Quandary Peak

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 9/20/2012, By: czechmark
Info: The weather was beautiful on top September 16, 2012 and to my surprise there was a couple cooking pancakes. I couldn‘t stop myself from taking a picture and posting it on the forum. Here is a picture of Pancake Man and Hotcake Woman; thank you for your hospitality on top of Quandary. May we meet again, keep the griddle hot. 

Route: West Ridge
Posted On: 9/10/2012, By: hvolmer
Info: Attempted West Ridge approach after coming down Fletcher. I encountered just enough fresh snow in the class 3 area very near the top. I was forced to turn. (It is entirely possible that I was off route, but after several back-tracks, I could only come up with alternates that appeared more than class 3. I decided that it was safest to save this for next summer.) Take the warning on the main peak page to heart: this is a serious route! 

Route: West Ridge
Posted On: 9/1/2012, By: esagas
Info: Summer conditions everywhere. Very easy trail to follow. A fun route that avoids the weekend crowds on the East Ridge (we came down that way). 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 9/1/2012, By: bclinto
Info: Hiked today up Quandary via the East Ridge and returned on the same route. Great conditions in the morning. Arrived at the trailhead around 6:45, had to park a little down the road, but not too much. I hike very slowly, we summited in about 4.5 hours. Trail was packed, but everyone was very nice and positive. Stayed on the summit for a while, but clouds were moving in. Left the summit around noon and took about 3 hours to come down (again I'm slow). Got sprinkled on a few times, smaller than pea size hail a couple of times, and had a couple of strong gusts of wind, but nothing a light jacket didn't protect us from. Also, no lightning today. 

Route: West Ridge
Posted On: 7/23/2012, By: kingshimmers
Info: Started out with a nice morning: some small clouds, but could see blue sky all around them. As we climbed, the two clouds closest to the peak grew larger, grayer, and eventually joined together. At around 11am, we started getting some snow at 14,000ft. The snow turned to rain, and as we began our descent (before noon), we began to hear thunder. The clouds briefly cleared a bit around 1pm, but moved back in by 2pm (by which time we were off the trail). 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 7/11/2012, By: Rabbanah
Info: Perfect day on the mountain. Started climbing around 9am and was back to parking around noon. Trail was dry, but congested. I stopped counting hikers when I passed my 75th person going up. There was a family of mountain goats holding people up around 13,000. Cute little babies with them. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 6/3/2012, By: Thunderable
Info: Trail clear to the top with just a few patches of snow just before the summit that were easy to cross or avoid. Conditions on peak were ideal with warm temperatures and light winds. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/29/2012, By: sheller
Info: A bit windy, but very good conditions. No snow at the TH or along the trail except for a small ice patch at the summit that was easy to skirt. Summer conditions for Quandary. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/24/2012, By: keith_stone
Info: Trail was covered in snow ranging from 1-6 inches during the ascent after the resent storm. On the descent the snow had melted off the trail completely by 1pm once it dropped to the north off the ridge and into the forest. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/20/2012, By: wypatt
Info: Route is snow free except for the occasional hard pack and the final 50 yards to the summit. No traction needed. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 5/6/2012, By: letourneau41
Info: East Ridge was clear of snow except for a few small patches. No need for any traction. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 4/28/2012, By: kyriestone
Info: Hit the trail just before 8am today. The trail below treeline had spotty patches of snow, but well-worn paths through it. Above treeline was a different story, though. The mountain had apparently gotten several inches of snow because the combination of the gusty wind and blowing snow made it hard just above treeline to follow the path. From treeline all the way to the summit, blowing snow continued to make it hard to stay on the trail. I didn‘t use microspikes on the way up, but they would have helped, so I put them on for the descent. Even though the skies cleared on my ascent, the wind and blowing snow were brutal, esp. on the upper reaches. At one point, I considered turning back due to the wind, but did summit. Things were easier on the way back down with the wind at my back, but mud from the melting snow threw me off more than once from treeline on down. I meant to take some pictures on the way down, but my camera died right after the summit shots. Bottom line- I knew the wind would be there, and dressed accordingly, but didn‘t think the mountain had gotten as much snow as it did. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 4/21/2012, By: zdero1
Info: Road dry all the way to the trailhead. Easily accessible by any vehicle. No snowshoes needed during the ascent, even for this big guy! 50+ mph winds experienced on the flat part of the ridge just before the final slope up to the summit, which was unpleasant to say the least. We had to make clothing changes in this wind tunnel because we quickly lost feeling in our fingers with lightweight gloves, even though temps never reached freezing. Recommend putting on some midweight gloves and a balaclava before you traverse this portion of the climb if forecast calls for high winds. Mashed potato snow on the decent which made for great plunge stepping down the ridge. Snowpack rarely above 8" above the forest. Sporadic patches of snow in the forest. Postholed a few times after entering the forest but would not recommend snow shoes. Rapid melting occuring today. Felt like a climb one would have in late May-mid June. Accessible trailhead, great conditions, and a nice easy climb early in the season make this one a no-brainer! Get out and enjoy it! 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 4/10/2012, By: compacted_graphite
Info: Hiked Quandary Peak April 9, 2012. Beautiful sunny weather, some wind later in the day. Road to Quandary trail head clear. Trail in treeline was mostly clear with some icy spots. Maybe fourteen hikers seen during the day. Most people did not use micro spikes, skis, or snow shoes. Followed ridge line at treeline and mostly followed snow fields with clearly defined trail thru well packed snow. Above 12,500 most of the trail followed was dry, with occasional snow patch. Mountain goat observed at 13,400. Snow patch on summit was icy. Followed the new recommended trail on return and snow depth was considerate at treeline and warm enough for significant post holing. 

Route: East Ridge
Posted On: 3/25/2012, By: BigfootUSAF
Info: Good hard-packed snow on the route. Used my microspikes the majority of the time. Left the summit around 11:30am and by the time I got to treeline my snowshoes were useful in some spots to prevent postholing (it was a warm, sunny day).