5'5). Lots of snow leading up to the lake and you would definitely posthole without snowshoes. To get to the route to Snowmass, you have to cross the stream over a few logs. We camped on this side of the lake. We started at 3:30am and the snow was great and supportive. Sun started hitting everything around 5:45/6am, and as many have said the snow melts fast. So start earlier than you think you need. We did a variation of the direct route and kept to the ridge to reach the summit. Beautiful day, hardly any wind at the top. The way down we were able to glissade down the Snowmass. Long day out on Monday. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/28/2023, By: Laxer04
Info: Similar to other updates recently. Mostly dirt trail for the first 5 miles or so. The snow bridge is still in at the log jam (see photo) but melting fast. Snowshoes were helpful in spots and definitely past the log jam. There is one dry camp spot at the lake (see photo), get there early to secure it! We camped at the lake and started hiking around 4AM, reached the summit at 8AM. Mostly ideal snow conditions to the ridge, but it had softened up considerably by the time we were glissading down. In hindsight I wish we had started around 2/230AM to have better snow for the descent. The ridge was pretty straight forward and easy, a couple spots with snow to cross. There was around 30 people on the mountain on this Memorial Day Weekend! 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/23/2023, By: Grisel
Info: Trail is mostly dry for the first 4 miles, after that we put snowshoes on but did have some dry patches here and there. Definitely snowshoes at the log jam which has 3 different snow bridges to cross over that t stayed solid later in the day. Snow was mostly solid all the way to lake. From lake, I would take snowshoes off and put crampons on to get to the other side due to the pain that is the side hilling. Working up the Snowmass in the morning was solid but as the sun rose, the snow softened quick. Snow was steep up to ridge and the ridge itself had many a snow trap door. Id recommend staying on the western side or ridge proper. Touching the eastern side is an accident waiting to happen. Summited at 10:30am and glissaded down the direct route. Snow at this point was a post holing mess but still got a good glissade in to lake here and there. Snow was mostly good in the trees. 17 hours round trip, 11pm start time and back ti car at 4:20pm. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/20/2023, By: Thighs
Info: One of the most challenging 14ers I've summited to date but the snow makes it easier. Flotation is an absolute must about 4.5 miles in and crampons and ice axe mandatory from lake to summit. Within the first few miles, there are many snow patches and many fallen trees to navigate. While not a huge deal, after 19 miles of hiking and two hours of sleep, these become a pesky nuisance to see every tenth of a mile or so. An avalanche has also consumed a 20-30 foot section with 5-6ft deep of debris. I'd say there will be a significant amount of snow for at least another month or two. Log jam is completely circumventable via a snow bridge but its all melting fast. I wouldn't count on that a week or two from now. Buddy and I camped at the lake beforehand. Initial gully was steep with a few exposed rocks. The snowmass itself was void of any exposed rocks. Summited via the direct variation which had frozen, stable snow but was deteriorating and slushy around 8:30am. It would be spooky without stable snow with its very steep incline. Summit ridge was fun and not too challenging albeit steep and exposed hence the need for crampons and axe. Glissaded a majority of the way down to lake. Long two days - Strava tracked 21.4mi, 6,821ft. Take those stats with a grain of salt but my body sure believes them. Every section of this hike was difficult but rewarding and worth it. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/1/2023, By: Logan5280
Info: Snowmass is IN for skiing right now. Skied from the summit with AlessiaAscent on 4/30. Road is still snowy near summer trailhead, so it's still necessary to park at the snowplow turnaround, about half a mile below. Approach has mostly continuous snow, although it's melting fast; we were able to skin all the way to snowmass lake, except for a few dry patches. The creek is still covered in snow, meaning that the log jam isn't an issue yet. Camped at snowmass lake on 4/29. The lake is still frozen, making for easy skinning. We booted up the first headwall of the snowmass (very hard-packed snow with a decent freeze), and skinned across the crusty middle section (12k-13k). Above, the snow became much softer, but we were able to skin up the steeper slopes. We took the direct steep snow variation up the northern side of the summit block. The soft snow on the steep section made for a reasonable but heads-up ski, then cruiser turns back to snowmass lake. The egress was endless, but this is certainly a beautiful time of year in the elks. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 5/7/2023, By: jaquetcj
Info: Climbed and skied Snowmass Mtn w two friends last week. We were able to get to within a mile of the summer trailhead and skied/skinned in the whole way. Trail is starting to melt out but we were able to keep skis on the whole way up. 4 day trip, skied in and Camped at the lake , skied the peak right off the summit via east slopes route on 4.28. Next day we skied several lines off trail rider pass (didnt have energy to get hagerman) then skied out on the final day. 

Route: West Slope
Posted On: 10/29/2022, By: drchele
Info: Both FR 315 and FR 314 are open to the Lead King Basin and Crystal THs, respectively. Snow on upper roads to TH makes them even more challenging than usual (see my TH status update). There is snow present from below the TH. I broke trail and cut in steps from the Lead King Basin TH to Geneva Lake before I turned back (got a late start). Postholing to 4" depth along the lower trail, and up to 12" along the trail to Geneva Lake (upper shin/calf). I didn't use flotation, although it might make some sections (especially above the waterfall and below Geneva Lake) easier. I had my microspikes, crampons, and ice axe with me but used none of them (but was glad I had them). 

Route: \"S\" Ridge
Posted On: 10/21/2022, By: markf
Info: Route was dry until the summit ridge. The scattered patches of snow on the summit ridge did not require spikes, IMO. 

Route: West Slope
Posted On: 10/21/2022, By: markf
Info: Completely dry. I descended this route after ascending "S" Ridge.