Pomeroy Mountain : Climbing, Hiking & Mountaineering : SummitPost

Overview

Pomeroy Mountain & Upper Pomeroy Lake

West Face

South Face

Pomeroy is a magnificent mountain that sits deep in the Sawatch Mountains of central Colorado near the town of Buena Vista. To the north of Pomeroy, you will find a large basin that sits at an elevation of 12000 to 12400 ft. This basin is known as the Pomeroy Basin and houses the Upper and Lower Pomeroy Lakes (12250 and 12020 ft). The lakes drain to the north into the Chalk Creek Valley (the valley that goes between the famous Fourteeners: Mt. Antero and Mt. Princeton).

The northern slopes of Pomeroy Mountain are wall-like and drop 600 vertical feet onto the slopes above the Upper Pomeroy Lake. The western slopes of Pomeroy Mountain are quite steep and go down to reach the upper portions of Chalk Creek. The gentlest slopes of Pomeroy are those to the southeast of it that descend into a large basin that contains several lakes including Billings Lake and North Fork Reservoir.

The easiest way to climb Pomeroy Mountain is probably from the southeast via Billings Lake. It appears that from the lake you could hike up easy slopes all the way to the summit. A more challenging route, however, is from the north via the Chalk Creek Valley. A rough four wheel drive road will take you from the valley to the Pomeroy Lakes where you can gain access to the rocky northeastern ridgeline of Pomeroy Mountain. Class III rock climbing on this ridgeline will then lead you to the summit.

Pomeroy & Peak 13070

Pomeroy

Below you can find pictures of what you can expect to see if you climb Pomeroy Mountain from Chalk Creek Valley:

Chalk Cliffs & Chalk Creek Road:

South of the town of Buena Vista you will turn from Route 285 onto Chalk Creek Road (Forest Rd 162). The impressive Chalk Cliffs can be seen on the north side of the road on the southern slopes of Mt. Princeton.

Chalk Cliffs

Aspens

Chalk Cliffs

On the Jeep Trail to the Pomeroy Lakes:

On Jeep Trail

The lakes:

Upper Lake

Lower Lake

Cirque below the summit:

Pomeroy’s northeastern ridgeline:

Slot

Views from the summit:

Pomeroy Lakes from the summit of Pomeroy Mountain

Grizzly Mountain

Cyclone/Carbonate

Taylor Mountain

Aetna

Van Wirt

Hancock

Northwest

Getting There

From the town of Buena Vista drive 8 miles south on Route 285 to a place known as Nathrop and then turn west onto Route 162. Drive this road 15.3 miles to just before the ghost town of St. Elmo (the first 10 miles are paved and the rest is a well graded dirt road).

Turn left onto Route 295. This road is rougher but is still passable by most/any car. Continue 2.7 miles until you see a detour around an old decaying railroad bridge. Right after the detour, you will see a sign for the road to Mary Murphy Mine (& Pomeroy Lakes). This is your trailhead. Be ware that the detour around the railroad bridge is quite steep and rough and will probably require a four wheel drive vehicle. Without 4WD, you can start your hike just before the detour (only a few hundred feet longer).