West Ridge

The West Ridge is a shorter and steeper route than the standard east side routes up this impressive peak. An additional advantage to this route is that one can avoid parking fees/congestion at the McCullough Gulch trailhead on the Quandary Peak (east) side.

Begin at the Mayflower Gulch trailhead on CO 91 at 10,980 feet. Or with a high clearance vehicle, you can proceed about a mile up the rutted road toward Boston Mine. This road is not 4WD - just high clearance. Leave the road at about 11,300 feet, and descend slightly, crossing Mayflower Creek. Continue north along Pacific Creek under the prominent ridge of Atlantic Peak. After about 2.3 miles from the paved parking area, reach the base of Pacific's west ridge at 12,500 feet. Ascend this (Class 3) to the 13,957' summit. Partway up the ridge, I climbed a steep fifth class slab, but this is easily avoided to the climber's right. Many options for fun scrambling exist along the ridge, and the rock is generally solid.

From the summit, look down to the SE at 13,420' Pacific Tarn - the highest named lake in America. Quandary Peak dominates the view in that direction, as does Crystal Peak to the north.

Descend by reversing the route. Or continue south about 0.8 miles along the second class ridge to Atlantic Peak, and descend its NW ridge to Pacific Creek, regaining the ascent route. The round trip from the paved parking area is just under six miles with an elevation gain of 3075' including some minor elevation loss when leaving the road. The excursion to Atlantic Peak might add nearly a mile to this, but I didn't get to do this because of an approaching storm, so I don't know the additional mileage for this.

The Mayflower Gulch parking area is about six miles south of I-70 on CO 91, on the east side of the road. 

Season-appropriate hiking/mountaineering gear.