Mt. Evans - mixed, couloirs

Description 

The Summit Lake bowl offers some fine alpine ice and rock routes topping out at or near 14,000'. Summer T-storms are the biggest danger. Easy access is limited to June-September by the closure of the Mt. Evans highway. It's a long hike up the road or Chicago Lakes basin the rest of the year.

Getting There 

Drive up I-70 to Idaho Springs. Take the Mt. Evans highway to the Echo Lake. Take a right at the Echo Lake Lodge, and follow the summit road to Summit Lake. The main bowl just below the summit offers easy ice/snow climbs and has the potential for some mixed routes just below the summit if conditions are right. This is accessed by hiking around the south side of Summit Lake and up the slope into the bowl. The Aprons are west of the Lake - First Apron is northwest, Second is due west, and Third is southwest just right of the bowl. Mt. Spaulding is accessed by dropping down to upper Chicago Lakes basin, north of Summit Lake.

Featured Route For Mt. Evans - mixed, couloirs

Sunrise Couloir Mod. Snow  CO : CO Ice & Mixed : Mt. Evans - mixed, couloirs

This route follows the obvious couloir due west of summit lake in the middle of the Evans-Spalding saddle. Hike around the north end of the lake to the bottom of the gully and continue straight up to the top. To continue to the summit of Evans, go left from the top for 3/4 of a mile to the top, or you could take a right for a 1/4 mile or so to Spalding. This route has a large cornice every year which, when it melts out to vertical, is fun to pl...[more]