Anyways, this year I really wanted to get in some winter climbing, as a first step towards preparing for such lofty goals as Denali and Aconcaugua. I decided that Elbert would be a good peak to try, as Elbert has such good trails and access year-round. Plus, I haven't been up there in a few years. Having hiked the standard route along the Mt. Elbert trail, I wanted to go for something different, and I opted for the Black Cloud Gulch trail, which ascends Elbert on it's south side as opposed to the east side approach of the Mt. Elbert trail.

I spent the week previous monitoring the avalanche conditions and weather patterns so I'd have some idea of what I'd be looking at. Luckily, the avalanche danger was rated as low to moderate for that region of the state, so I headed out early on the 18th for what would be a cold and snowy attempt at Elbert.

I arrived at the trailhead just before 8am on this cold November morning. The skies were perfectly clear, and the temperature was a brisk -5 degrees (that's Fahrenheit). The winds were calm at 9600 feet, but driving in I could see the winds whipping the dusty white snow on Elbert and Massive above treeline. Gear for this trip included snowshoes, trekking poles, ice axe, and several layers of clothes, especially for my hands and head!

There was about 6" of snow on the ground, but I decided to start without the snowshoes on. A struck off north on the trail, and began to climb steeply. The trek up through the trees is fairly steep and switchbacked. The snow came and went - a few inches here, bare ground there. Even snow-covered, it was fairly easy to follow, despite the fact that there were no tracks or any other indication of people having been there. The last entry in the register was two weeks prior, so I had a feeling I'd be doing some serious trail breaking! That feeling was borne out at about 11,200 feet. After crossing and recrossing the streambed, the snow was at least a foot deep, and even after strapping on the snowshoes the going was slow. The snow was consistently light and fluffy...the kind of powder that most skiers would sell their soul for. The snowshoes didn't do a thing to keep me from sinking in every step.

Anyways, I pressed on. The trail is easy to follow, and using Roach's route, I reached a fairly large clearing at 11,200 or so, and kept pressing north, beyond an old cabin and basically straight up the south ridge of Elbert. Things went from steep to steeper - probably close to 40 degrees, give or take. After treeline, I lost the trail in the drifted snow, and did my best to hike in short switchbacks, aiming for the ridge top at 13,600 ft. The snow depth along the way was extremely variable, from inches to feet, depending on the drifting. I stopped a number of times to scan the area for any signs of avalanche danger, but there were enough protruding rocks and plant life to effectively anchor the snow.

By now it was nearing 12:30, and I was really getting fatigued. The effort of breaking trail all morning was starting to wear me down, and I knew that I had a lot less daylight left than in the summertime. As I neared the ridgeline, the winds I knew were coming picked up abruptly, to the point where I approached the last few feet of the climb on my hands and knees. Good thing I did, too. As I popped my head above the ridge, I was assaulted with a gust of wind that literally ripped the breath out of my lungs. The visibility through the whipping snow was horrible - whiteout to clear and back within seconds. I quickly reversed course to a point below the ridgeline where the winds were at least tolerable, and considered my position. I was getting tired, it was nearly 1pm, and I'd been hiking for 4 hours, and the summit of Elbert was still well over a mile away, along the ridge. Reluctantly, I realized that I wasn't going to make it even to South Elbert, only a half-mile away.

I sat for about 20 minutes, resting and eating and being totally awestruck at the view to the south. The deep blue sky framed the bulk of LaPlata Peak and Ellingwood Ridge perfectly. Finally, I began picking my way back down. This proved tricky for a while...the steep slope didn't have enough of a snowcover to glissade down, but enough to make the going tricky. I breathed a huge sigh of relief once I hit treeline and the trail reappeared and mellowed out a bit. Luckily, retracing my tracks was pretty much a no-brainer, and I made excellent time back to the trailhead, making it in just about 2 hours. I relaxed at the trailhead (where the temperature was threatening to break the 10 degree mark!) and changed out of my sweat-soaked gear.

So even though I didn't make it, I expect I'll try this route again, perhaps in the spring when the snow has consolidated some more. The route looks to be very skiiable above treeline, and with a good snowpack the going wouldn't be too tough. At the very least, it was a great day to be in the mountains and enjoy the solitude of an early winter climb!