Mt. Elbert Trip Report 08/08/2025

Report Type	Mini
Peak(s)	Mt. Elbert - 14,438 feet
Date Posted	08/08/2025
Date Climbed	08/07/2025
Author	gprovost

Elbert - East Ridge from South TH
My son (18) and I drove up the 4WD road from Twin Lakes. The road conditions are similar to previous posts - one tricky section about 0.6mi from the start of the 4WD road. I have minimal 4WD experience, but I had no issues in my stock 4Runner by just taking my time and having my son spot me on this short section for peace of mind. The road is a little rough beyond that, but no real issues. We were surprised how many campsites were taken already even on a Wednesday night. Several sites were blocked off as well. We found a spot about 1/3 of a mile down the road, camped overnight, and parked at the TH for our start around 3:45-4 am. The trail is very different from when I ran it (22 years and 25 lbs ago) in 2003, but it is in amazing condition from TH to the summit. We had great weather, an amazing sunrise, with only a little more wind at the top than we would have liked to spoil the "perfect weather" rating. We took our time going up - or rather my son waited for me as I took my time - and summited just before 7:30am for about 3.5 hours to the top. We only saw one hiker along the way and 3 others at the summit with us. It made for a great climb for just the two of us. Because of the wind, we didn't hang out at the summit too long. The descent was about 3 hours, me going very slowly again. It was quite warm once we were out of the wind and before we got to the trees. Bring lots of water on this easy, but longish hike. I've summited about 30 different 14ers, and this was my second successful hike up Elbert. This was #4 for my son. We finished the day with 9 holes at Mt. Massive Golf Club which made for an interesting "double". :-) Caption Here Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Elbert - East Ridge from South TH

My son (18) and I drove up the 4WD road from Twin Lakes. The road conditions are similar to previous posts - one tricky section about 0.6mi from the start of the 4WD road. I have minimal 4WD experience, but I had no issues in my stock 4Runner by just taking my time and having my son spot me on this short section for peace of mind. The road is a little rough beyond that, but no real issues. We were surprised how many campsites were taken already even on a Wednesday night. Several sites were blocked off as well. We found a spot about 1/3 of a mile down the road, camped overnight, and parked at the TH for our start around 3:45-4 am.

The trail is very different from when I ran it (22 years and 25 lbs ago) in 2003, but it is in amazing condition from TH to the summit. We had great weather, an amazing sunrise, with only a little more wind at the top than we would have liked to spoil the "perfect weather" rating. We took our time going up - or rather my son waited for me as I took my time - and summited just before 7:30am for about 3.5 hours to the top. We only saw one hiker along the way and 3 others at the summit with us. It made for a great climb for just the two of us. Because of the wind, we didn't hang out at the summit too long. The descent was about 3 hours, me going very slowly again. It was quite warm once we were out of the wind and before we got to the trees. Bring lots of water on this easy, but longish hike.

I've summited about 30 different 14ers, and this was my second successful hike up Elbert. This was #4 for my son. We finished the day with 9 holes at Mt. Massive Golf Club which made for an interesting "double". :-)

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

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