Wilson Peak

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 7/20/2025, By: eliyancey
Info: Down to two minor snowfields in Silver Pick Basin. Very easily passable with footholds. Rest of the route is dry and in great shape. 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 7/11/2025, By: dakotasmama
Info: There are five small-to-medium-sized snowfields left on the Rock of Ages approach, all before the first saddle, all easily traversed and all were still firm enough that I didn’t pothole on my descent shortly after noon. Route finding is a bit tricky once you start the Class 3 ledges but usually staying high is the best option, though once I got a little too high and had to go down a small gully to get back on track. The views from the summit are beautiful in every direction. Still a decent amount of snow on the north side of Mt. Wilson and El Diente but Navajo Basin looked clear. The section just before the summit where you climb next to the gash was chillllly - it’s like an ice box in there so keep your gloves handy! Left the TH at 4:30, reached the summit at 9, back to the TH at 1:30. Really fun hike and 14er! 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 7/8/2025, By: Wentzl
Info: Yes, there is some snow. Well trenched and passable in hoka's and no axe. 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 7/7/2025, By: lauren_exploring_
Info: Lower portion of Rock of Ages approach is fine until the saddle comes into view, then there are about 5 unavoidable snowfield crossings. They have great solid steps in the snow, but I found spikes and poles to be helpful on ascent and descent. From Rock of Ages saddle, it is in mint summer condition. What a great climb! 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 7/1/2025, By: backcountrybrodes
Info: Snow fields from out of the trees all the way up to the Rock of Ages saddle. Rest of the mountain is summer conditions. At least microspikes and an axe are highly recommended, especially for harder snow in the morning. I was able to glissade in the evening since the snow softened but be really careful of sharks (luckily I ran into none). 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 6/30/2025, By: dude4mountains
Info: The route above Rock of Ages is 100% snow free. On the approach up the into the basin there are two or three persistent snow crossings that may make you wish you had spikes and/or and axe. 

Route: Bilk Basin
Posted On: 6/24/2025, By: masonzastrow
Info: Well, I wasn't expecting to end up here two days after my last attempt, but I summited today coming from Bilk Basin! Conditions are great from the saddle and beyond, only about three steps on snow are required to get to the summit. Getting from the lake to the saddle is difficult, the trail is very rarely visible. I used micro spikes and an axe for this stretch, crampons would probably be overkill. Snowshoes would be an option too. Because snow on slopes seemed sturdier, I ended up traversing a lot. Although snow near rocks was slushy by about 9, the stuff in the middle of snowfields was surprisingly supportive. I got a picture of the other route from silver pick basin, looks like there's plenty of snow on the trail still. I also have a pic of Mount Wilson and El Diente, looks relatively dry on the traverse but routes coming from Navajo Lake would still be pretty filled in. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 6/24/2025, By: mcosby
Info: Route in pretty good condition. Some consequential snow crossings in silver pick basin that warrant spikes and in my opinion an axe (an un-arrested fall would be bad). No snow of note beyond Rock of Ages saddle to the summit. 

Route: Bilk Basin Approach
Posted On: 6/22/2025, By: masonzastrow
Info: More of a Bilk Basin update than the peak itself. Came up from the Sunshine Mesa trailhead, which currently is blocked by a fallen tree .7 miles from the TH. The first 1.5 miles of the trail is... rough. Dozens of downed trees, many of which were difficult to move through. Lots of cuts on my legs. The river crossing wasn't as bad as I expected, but it's definitely a boots off crossing. The water was about halfway up my calf, I'd say you need poles for the crossing and I wouldn't want to do it in the dark. The trail is easy to follow until about 11k, then you have to search for it more through the willows. Coming to the upper basin from Cross Mountain TH would require a very risky creek crossing at 11.3k. I didn't see a way around, but also wasn't looking all too hard. I went to camp up at 12k last night, got fully set up and tucked into bed when the wind started ripping my tent stakes out of the ground. Decided it'd be too risky to scramble in that gale anyways, so I dropped down to 10k to sleep the rest of the night. On my way out, I tried to clean up the trail a little but there's just nothing you can do with those 3 foot wide trunks. Pictures of Wilson Peak and Gladstone from 12k attached! 

Route: Navajo Lake Approach
Posted On: 6/24/2025, By: e2wa3n
Info: Hiked Wilson Peak from Navajo Lake on Sunday, June 22. The route was nearly in summer conditions, only encountering 3 mandatory but unproblematic snow crossings on the way to Rock of Ages Saddle. The route to Wilson Peak from Rock of Ages Saddle was completely free of snow except for two small but somewhat sketchy spots in the crux section just below the summit. We did not have any trouble though, and I'm guessing the route will be completely dry very soon. From Rock of Ages Saddle, we could see that the Rock of Ages approach is still quite snowed in and I would not recommend trying that route for a couple of weeks. Kilpacker basin also still looked very snowy from a distance, so I would let that thaw out for a little while before heading up there. I added some pictures showing the snow at the crux section as well as on the Rock of Ages approach. 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 5/30/2025, By: dakotasmama
Info: Downed tree two miles before the trailhead added onto an exhausting summit attempt. I was lulled into a false sense of security for the first 4 miles, and then I reached Silver Pick Basin. There’s so much snowpack that route-finding was nearly impossible without keeping my phone in my hand. I had gaiters and spikes but without snowshoes I spent three hours navigating to the saddle, post-holing more often than not. I had hoped that after the saddle the north side would be more clear of snow than the south but the snow fields persisted and I turned around with about a half mile left. Very dicey descent back into the basin, at least until the snow wasn’t too steep and I could start glissading, but I cut that short too over fear of causing an avalanche. 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 4/15/2025, By: aksean22
Info: Started a few miles down the 622 road at about 9500'. We drove through a few deep patches of snow to make it to that point, but it's melting fast and the next person should have an easier time. Snow in Silver Pick basin was quite icy and crusty from all the sun last week. A straightforward booter up the NW face of Wilson and a little bit of dry scrambling to the summit. Coors Face was a little thin up top but better once you get off the face and into the main gully. One or two more storms would help out a lot. Great corn lower down, isothermic mess in the trees. Sweet line! 

Route: Woods Lake Approach
Posted On: 9/30/2024, By: two lunches
Info: the south ridge and east face are completely dry, but snow from the storm a couple weeks ago is persistent from the downclimb of the false summit to partway up The Gash. it took me a moment to decide to proceed from the false summit, but once i strapped on microspikes and committed to the route, i encountered no issues. the snow is supportive and the hand-holds are abundant, but i watched several people who didn't bring spikes struggle/panic over the spot (rightfully so), and a few turned around instead of summitting. it's possible to avoid the snow, but involves some careful rock dancing to get from one side to the other. a fall from there might not be fatal, but it wouldn't be a fun day. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 9/20/2024, By: eliyancey
Info: I think it's safe to say that summer conditions are coming to a close. The downclimb from the false summit across to the summit pitch was totally covered in snow and made the difficulty drastically increase. A group in front of ours turned around after the false summit because they didn't feel comfortable with the snowy conditions. I almost did, but pushed on and was able to summit. With the forecasted snow this weekend, I would say things are not going to get any better. Was glad to do this just before the summer season came to a close! 

Route: Rock of Ages Approach
Posted On: 9/16/2024, By: Clairebaums
Info: The road to get there was not too bad, but we got to the trailhead in a forerunner. There was no snow on the route so there's no need for crampons. It did snow with high winds when we were summited around 9:30 am, but nothing was sticking to the ground.