Sangre de Cristo Mountains > Crestone Needle > Climber's LogCrestone Needle Climber's Log
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[ Sign the Climber's Log ]
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| Mike Mc | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: August 13, 2005  | |
| Awesome Climb! The summit was rather foggy. | |
| Posted Aug 28, 2005 10:30 pm | ||
| kylerlott | Route Climbed: Unmarked "farther south side route" Date Climbed: 8-20-05 | |
| Wow, what a rugged set of mtns. in that area. Needle was surprising. There is a lot of trail maintenance going on up there right now, so the main trail can be confusing at times. Well at least that was our excuse for going the wrong way. We were following the trail from south lakes, then once on the saddle we totally over shot the trail. We ended up in some very vertical / technical / wet sections the rest of the way to the summit. We figured class three scrambling shouldn't be too bad, but what we ended up in was definatley not class 3, let alone a trail or route. It took us 6 to 7 hours just to make the summit, but I was just thankful to have made it in one piece. Doulbe check your route most of the way up, there were rock cairns everywhere, and it was very hard to make out which one was the right one. Some of the cairns were in places where if you went to them you couldn't turn back unless your a damn good "down climber" with no rope. Damn, what a mountain. | |
| Posted Aug 27, 2005 1:45 pm | ||
| doumall | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: July 31st 2005 | |
| Even better than the Peak! 49th 14er! | |
| Posted Aug 4, 2005 12:50 pm | ||
| edlins | Route Climbed: Ellingwood Arete Date Climbed: August 31, 2005 | |
| Spectacular!!! Summiting Crestone Needle is an accomplishment by any route. | |
| Posted Aug 1, 2005 12:31 pm | ||
| shanahan96 | Route Climbed: South Couloir Date Climbed: 8-2-04 | |
| absolutely the greatest climb i've ever done! the couloir completely rocks and the 900-foot vertical climb of the congolmerate was a thrill.............there's no reason whatsoever to switch couloirs. climb this route! | |
| Posted Jul 28, 2005 2:17 pm | ||
| Brad Snider | Route Climbed: Peak-to-Needle Traverse Date Climbed: July 24, 2005 | |
| Summitted with bc44caesar. Awesome traverse, especially from the Black Gendarme and up the crux 4th class wall. Dicey coming down the south couloir from the Needle, especially once the storms hit, but quite a memorable day! | |
| Posted Jul 25, 2005 2:17 am | ||
| bc44caesar | Route Climbed: Traverse from the Peak, Descended South Couloir Date Climbed: 24 Jul 2005 | |
| Traversed from the Peak in 2hrs 15min. Had a little route finding trouble below the Black Gendarme. The final climb to the summit was enjoyable, but thunderstorms were nearly upon us. Fortunately the skies didn't open up until we were part ways into the descent during which we got quite a soaking. Oh, and the 4x4 road to Colony Lakes is way overrated - it isn't that hard for any 4x4 - I have a stock SUV and made it down in like 45min... | |
| Posted Jul 25, 2005 1:23 am | ||
| alpine master | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: July 22 05 | |
| Great climb. Quick from South Colony lake. Not as bad as it looks. | |
| Posted Jul 24, 2005 1:07 pm | ||
| Genghis Climber | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: July 13, 2005 | |
| A fun climb, took about 3 hours to get from camp to the summit. Conditions were perfect and the couloir was in good shape. The trip would have been better it if weren't for the horrible approach. The 6 miles to camp sucked ass and it was even worse the next day after climbing. A 4x4 is HIGHLY suggested so you don't have to kill yourself on the approach. | |
| Posted Jul 15, 2005 12:43 am | ||
| sjvista | Route Climbed: standard Date Climbed: July 4, 2003 | |
| totally clear day. What a road to get back to the trailhead though. By far the toughest 4x4 road I've been on in the state. | |
| Posted Jul 2, 2005 1:40 pm | ||
| Foxy Long Bottoms | Route Climbed: Ellingwood Arete Date Climbed: 7/03 | |
| Not only did I reach the summit but I slept on top of it. We got very lost on the descent. It was getting dark and we found ourselves downclimbing 5.2. Our only choice was to go back up and wait for daylight. Coldest night of my life. It was worth it for such a beuatiful Peak. Looking to to the Peak to Needle traverse next time. Any takers? | |
| Posted Jun 20, 2005 1:57 pm | ||
| km_donovan | Route Climbed: South Face II Date Climbed: June 2, 2005 | |
| Check out the full Trip Report. | |
| Posted Jun 6, 2005 10:47 pm | ||
| ColoradoScott | Route Climbed: South Face from South Colony Lakes Date Climbed: August 8, 1979 | |
| After our success on Longs the year before, us Kansas boys were ready for another adventure. We backpacked up the entire road, then climbed Humboldt the next day, and then the Needle the following day. In those years the snowpack was much greater than it has been lately; we had a snowbank over the creek below our campsite, and there was only one other climbing party in the valley (those were the days). Unfortunately, we should have had ice axes (which we didn't) to reach the Broken Hand Pass, so we improvised with pointed rocks!!! On the summit the other party arrived twenty minutes after us and started smoking pot! We made it down to the pass before the daily hailstorm and rain broke loose, and while we were donning our raingear, the dopers came down with their plastic ponchos flapping in the rain and wind, and proceded to glissade the steep snow below the pass (no axes either). One slipped, and I thought we were going to watch him crash into the boulders at the bottom, but he was able to right himself. Whew. | |
| Posted Feb 3, 2005 12:52 pm | ||
| DaveC | Route Climbed: Standard Date Climbed: July '99 | |
| Like climbing a ladder. Love that conglomerate! | |
| Posted Jan 9, 2005 1:52 pm | ||
| Gareth | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: September 6, 2004 | |
| Awesome climb! It was almost like a pilgrimage for me climbing the mountain that Albert Ellingwood made so much Colorado mountaineering history on. I arrived at the trailhead late in the afternoon and was lucky to get a ride most of the way up in the back of a truck-fun ride! The 4WD roads that I have driven in the San Juans weren’t anything compared to this one! I made it to the lakes just as night was falling. The climb was great. There was some ice in the Couloir, but could be avoided. The class 3 and 4 climbing on the knobby rock was a real treat. Once at the summit, I climbed down to the traverse rappel anchor just for a little more fun. It must have been quite exposed as no one else would climb all the way down to it. On the way down, I took the time to climb down to the top edge of the Ellingwood Arête and look down. This day I climbed / hiked all the way from the Needle to the plains, neat experience. | |
| Posted Sep 11, 2004 1:42 pm | ||
| jomal | Route Climbed: South; Approach to Cottonwood Lakes Date Climbed: July 14,2004 | |
| Hiked up to Cottonwood lakes, a much prettier (though a bit tougher) approach than the South Colony lakes approach. It was my girlfriend's first 14er, and she had no trouble with the class 3 stuff. A very fun climb, with beautiful views, I highly recommend it. | |
| Posted Sep 7, 2004 6:35 pm | ||
| jrf | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: August 22, 2004 | |
| Wow. What an incredible mountain. Definitely the hardest thing I've done to date. From below the climb looks impossible. We climbed down in the clouds and the whole experience was kind of spooky. I'm still trying to believe I actually climbed this thing. At least I have the photo to prove it. | |
| Posted Aug 23, 2004 2:27 pm | ||
| travisgoings | Route Climbed: Ellingwood Arete Date Climbed: August 6, 2004 | |
| Solo free climbed the arete. It is a great climb with spectacular views. | ||
| Posted Aug 15, 2004 12:59 am | ||
| ccoash | Route Climbed: South Face Date Climbed: August 3, 2004 | |
| By far one of my most challenging experiences ever. I'd highly recommend finding a 4wd to get up the road to the trailhead....the hike is brutal! What a great mountain. | |
| Posted Aug 10, 2004 1:03 pm | ||
| bdewoody | Route Climbed: South Couloir Date Climbed: July 18 2004 | |
| Began at 6:00 from just below South Colony Lakes. On the way up to Broken Hand Pass we noticed some HUGE rocks that had fallen the night before. One had slid through a small snow field. The other had obviously bounced down the hillside only to stop a foot or two from the side of the trail. Would have hated to be there when they came rollin' down. Ascended the couloir to the summit. | |
| Posted Jul 20, 2004 2:16 am | ||
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