Precarious Peak

Route: From Rustlers gulch
Posted On: 7/25/2024, By: SnowAlien
Info: Didn't get to do the peak with snow, but at least got to see the approach at the peak wildflowers season. For the uphill route, I chose to go up the grassy shoulder of the subpeak, and the grass (and wildflowers) lasted to about 12,500 ft before the talus started. Talus was low angle and not particularly loose, so I was happy with my route. I wish I went down the same way, but I wanted to check out the SW access couloir (steep and loose). The downclimb into the top of the access gully was about Class 4 for a short section. There was some more scrambling until I reached the stable class 2+ talus section and followed it up to the Notch. Instead of dropping 50 feet to the north, I decided to downclimb into the notch via a Class 4 exposed ramp on the south side of the ridge, as I spotted a nice looking dihedral, also on the south side (basically I stayed on the opposite side of the ridge from the "standard" route). The dihedral was very fun, low Class 5 on great rock and went all the way to the summit ridge. Register is in great shape, I was the 3rd party this year. For the descent I stayed on the ridge proper until the Notch, then downclimbed to the top of the snow on the north side and crossed the rib - Class 3-4 depending on the line, and until now the rock quality has been great. From there I descended into SW access gully, and the rock indeed became loose (well, it's a snow route). I descended the gully about half way, but decided to explore the beautiful rock on the left wall (should have done it earlier instead of staying in the gully). The rib descent on grass went much quicker, however, a fair warning (if it's not obvious from the map), the rib cliffs out near the bottom. I couldn't find a downclimb that was easier than Class 5, so I backtracked about 100 feet until I found a Class 4 downclimb back into the access gully. I was in awe from all the scrambling options and can't wait to see the couloir in the snow. On the way back through the basin the wildflowers were backlit, which slowed my progress considerably, way too many photos. What an incredible basin and the peak! 

Route: South Face Couloirs
Posted On: 6/6/2023, By: Camden7
Info: Schofield Pass Road 317 is open to the bridge 1.5 miles past Gothic. Rustler Gulch and Copper Creek are both mostly free of snow up to 10,000 feet, but above 10,400 everything around Crested Butte is still BURIED in snow. All aspects above treeline are in for climbing, but marginal freezes have made the east facing stuff soft shortly after sunrise. South face of precarious was weirdly unconsolidated even though the temp was in the 20's and the sun hadn't yet risen. West facing couloirs on white rock mountain were in good condition, northeast ridge of "Golden Tops" was a corniced mess. Rustler Creek could be crossed with dry feet if enough care was taken, Copper Creek required a ford. The Secret Stash is still good. Have pictures of lots of Elk Peaks, PM if you want pictures or have questions. 

Route: SW Gully to Ridge
Posted On: 7/4/2022, By: Grover
Info: What an aptly named peak. Hiking trail from the gate to the apron of scree below the SW gully is straightforward. Several stream crossings in Rustlers Gulch, but all can be crossed via logs or rocks (you have to search for one or two of them, but they are there). At the bottom of the SW gully, your route is obvious, and dubious, to the saddle. Only remnant of snow in the gully is easily avoidable. I favored the right side of the SW gully going up. The recent monsoon weather has softened up the hardpan dirt. The gully is steep. Route from the saddle up to the ridge is even precarious, with kitty litter and loose rocks. Helmet is a must, and I would say poles are a must just to stabilize yourself going up and coming down Choss-a-palooza. Consider: If you have been up Thunder Pyramid in dry conditions, then this route will bring back all those wonderful memories. Pro Tip: I recommend gaiters or rain pants in the morning to avoid the 'car wash brush' soaking from the plants and foliage. 

Route: Southwest Couloir and North Face
Posted On: 6/6/2021, By: supranihilest
Info: The short: steep, insidiously loose, exposed, wet, snowy, and scrambly. Not to be taken lightly. Lower mountain easier with snow, harder without. Upper Mountain harder with snow, easier without. The long: from Rustler Gulch trailhead (newly added to the site) we took the trail, which is an old closed road, through numerous wet, muddy patches and alongside East River, making stream crossings and wading through mud and muck in standing water and willows where necessary until eventually the trail crosses East River. We couldn't find a good way across so Heather leapt across a rocky gap and I took my boots off and waded the river. It's about knee deep and icy. There's another serious crossing on logs and many more stream crossings until the upper gulch. All in all we probably crossed the river and streams a dozen times on the way up and down. In the upper gulch the trail eventually gets lost in snow patches. In the morning they were somewhat firm, in the afternoon they were sloppy messes at least ankle deep and we often postholed to our waists. Without an overnight freeze anticipate awful snow conditions. We made our way across snow, open or willowy slopes, and loose talus to the base of Precarious' obvious southwest couloir, which is a giant gash in the peak's left flank. Snow in the couloir was good for cramponing, and we probably could have even gone without crampons. Any rock that was melted out was loose beyond words. Most of the couloir held snow with exception of a stretch near the top that was a two steps forward, one step back type of affair. At the top of the couloir we turned slightly to the right, traversed a short distance, climbed maybe 20-30 feet of steep snow, and then scrambled up another 20-30 or so feet of extremely loose Class 3, arguably Class 4 rock. This was highly exposed and was the most serious and careful scrambling of the route. Almost everything we touched was loose, sometimes just completely detached from anything else. Once atop this short headwall there were several hundred feet of Class 2+ scrambling on large boulders and talus that was considerably more stable. This continued to another large, nigh unclimbable notch. From this notch we scrambled down 10-20 feet of Class 3 rock, traversed a short distance on snow across the north face, then scrambled up several hundred feet of sustained, extremely exposed Class 3 rock. Fortunately this rock was very solid for the most part, because this was no fall territory. Unfortunately there was ample snow, ice, and meltwater on everything and the rock was often slabby in nature. Three points of contact at all times on this section. After several hundred feet of this we reached the summit ridge where rock quality again deteriorated but the difficulty dropped to exposed, snowy Class 2 to the summit. We reversed our route all the way into Rustler Gulch and plunge stepped the couloir, not wanting to try any of the other numerous gullies on the south face. The snow and ice on the upper mountain's down scramble was enormously consequential and took us time and care to get down. Gear: ice axe mandatory for the couloir and short sections on the upper mountain. Crampons probably not necessary unless there's a hard freeze. We wore them up the couloir but the snow was soft enough not to need them, and I wore them for the upper scramble on the way up, but neither of us wore them for the remainder of the day after reaching the summit. Flotation might be necessary if the snow in the basin does not freeze, which it won't in the immediate future. 

Route: NW couloir
Posted On: 10/6/2020, By: tdawg012
Info: Dry, went up the NW couloir, negotiated a loose class 3+ notch below summit ridge and up a final NW/W wide rib to summit. Overall a fun and short route once past the couloir. The couloir had loose and sharp talus of all sizes, would not recommend a party larger than two. 

Route: SW Gully
Posted On: 5/28/2020, By: Flyingfish
Info: NOTE: I did not climb this but I did hike to get a view of the route. Trail is very muddy and wet till treeline with some large patches of snow. Upper basin still has a good amount of snow. Lower 1/2 to 2/3 of the gully has okay snow coverage with the upper gully and ridge appearing dry. Picture is the best view I could get of the gully without hiking to the base of it.