Horseshoe Mountain

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 9/16/2020, By: Scott Conro
Info: (Also Peerless and Finnback Knob) Some snow on route, but inconsequential when unavoidable. 

Route: From Gold Basin (West slopes)
Posted On: 8/31/2020, By: CaptainSuburbia
Info: Rough 4WD road to trailhead from Weston Pass road. Parked about .5 miles up. Didn't want to risk it anymore in my Ram 1500. Walked last half mile or so. Nice double track from there through trees, then steep to Horseshoe summit. Grassy at first then talus starting half way up. Easy trail to Peerless. Finnback from Horseshoe was steep talus to start then a mix to saddle. Short, rocky climb to summit. Mostly grassy descent back to lower slopes of Horseshoe and single track. Had the beautiful Gold Basin to ourselves. Saw a couple climbers on Horseshoe summit and a truck on the Peerless saddle. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 8/9/2020, By: wintersage
Info: Did the Sherman Grand Slam starting at 4am. Summitted Sherman, Gemini Pk, Dyer, Sheridan, Peerless, and finally Horseshoe all in a day's work. Summer conditions abound in all peaks, starting early helps you avoid the Sherman crowd. Overall took us 10 hours to complete with long breaks at the summits. The way back from Horseshoe needs some extra care as you can accidentally take one switchback too many and end up going down the wrong road. Make sure to stick to the road going eastwards (as provided in the route description on this site). 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 8/2/2020, By: tcphoto87
Info: I started just after 7am and summited Horseshoe at 8:20 with a couple stops for photos along the way, my watch clocked it in around 2.91 miles. I also followed some of what I'm assuming are old mining roads that were steeper to bypass a few of the switchbacks. I parked at the 11,850ft-parking area but I probably could've driven at least to the lake and probably further. There was a car parked up right at the saddle at 13,200. Summer conditions, super steady all the way up. Theres an old mining building thats mostly standing on the opposite side of the summit I nearly missed and didn't see when I was up there at first. Took the switchbacks on the way down, total mileage back to the car was 7.5ish. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 7/24/2020, By: bangerth
Info: Summer conditions all the way up, no problem at all. Beautiful mountain -- nearly peerless among its neighbors. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 7/11/2020, By: durkan
Info: Began my Horseshoe/Peerless/Sheridan/Sherman/Gemini/Dyer Loop from Iowa Amphitheater. After reaching the ridge between Sheridan and Sherman, the pup and I contoured around Sheridan and Peerless. Snow cups exist on the east slopes of Sheridan and some snow on the east side of Peerless if you decide to do this, but all of it is pretty avoidable. I walked through the cups near Sheridan in the AM it as it was supportive, but dodged it around Peerless. Rest of the route is snow free. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/21/2020, By: terrysrunning
Info: Traverse from Sherman via Sheridan. Basically summer conditions. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/14/2020, By: thebeave7
Info: Still some larger snow fields down low on the mining rds, but most are easily avoided by taking parallel mining roads. Lots of running water. Overnight storms on 6/13 dropped 0.5-1" of snow above 13k coating the whole mountain in white. East facing slopes were melting off fast this morning while north and west facing were holding the new snow. A few larger fields of snow on the ridge can all be avoided. Once the new snow melts it'll be easily hikeable, summer conditions. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/14/2020, By: northeastmountaineer
Info: Pretty much echoing the trail conditions from the 2020-06-05 report. We were able to park on the 4WD road at the location suggested by the route description near 11850'. There's a small snow bank between the trees shown in picture 1 of the route description, so wouldn't be able to get any further unless you have a serious off road vehicle. I wouldn't be surprised if it was melted in a week. 

Route: Boudoir Couloir
Posted On: 6/8/2020, By: LukeB
Info: Bottom quarter of Boudoir Couloir has melted out and was scree. Once on the snow, there was a good boot pack. If you want to ski, the bowl and drainage south of Horseshoe was in good shape. 

Route: East Slopes
Posted On: 6/5/2020, By: E_A_Marcus_949
Info: Can park almost to the parking area indicated on the route description. One snow bank blocking it about 300yd down, so it's not too far. Veer off the first old 4WD road on your initial ascent (hikers right) rather than following the route description road straight - the road in the route description is filled with snow. They'll meet up and you can continue on the standard route up. A couple of small snowfields to cross once you're higher up - easily in the morning though on the descent expect some solid deep postholing. I wouldn't worry about it too much, they can be avoided with minimal harm or carefully crossed. Otherwise, all summer conditions up to the summit. Peerless holds snow but can summit without any snow on the trail. 

Route: Boudoir Couloir
Posted On: 5/29/2020, By: Thevirtualsherpa
Info: Boudoir is in pretty good shape still. Added a nice boot pack up that I believe someone behind me used as well. At the rate the snow is melting, may only be there for 2-3 days but hey, better than nothing. The couloir itself is a little bony towards the bottom but overall, in pretty good shape. The bottom quarter depth is not very much as my axe kept hitting rocks for a bit but the rest seemed like it was in good shape. No runnels forming and no signs of sluff/wet slides in the couloir itself. Certainly possible to still ski from near summit down to the lakes but after that you will be hiking as all of the other snow in the basin is very sporadic. Took the northwest ridge down and bummed I didn't bring the board for this trip but oh well, next time! Happy to send pics to anyone who needs them, feel free to reply to the report or reach out via IG. Semi-good freeze overnight with 6AM start, summited around 8:45 and back down to the car around 10:30. Really nice quick day before the storms moved in. 

Route: Boudoir Couloir
Posted On: 5/16/2020, By: Agstrohmeier
Info: There is a stellar boot pack up boudoir after about 12 people climbed it today. Patchy snow from trailhead to base; on skins probably 70%, some hiking. Didn't ski great, but not terrible. Descended around 12:00. 

Route: Northeast Ridge
Posted On: 4/5/2020, By: Randy1983
Info: Tried for the Boudoir Couloir but bailed on it again after watching 3 mini av's fall near the entry point and around the bowl, coupled with the sizable cornice's almost directly above the route. Winds were brutal but skiing down below Peerless was fun. 

Route: Boudoir Couloir
Posted On: 3/16/2020, By: bmcqueen
Info: Here's a look at Horseshoe from White Ridge for those eyeing the Boudoir.