Page Type Page Type: Mountain/Rock
Location Lat/Lon: 38.62730°N / 106.3416°W
Additional Information County: Chaffee
Activities Activities: Mountaineering
Seasons Season: Summer
Additional Information Elevation: 13151 ft / 4008 m
Sign the Climber's Log

Overview

Pomeroy & Upper Lake
Pomeroy Mountain & Upper Pomeroy Lake

 
West Slopes
West Face
 
Southern Slopes
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 & 13070
Pomeroy & Peak 13070
Pomeroy
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
Chalk Cliffs
Aspens
Aspens
Chalk Cliffs
Chalk Cliffs


On the Jeep Trail to the Pomeroy Lakes:





Point 12860 ft
On Jeep Trail
Jeep Trail
On Jeep Trail
On Jeep Trail
On Jeep Trail


The lakes:





Upper Lake
Upper Lake
Lower Lake
Lower Lake


Cirque below the summit:
Cirque
 

Pomeroy’s northeastern ridgeline:





Northeastern Ridgeline
 
Northeastern Ridgeline
 
Northeastern Ridgeline
 
Slot
Slot


Views from the summit:
Pomeroy Lakes
Pomeroy Lakes from the summit of Pomeroy Mountain






Grizzly Mountain
Grizzly Mountain
Carbonate/Cyclone
Cyclone/Carbonate
Taylor Mountain
Taylor Mountain







Aetna
Aetna
Van Wirt
Van Wirt
Hancock
Hancock
Northwest
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).

Red Tape

No fees or permits needed for hiking. For other regulations see the official site for San Isabel National Forest.
Southern Sawatch Range
aerial view

Weather

See the forecast for the town of Buena Vista, CO.

External Links

Read about Mary Murphy Mine.

Read about Mary Murphy/Pomeroy Lakes Jeep Trail.


Children

Children

Children refers to the set of objects that logically fall under a given object. For example, the Aconcagua mountain page is a child of the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits.' The Aconcagua mountain itself has many routes, photos, and trip reports as children.