9500'

For me, climbing Mt. Elbert would be the realization of one of my oldest dreams...to climb a Rocky Mountain 14,000'-er. We decided on Elbert not only because it was the highest in the state (and second highest in the lower 48) but because it has a well-travelled non-technical trail to the summit. Neither my wife or I are rock climbers so this was a necessity. We decided on the popular route up the north-east ridge of Elbert. The 9-mile round trip route climbs from an elevation of about 10,000' to the 14,433' summit. Sounds straightforward enough but for a couple of flatlanders the sheer elevation would be a powerful obstacle to overcome. It promised to be a memorable day on the trail...

Trailhead GPS Coordinates: 39.151644, -106.412308

Route Type: Out-and-back

Difficulty: EXTREME (Petzoldt Rating: 18.00)

Mileage Hiked: 9.0 miles

Trailhead Temp: 40'F

Min. Elevation: 10,050'

Max Elevation: 14,433'

Total Elevation Gain: 4,500'

Avg. Elevation Gain/Mile: 1,000' (ascent)

Trails Used (blaze color): Colorado (unblazed), Mount Elbert (unblazed)

6-30-2008

Mount Elbert - Colorado Highpoint (9.0 miles; d=18.00)

Mount Elbert Hike Route Map
The approximate track of my hike up Mount Elbert, as depicted a la Google Earth...
Mount Elbert Hike Route Map
The approximate track of my hike up Mount Elbert, via the northeast ridge route...
9500'
This was our first glimpse of Elbert the morning of the climb. Shot from US-24 just north of Leadville...
9500'
Mt. Massive (14,428'), Mt Elbert's slightly lower, yet more visually imposing, neighbor to the north...from US-24 north of Leadville...
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An old shack sitting under the gaze of Elbert along the access road...
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Passing Halfmoon Creek Campground on the way to the trailhead...
Mt. Elbert Trailhead -- 10,040'
The northeast ridge, the one we'd be climbing, rises above the trees...
Mt. Elbert Trailhead -- 10,040'
We got the feeling we had arrived a bit late, the parking lot was nearly full...
Mt. Elbert Trailhead -- 10,040'
Only 4,700' of vertical to go!!
Colorado Trail -- 10,100'
The forest near the trailhead was a mix of Fir and Pine and would remain that way until treeline...
Colorado Trail -- 10,200'
A small stream crossing and the last reliable water along the trail...
Colorado Trail -- 10,600'
The trail passed the remains of an old mining shack about 3/4 of a mile from the trailhead...
Colorado Trail -- 10,650'
The trail continued to climb relentlessly...
Colorado Trail -- 10,650'
The thick forest even restricted views behind us...
Colorado Trail -- 10,700'
The trail tops out at this curious pile of rocks before descending slightly to the upper junction with the Colorado Trail...
Colorado-North Mount Elbert Trail Junction -- 10,560'
At the junction with the Colorado Trail this sign pointed us toward the ridge...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 10,700'
The sun in the trees above was pleasant...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 10,900'
It wasn't until nearly a mile and a half in that we started getting any views...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 11,200'
The trail got increasingly steep as it tried to gain the ridge...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 11,400'
The relative flatness of the lower ridge was a welcome change after two previous grinding miles...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 11,600'
A nice little clearing atop the ridge, about a quarter mile before treeline, treated us to some views ahead...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 11,600'
The clearing also gave us our first views back to the east...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 11,700'
As we neared treeline there were some decent size snow drifts still hanging on amongst the pines...
North Mount Elbert Trail -- 11,750'
I noticed quite a number of dead or dying Douglas Fir trees as we climbed, I'm curious as to the cause...

Dan Weemhoff (dwhike)
on December 20, 2014
Thanks James, glad you enjoyed the pics! Yes, I can't claim the design myself. The site has been revamped using some of SmugMug's ready-made templates.
James Smith
on December 20, 2014
Excellent stuff, as always. Big improvement on the graphics here. Do you use a ready-made template?
Guest
on November 21, 2010
Congratulations! Wonderful photographs too! I climbed with my sister and friends over Labor Day weekend 2010. We were nearly too frightened to take photographs. I am really enjoying your photos.
Laura
Didier
on April 29, 2010
Congrats! Well done. Well documented. You obviously like to do research.