It’s October and for me, it’s near the end of climbing season. I had one more mountain on my list for the season and had scoped out a forecasted stretch of sunny days in which to climb it. That mountain was Uncompahgre Peak.  

As it turns out, that sunny stretch ended up being preceded by several days of rain and snow. Here in the Sawatch, the snow stayed above 11,000 feet and from the mix of gray rocks and white snow on the mountain tops visible from our house, it seemed like there was only slightly more than a dusting up high.  It would be a hike in snow, but not enough to call off my plans. So, on the chosen Friday, I loaded up the car and made one more trip over the pass to Lake City.

Uncompahgre Peak is the tallest mountain in the San Juans and the sixth tallest in the state. Its distinct, blocky summit can be seen for miles in every direction from as far away as the town of Ridgway to the west and Monarch ski area to the east.  

Driving into Lake City at 8,600 feet, it was sunny and dry, a perfect late fall day. But the tops of the high peaks I could see were significantly whiter than the mountains near Salida.  It appeared that the San Juans had gotten more snow than the Sawatch.  Somewhat concerning but no reason to change plans.  The forecast for Lake City the next day was sunny with temperatures in the 60s.

I checked into my Airbnb, stopped into the local grocery store for some breakfast items and then went to the popular and reliable Alfred Packer Saloon for dinner.

The next morning, I was rolling up Engineer Pass by 6:00 a.m. Five miles from Lake City is the turn for Nellie Creek Road. Nellie Creek has a reputation as a fairly gnarly 4WD road. Extremely narrow, rocky and steep in places with two creek crossings and two pairs of tight switch backs, it is definitely not for the faint of heart.  I managed to creep my way up in the early-morning darkness in our Jeep without incident.  Of course, this being Colorado, when I arrived at the trailhead, I discovered that someone had beaten me to the parking lot in a Subaru.  

Nellie Creek Road had been mostly snow-free but from the 11,400-foot trailhead I could see that the snow was pretty much continuous from that point up. I donned my micro-spikes and gators, pulled out my hiking poles for balance and started up the trail.

I was glad to see that the trail was well tracked. Besides the Subaru, there was one other truck at the trailhead so there were at least two groups ahead of me. This was good in that between them and whoever may have climbed the day before, I could expect a well-packed, defined trail to the summit.  

It was 19 degrees, cloudless and windless when I started hiking at 7:00 a.m. A beautiful morning. I had adequate layers and once I got moving, I was comfortable climbing through the shaded woods up to higher ground.  It wasn’t long before I could see the summit of Uncompahgre in the morning sun towering over the surrounding terrain.

As I broke timberline and entered the wide-open Nellie Creek Basin the trail abruptly became much less packed from the footprints I had been following.  

I could see a group of four sitting on a sunny hill just off the trail. As I approached them, I asked if they were on the trail to the summit.  They said no, they were just taking a break.  They were University of Western Colorado students from Gunnison.  Two guys and two girls, all wearing nothing more than sneakers and hoodies. The two girls were from Ohio and not acclimated to altitude.  They said they were going to chill on the sunny hillside for a while, have a vape and reconsider their climb plans.  

I wished them well and continued on my way, now on a trail with only two sets of footprints to follow.  

Shortly after the college students I caught two more guys working their way through the deep snow. At this point the trail became completely buried, invisible except for intermittent south-facing sections.  They asked me if I knew how to get to the summit. I said I had studied the map and had a general idea but with the snow it was going to take some improvising. The main thing was to get to the south ridge, which at that point was still towering several hundred feet over our heads. They seemed even less familiar with the area than I was and were tired of breaking trail, so they let me go ahead, saying they’d rather follow.  

So now I was breaking trail. Way more of a workout than I had planned for the day. I couldn’t help but think how much easier the climb would have been with skis and skins. Not to mention how much more fun it would have been to ski back down through the wide-open, snow-filled basin.  Oh well, live and learn, I guess.

I kept plodding my way uphill through the deep snow, more out of stubbornness than anything. After getting rained out on Redcloud a few weeks earlier, I was determined to get to the top of this mountain.  It was a beautiful, cloudless day. I was in a gorgeous place.  Suck it up and keeping moving.

Approached from the southeast, Uncompahgre’s ramparts are imposing.  Impenetrable layers of solid, vertical rock.  

I was reminded of the Moorish fortress Alhambra in Spain, built on a hilltop to withstand attack by the Visigoth hoards.  

If you’re trying to defend yourself from Visigoths, the top of Uncompahgre would be an excellent place to be.

Approaching Uncompahgre’s south ridge.

On the south ridge. The key to accessing Uncompahgre’s upper slopes is this notch on the west face. You can just see the snow-covered trail zig zagging its way up the steep slope below the notch.

Cliffs on Uncompahgre’s west face.

Approaching the notch.

Around the notch, the rock towers on Uncompahgre’s west face come into view.

Looking up the class 2 crux of the climb. The rocks here were mostly snow-free and solid, making for some fun scrambling for about 75-80 feet.

Above the crux on more mellow terrain below the summit.

Summit rock! It was a beautiful, windless day on top. With the snow and the bright sunshine, the views in every direction were stunning.

Uncompahgre’s north face is a sheer 700-foot cliff. With the snow cornices it was hard to tell exactly where the edge was. I didn’t dare get any closer than this.

The view north.

To the west and northwest, there were great views of several recognizable peaks.

Center, front to back, the Matterhorn, Wetterhorn and on the horizon, Sneffels.

Coxcomb and Redcliff.

Precipice Peak and Dunsinane Mountain.

Silver Mountain.

To the south and southwest was an unbroken sea of San Juan peaks covered in a blanket of fresh white.

It was such a perfect day, I spent a liesurely time on the summit eating lunch, taking pictures, and texting home. I kept expecting the two guys I passed in the basin to join me on the summit but I didn’t see them again until I was headed back down. While much of the climb was an exercise in route finding, the descent was simply a matter of following my own footsteps down.  They may not have been the “correct” route but I knew they’d take me back to the car.

Back down in the basin, the snow had been baking in the sun all morning and was turning to slush. Lower down, the trail was a mix of melt water and mud, making for tricky footing back to the trailhead.

I thoroughly enjoyed my climb of Uncompahgre Peak.  Initially seeing the amount of snow on the trail had me a little anxious about this one. I had never done a snow climb. Hiking in the deep snow was a lot more strenuous than I planned for. I definitely felt it in my legs and back the next day.  Days later, I’m still feeling it.  But given the spectacular early winter views from the summit, I’d say it was well worth it.