Northeast Ridge of "Medio" Truchas Peak

Route Description

Route Start: "Medio" Truchas Peak summit (13,060 ft.) or Lower saddle between North and "Medio" Truchas Peaks (~12,400 ft.)
Distance/Elev. Gain(Saddle-"Medio" Truchas Peak summit): 0.6 mi/700 ft.

The Northeast Ridge of "Medio" Truchas Peak provides expedient way to climb "Medio"/Middle Truchas Peaks and South Truchas Peak from the upper Rio Quemado Basin or Truchas Lakes area. The upper Rio Quemado Basin can be approached from Rio Quemado Trailhead via Rio Quemado Trail (Trail #153). Truchas Lakes area can be approached from the upper Pecos River Valley trailheads via Skyline Trail (Trail #251), Beatty's Trail (Trail #25) or Jack's Creek Trail (Trail #257) or from Santa Barbara Trailhead via Trails #24/#25.

NE Ridge Route from below the summit of "Medio" Truchas Peak	NE Ridge Route from North Truchas Peak

The route description here is from south to north ("Medio" Truchas summit-to-saddle). From the summit of "Medio" Truchas descend several hundred feet on the Class 2 terrain to the deep notch in the ridge. Scramble down into and out of the notch requires occasional Class 3 moves on a reasonably solid rock with some exposure. After the notch, its Class 2 terrain all the way to the "Medio"-North Truchas Saddle at 12,400 ft.

The "Medio"-North Truchas Saddle can be approached from the upper Rio Quemado Basin (west) or Truchas Lakes Basin (east) via parts of the Rio Quemado Trail (Trail #153) ascending the scree and talus slopes on the eastern and western sides of the ridge.

Descending the upper part of NE ridge	Approaching the notch in the NE Ridge	The closeup view of the northern side of the notch	Scrambling inside the notch	Medio and Middle Truchas Peaks from the notch

The lower NE Ridge	Traversing the lower NE Ridge	"Medio"-North Truchas Saddle, view west

Traverse to Middle and South Truchas Peaks

The summit of Middle Truchas is just a short 0.4 mile hike from the summit of "Medio" Truchas Peak with ~100 ft. of elevation gain. The summit of South Truchas is another 0.6 miles/300 vertical feet away from the top of "Medio" Truchas.

When to Climb

June through October is considered the best time to climb. Late July-August are the typical monsoon season, with regular afternoon thunderstorms. Winter ascents are possible, but avalanche conditions could be extreme and the approach may require an overnight or multi-day backpack.

Images

View Northeast Ridge of "Medio" Truchas Peak Image Gallery - 7 Images