Mt. Silverheels

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 10/8/2023, By: djacobson
Info: 100% clear of snow until the final push up the north spur where there was a very small patch of snow (maybe 1-2 inches deep) and only about 10 feet long. Avoidable. May be gone as it was pretty warm today. Traction was not needed. Still holding onto summer-like conditions! 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/23/2023, By: backcountrybrodes
Info: Fun sunset hike just north of Fairplay, and very unique views on the route!! Weird but soothing to have 360 degrees of flat tundra meadow all around me for most of the hike. 'Cow plop' dirt for the first mile on a previously existing dirt road was a challenge, but very nice on my feet when going down. Started at 4:30pm and ended at 8:10pm. Sprinted down the rolling mountain meadows in the dark on the way back and made it from summit to car in 1 hour. Don't try that at home kids 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 9/15/2023, By: Veory
Info: Today was very wintery. Several inches of snow from the trailhead to summit, on which I occasionally sunk to my knee in wet unconsolidated snow, but I'd say just above the ankles was the norm. Whiteout all day. Most of the snow around Hoosier pass had melted by the time I returned. Microspikes were helpful on descent but given the wetness, the snow balled up a lot on the bottom. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 9/11/2023, By: joannalee07
Info: Hiked on Labor Day. Full summer conditions, no snow left on the route although new snow may be coming this week. Full trip report: https://www.coloradomountainpack.com/post/mount-silverheels 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 7/16/2023, By: DixieFlyer
Info: There is a snowfield near the ridgeline below Peak 12814 that can be avoided. The soles of my shoes never touched snow on the hike. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 6/19/2023, By: EndWillows
Info: Brought spikes. Didnt use them. Few patches of snow very short. Only fell through a few times crossing at around 1pm. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 6/11/2023, By: BradyLampert
Info: No floatation needed. Few patches of snow on the ridge going up to the summit..easy to avoid. The summit is still covered but didnt bake in the sun, so no post holing.. Didnt see a soul today, great hike and great weather! 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 3/19/2023, By: Zleisure
Info: Parked at Beaver Creek Trailhead. Booted along the road until the trail splits from the road and crosses Beaver Creek. Shoeshoes required from there until ~11,800' once I got above last trees. Afterwards only boots needed to the top as it's pretty bare and you can avoid snow to the top by staying on ridges or hugging the W side of the ridge all the way to the top. Was a chilly day with cold NW winds, but not terrible. Worst part was snowshoe section in the trees as even with float I was postholing especially on the way back. 2-3" hard crust on top looser snow in spots or more consolidated, windswept up high at treeline. Took me ~4 hrs 40min to go up and 3hrs 40 min to come down. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 3/1/2023, By: Will_E
Info: Did Silverheels and Hoosier Ridge from Hoosier pass today. There was a decent trench the first 1/4 mile from the highway, after that I was in snowshoes until maybe halfway up the first ridge, the trail breaking wasn't difficult. From there I didn't need any traction all day, everything is fairly windblown to Silverheels and to Hoosier Ridge. A little cold, a little blustery, but wind wasn't horrible today. Views opened up in late afternoon. Nice day. 

Route: West Side
Posted On: 2/13/2023, By: PeakMiller
Info: We spent 8:30 hours skinning deep snow, hiking in trailrunners, and skiing down a couple of sections. It was a slow moving day, less than a mile an hour. When we skied the slope in the photo, we had a tour helicopter fly by as we dropped in. It was cool to time it so well and give them a little show. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 1/23/2023, By: awestra
Info: Started hiking at 7:45AM from Hoosier Pass, summited at 1:15PM, back to car at 4:45PM. Strava told us 9.86 miles with 3,850 ft of gain (though sometimes my Strava isn't super accurate). With respect to the CAIC avalanche forecast (moderate, persistent slab risk on all aspects above TL), we were wary of the higher angle terrain on the north spur below the summit ridge. Fortunately, the north-facing slopes below the summit were pretty wind-scoured, so we could see the rocks and scree poking through in most places (see pictures) and felt comfortable ascending the spur. Snowshoes were very helpful during the approach, especially below treeline. We put in a new trench and in a few places were post-holing knee-deep in patches of powder. Above treeline there were long stretches of very shallow snow such that we didn't need snowshoes. After two miles into the hike, approaching the spur, the sun was strong and there was no wind and it was warm to the point where we could have hiked shirtless. There was also little to no wind at the summit. The weather was really pleasant. Gorgeous views from the summit of the valleys below. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 1/14/2023, By: daway8
Info: Perfect day to snowflake Silverheels. Did standard route from Hoosier Pass. Good ski tracks up until the turn for the ridge then I made my own tracks to gain the ridge which was easier than expected. From ridge to summit it was so wind blown that snowshoes no longer needed. I didn't use traction going up or down Silverheels but the trio that summitted just after me put on spikes for descent. Thought I might make it back to the trailhead without snowshoes because so many more people came up later but shot downhill too fast and missed a turn so had to put them on for a little willow bashing - thankfully someone else already did the same thing. Started 6:58am, summit 11:18am, back at trailhead 2:17pm. No avy danger at this time staying on the ridge since things are so windswept. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 12/6/2022, By: the_hare
Info: I mainly used this TR for this route: https://www.14ers.com/php14ers/tripreport.php?trip=21983. Road is packed down to TH. The TH is blocked off with cables but there's another large parking area to the right about 0.1mi before you get to the TH. There's a few inches of loose snow collected on the old road and trails above treeline, snow is mostly blown off the slopes otherwise. Didn't use traction and not enough consistent snow to require flotation, only a few ankle-deep drifts over the trail. I didn't see the turn-off trail at first from the now-decommissioned 4WD road to the trail at 11,200 ft, just went towards the ridge thru the clearings of what I guess used to be an old mining camp there and soon met up with the trail. Wind was forecast for 30-35mph blowing towards the east and it definitely felt like that while above treeline--enough to make me want to cover all exposed skin but not affecting my walking yet. The two ridge-bumps along the way, "Arnold" Peak at 12,250 and the south ridge of Silverheels, really mold and funnel the wind currents. I chose to traverse to their eastern sides to help relieve the wind. No avalanche concerns, barely any snow accumulation up high and no slab formation for the small patches near the summit. Really gorgeous area, the rich dark red soil and rocks were cool to see. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 11/21/2022, By: sarahmariekirk
Info: Snowshoes up until power lines and final ascent of Silverheels - then switched to microspikes and it was substantially easier with all of the rocks. Decided to carry the snowshoes all the way back to the trailhead wearing only spikes. Didn't see anyone else all day & made a good trench from treeline out to Hoosier Ridge. 

Route: North Spur from Hoosier Pass
Posted On: 6/27/2022, By: jbealer
Info: full summer conditions, great day out. when heading up the road from the pass, take the right into the woods where the cairn is.