5/15/2022 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 5/15/2022, By: Ericds84 Info: Basically summer conditions. Snow below treeline is avoidable, and very little on the ridge. Leave your spikes and flotation at home. Cordova Pass Campground is still closed--fee station is down, toilets are locked. Road is a passable and in good condition, but lots of evidence of recent deadfall, and approximately 4,569,256 standing windblown trees just waiting to fall onto the road the next time there's a big gust. |
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12/5/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 12/6/2021, By: TheHikingDoctor Info: Still extremely dry. Small patches of packed snow and ice in the woods on the way up but traction is not needed. Ridge completely bare. I was surprised how well-cairned the ridge was. Quite windy after breaking through the treeline but nothing too crazy. Only spent a few minutes up top due to the gusts but the views of Blanca group and the Crestones are great. RT time 4:10. |
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12/3/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 12/10/2021, By: EthanBeltramo Info: Trail 99 percent snow free. Completely dry above treeline. Road is snow packed in some spots but the snow disappears completely when you leave the TH |
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11/9/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 11/11/2021, By: climbingyogi Info: Road and trail are still completely dry! The trail is pretty flat and easy the first few miles up to the ridge. Then it gets pretty steep to the summit. My dog had no issue though. Felt hard for me, but maybe that's because it was my first high altitude hike in 3 weeks. I thought the trail here was very well cairned though - you can choose a few different ways up. I really loved the solitude of this hike. It was my first time seeing the Culebra Range as well which was awesome. Views of Blanca Massif were pretty cool too! There's a weird plastic bin at the summit with some rocks in it. I was expecting it to be holding down a summit sign underneath it, but nope. Not sure why it's there. |
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11/6/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 11/6/2021, By: arthurtect Info: Still dry on the road and on the trail. Saw one Big Horn Sheep, but it kept its distance. |
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10/31/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 11/1/2021, By: USAKeller Info: The road to Cordova Pass is completely dry and open. And the entire trail from car to summit was completely dry. |
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6/10/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 6/11/2021, By: painless4u2 Info: Snow has melted out for most of route. Beautiful summer conditions, without thunderstorms. |
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6/3/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 6/3/2021, By: clairekm Info: Lower portions of the trail alternate between snow drifts and puddles/mud. Above treeline snow is optional until about 13,200, then patchy snow to where the ridge levels out, then constant snow cover on the summit plateau. No need for flotation. Carried spikes but didn't use them. Gaiters and poles were helpful. |
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6/1/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 6/1/2021, By: bmcqueen Info: Memorial Day weekend precip added a few inches of fresh snow from trailhead to summit. I carried snowshoes and spikes just in case, but never put either on. Quite the contrast between the vibrant green valley floor and the snow up high! |
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5/22/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 5/23/2021, By: gluckhikes Info: No flotation or traction needed. Approach trail is mostly clear but for a couple pockets to hop over in the morning/ thrash through in the afternoon. There is fresh snow on the climb since the previous report, but we found it to be perfect conditions. Great grip going up and great plunge stepping with some short glissade coming down. |
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5/16/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 5/17/2021, By: supranihilest Info: The trail from Cordova Pass still has lots of snow drifts but just follow the postholes and you'll reach treeline. From there all snow is basically avoidable. There's one or two snowfield crossings if sticking directly on the "trail" up the ridge, but you can generally just climb wherever you want anyway and thus can avoid the snow. The entire peak is a decomposing heap but is surprisingly stable given how awful the rock is. I found the trail to treeline easier to follow on the way down, but it is heavily braided. |
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5/13/2021 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 5/14/2021, By: Mattheutmaker33 Info: Got a very late start, left the car at 11:20 but the forecast looked good so I thought I'd hit this one. Cordova pass is mostly clear with the exception of a few muddy and snowy spots. Intermittent snow banks from the trailhead to treeline. These were a mild annoyance in the morning but extremely annoying in the afternoon once they softened up. There's not enough snow to bring floatation, as you would be taking it off and putting it back on a lot, but enough snow to make things difficult with a lot of postholing. Above treeline the “trail” is mostly clear with a few snowfields to navigate but nothing too crazy. I brought microspikes, crampons, and an ice axe but only had to use the ice axe for stability while navigating the snowfields. Even then, it wasn't 100% necessary. Barring extra snowstorms the trail should be in summer condition in a couple of weeks. Hike took about 5 hours RT |
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9/19/2020 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 9/20/2020, By: joyfulwriter Info: Road to TH and route to summit are both essentially dry - summer conditions. Lots of haze limited the views, but a beautiful day nonetheless. |
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9/12/2020 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 9/12/2020, By: jtdavis Info: Some snow on the trail below treeline and melting fast. Muddy in spots but isn't bad. Some snow above treeline but avoidable. No traction needed. |
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7/29/2020 Route: Southwest Ridge Posted On: 7/30/2020, By: Above_Treeline Info: Conditions seemed great. Absolutely gorgeousat the start. Looked at Nexrad yesterday before climbing, weather seemed to be coming from the NW a bit of rain blew in 15min but didn't seem monsoon. Did it as an evening hike, maybe not the smartest thing I ever did, but educational if you know what I mean lol. Didn't summit but fine most of the way up the ridge. This peak isn't a gimme even if it's a 13er |
