10/12/2024 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 10/13/2024, By: denvermikey Info: Total summer conditions. Good 4wd with high clearance can get you all the way to the TH as long as the gate remains open, otherwise most decent 4wd will at least get you to Medano Pass, maybe 0.75 shy of the actual TH. Easy to follow trail 99% of the way, well cairned. Huge flat summit with fantastic views of the sand dunes. Easy traverse over to Medano. Ignore the route description calling this a class 3. Stick with the ridge and it's and easy class 2 the whole way. |
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7/22/2023 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 7/22/2023, By: IHikeLikeAGirl Info: Summer conditions. Zero snow to walk on, around, or under and the trail is delightful. Several downed trees on the trail, but easy to get around, over, or under. We did scare up a bear (within a mike of the the TH), but it wanted nothing to do with us and ran away. So...make some noise.... Was able to get a Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk to the TH (from the east). Wasn't too bad, a couple of spots to ponder or get a good run at. FWIW, Google maps' directions to Medano Pass (from Westcliffe) are wrong. It tells you to turn onto the Wolf Springs private ranch (locked gate). The ranch has graciously posted a sign, stating that Medano Pass access (Rd 559) is 3.5 mi further down the road. |
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6/26/2023 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 6/26/2023, By: tjf242424 Info: I was able to drive to Medano Pass in a Subaru Outback Wilderness. Any Subaru should be able to make it. Traction on some steep switchbacks near the beginning was the biggest challenge. Clearance was no issue. The west side of the pass is more beat up, although NPS was working on the worst section as I was hiking out. Jeeps were getting to the TH, but I considered making it to the pass a win. Mosquitos present but not terrible. There are conflicting reports on downed trees on the trail. There are some, but not bad. Still some snow lingering before the lake. Great campsites on the right just before the lake (marked with a signpost). Theres a trail all the way from the lake to the saddle between Medano and Herard and intermittently to the summit of Herard. |
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6/18/2023 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 6/18/2023, By: Sbenfield Info: Hiked along with Medano. Parked on the east side of the pass and hiked over. The peaks are basically summer conditions. Some intermittent snow near Medano lake might cause 1 or 2 postholes, but no need for any winter equipment |
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9/16/2022 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 9/17/2022, By: desertdog Info: We started at the pass driving in from the east side. Most of the deadfall is cleared from the trail. There is a trail above the lake that's not on my maps that takes you all the way to the summit. Easy hike. Did Medano too.No snow in the Sangres yet. The views of the Sand Dunes are WOW! |
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4/28/2022 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 5/4/2022, By: JoeKnapp Info: The CR 559 to the trailhead is closed about 2.4 miles from the trailhead. So you will have to hike up the road by foot to get to Medano pass. The trail itself is also officially closed but is still accessible. There was an avalanche that past through the trail about a month or two ago so there are tons of trees that are over the trail and snow about 2-4 ft from 9-11.5 thousand feet. The fallen trees and brush make for a real slow and tight going. The snow clears up above treeline though. Definitely recommend bring floatation until the end of May. |
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7/11/2021 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 7/12/2021, By: Trotter Info: Firstly, the official Medano lake TH is unreachable right now due to massive washout trenching on the road, one side is about 3 feet deeper then the other. Good news is that theres parking before the washout, and only adds about 100 yards to the hike. Medano pass is reachable from the east with a stock 4x4 IF you drive slowly and carefully in a few places. The route is very simple and is class 2+ at worst. Full summer conditions. |
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9/25/2020 Route: Medano Lake and Mt Herard Peak Posted On: 9/28/2020, By: scrambling Info: This is a good time to go. The Aspens are (were) in full color. The road from the west is in decent shape, although the sand is drying out. IMO, 4-wheel and high-clearance is needed. If you lower your tire pressure to get through the sand there is a free air station in the park that works well that you can use to re-inflate the tires.The trail to the lake is in good shape, dry and stream crossings are easy to negotiate. Above the lake there is some snow but, on 9-25-20, there was no need to put even one footprint in any of it. The use trail above the lake is well-cairned and easy to follow. |
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6/15/2020 Route: Via Point 12,925 Posted On: 6/15/2020, By: supranihilest Info: Medano Pass Road from the east is mostly dry until right near the trailhead. It's also very, very washed out. The first two miles of trail up to the lakes is mostly dry, some water on a short section, and quite a bit of deadfall. We left the trail at that point and bushwhacked straight up 12,925's northeast ridge which was very steep and covered in deadfall. Above treeline easy ground. Between 12,925 and Herard there was nothing of note. A short snowfield right below the summit that we kicked steps in, wearing trail runners, no traction. Descent to Herard/Medano saddle is dry. |
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6/28/2017 Route: Medano Lake Trail Posted On: 7/9/2017, By: JasonKline Info: Remaining snow generally avoidable, except for one short stretch on a flat area. Water is very high, so count on getting feet wet. |
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5/5/2013 Route: S couloirs Posted On: 5/6/2013, By: Monster5 Info: "Sand Dunes Couloir" - visible from the sand dunes (slightly zig-zags through the cliffs). ~11.5 mi, 6K' gain No snowshoes needed. Continuous ski available from the summit until about 11,500'. Parked at the Sand Ramp TH after the first stream crossing on Medano Primitive Rd. Followed the trail ~1 mi and hooked a right up the Little Medano drainage (sand slog). Took a left after one longer ridge and two smaller ridges. Bushwacked up the drainage (tree and talus hopping, taking a main left fork in an incised channel - one 4th class short waterfall section) until we were in the southern basin. Climbed the steeper, ~1,300', SW-facing couloir through the cliff bands up to Herard's SE sub-point. Slightly maze-y and varied between 35-45 with spicier options. Glissaded the couloir due S from the summit (25-40 deg) after slogging to and from Medano (one interesting cornice section). Those are the two premier couloirs from the south - the rest are either low angle or short. The standard route looked snowy above 11k'. No idea. |
