Me and my friend are going to hike east ridge of mount Elbert this Saturday and I’d like to do a last minute check.

I posted here before and some members of SP were very helpful. Special thanks to Martha P for providing a lot of information and offering 2 pair of snow shoes!

Colorado got a lot of snow last week but it appears that Mount Elbert region was somewhat spared and it got not more than a foot and majority of it is just a boot high. This week was mild and temperatures were well above freezing. We plan on having snow shoes just in case, but I was wondering if we really need them at this point? Anyone happened to blaze that trail recently after the last snow? Also I’d like to know the condition of 4WD road that leads to the trail head?

After researching Mount Elbert trails it seems that the East Ridge is the best bet in winter, but should we consider North East Ridge in case 4WD is closed? Or should we stick to East Ridge regardless?

Any update on the trail is really appreciated!

Thanks!

Based on how some other mountains in the area are doing, I think the trail is fine. Some light snow pack along with some slushy snow when your in the trees. The 4WD road to the West Ridge of Missouri Mountain is unpassable, so I'd assume that its the same the Elbert one.

we're back from our trip!

the conditions were awesome. bright sun, no wind (below the tree line) and mild temps. there was some snow, but nothing significant - we didn't need snow shoes at all.

4WD road is open and drivable, we only skipped driving the last 3 or 4 hundred feet.

the trail was covered with snow, so we lost it pretty quick soon after we started the hike. we allowed plenty of time for hiking down to make sure we don't look for our footsteps in the dark. being new to the region and straight from the sea level we were really on the safe/conservative side which cost us the summit since we turned around at 13k. but it was all worth it!

our main goal was to see how we can tolerate the altitude and we seemed to manage just fine.

for those with facebook accounts, there are some pictures here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=39397&id=1019537350&ref=mf