Mt. Meeker

Route: Iron Gates
Posted On: 8/17/2017, By: cougar
Info: Entire route is dry. Same for other routes. Scree can mostly be avoided by ascending the nearby talus. Awesome alpenglow on Longs. 

Route: Dreamweaver
Posted On: 6/5/2017, By: TheRealRooster
Info: Climbed Dreamweaver on 6/3, started up the route at maybe 6:45am and topped out around 9:30. Snow got a little soft near the top but was pretty secure, would have wanted to be earlier to the bottom and top though. The second step was a mess - not much ice and a bunch of unconsolidated snow. Skipped it via a little ramp to climber's right. Other ice steps were in great shape. Descended the Loft, which was getting pretty soft and required either some sketchy downclimbing or a rap from an existing sling anchor on skier's right of the main part of the couloir. Needed more than a 40m rope for that rap. Thanks to Jamie and Adam for some guidance on the descent! The snow heading down from there was a mess... snowshoes helped, but not a ton. 

Route: Meeker Ridge
Posted On: 10/23/2016, By: dereks95
Info: Conditions couldn't be better for mid-October. We started at the Horse Creek trailhead - a less-used access point to Meeker ridge that will save you 2 miles and 500 feet of climbing. The trail to Lookout Mtn is in great shape with a minor dusting of snow near the saddle. From the saddle, cairns were easy to follow up the Meeker Ridge to treeline. From there the route is obvious. Wind was pretty strong and gusty so we occasionally dropped to the east (right) side of the ridge to get a break from the breeze. There is minor snow on that side of the ridge but nothing to be concerned about. We had microspikes but never used them. The knife edge is completely clear of snow and ice - wind will be your biggest factor. I took it slow crossing the ridge because the occasional 30+ mph gust can knock you off balance. 

Route: The Loft up Meeker Ridge/NE ridge down
Posted On: 10/3/2016, By: jmanner
Info: Not sure how useful this is with the winter storm coming up, but I went up to Meeker from the loft and down over Meeker Ridge and the Iron Gates on Saturday. In short, there was a bunch of freeze thaw snow on the ramp that leads up to the Loft, so I climbed straight up the head wall( this was not an intentional act it just seemed "right" at the time"). The loft and the ridge over to Meeker Ridge were snow free and the Iron Gates were also snow free, except some rime on the rocks(objectively the closest I actually got to injury). I may or may not write a trip report describing my terror of climbing that headwall up to the Loft. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 9/19/2016, By: jkjkjk13gcs
Info: Solo hiked the Southwest Ridge starting at the Sandbeach Lake trailhead. Route was completely free of snow until the final 50-75 feet where the light dusting of snow from the last storm was mostly avoidable or easy to navigate through without traction. Strong gusts of wind made the ridgeline a bit more interesting, but overall great summer conditions with mild temps! Roundtrip climb time of approximately 9 hours. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 8/29/2016, By: madadraw1
Info: Once you leave Sandbeach Lake Trail going to the Northwest along Hunter Creek, it does get a little wet. Not horribly so but my socks got wet enough to make my toes numb at the summit. Changed socks, then no problem. Not as much bushwhacking as I thought there would have been. When the trail along Hunter Creek ends, you can easily find fairly clear areas to follow. Still, wish I would have brought gaiters to prevent getting some thorns in my socks/shoes. Also, when the trail ends by Hunter Creek, don't go too far to the East (to the right). I missed the Rocky Ridge (that you should stay to the left of) and ended up above it. However, I was still able to get right where I needed to be and it wasn't that bad anyhow. Most of the rock is fairly stable on this hike, not much slipping even on the descent. When hiking up to the final summit ridge, I stayed a little further right where there was maybe easy class 3. Definitely not difficult but a little more direct and fun. I used my GPS which was very helpful...even though it had me up on top of the rocky ridge! Next time I'll put in a way point ahead of time. Plenty of solitude. I didn't see anyone else on the trail today. 

Route: dreamweaver
Posted On: 6/15/2016, By: dereferenced
Info: Dreamweaver's still in okay shape, probably a few weeks past prime conditions. The bottom few constrictions are melting, mixed climbs. The top two have good continuous ice. I descended the loft around 10 AM, conditions were great for glissading or running downhill, not very slushy yet. The exit ramp up to the loft is partially covered in snow, mostly melted higher up. I couldn't be sure from a distance, but Martha looked totally melted out for a big section in the middle. 

Route: North Side
Posted On: 6/13/2016, By: emgordon
Info: Photo from Lily Lake. Driving past, Meeker Ridge mostly clear and Dragon's Egg still holding snow near top. 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 5/23/2016, By: smartt
Info: Avalanche debris field. Slid from about 13,600ft to debris at 12,000ft 

Route: Loft Couloir
Posted On: 1/25/2016, By: Dad Mike
Info: Trailhad...Longs Peak Route...Longs Peak Trail to Crater Lake Trail to Loft Couloir to SE Longs to Meeker to Meeker Ridge down Iron Gates Notes... -No snowshoes needed -Snow in the Loft is firm -Crux is tricky...you have 2 options to get through the cliff band *20' ice section...started to climb this, but didn't feel comfortable with a dull axe and no ice tool *tricky traverse around a ledge system that gets you to the upper snowfield...I would not advise this option in it's current conditions -knife edge between Meeker and Meeker Ridge is dry -Iron Gates route is basically dry 

Route: Loft, Iron Gates
Posted On: 9/22/2015, By: C-Shepguy
Info: Meeker (or Longs) can still be climbed via the Loft without winter gear as of today. It was unseasonably warm up there, and recent snow dusting is gone. Couple small avoidable patches of ice/snow on the loft exit ramp. I went over Meeker to Iron Gates, all clear. Talked to a Longs summiter at the trail head who was fine on keyhole without winter gear, also. Get it while it lasts (probably not long!) 

Route: The Loft
Posted On: 6/20/2015, By: Jonathanlawrence6
Info: Arrived at the trailhead at 2:30. Weather was great. Ice axe and crampons are a must. The shadow area from Chasm Lake to the traverse up the Loft is all snow. There is a short section of ice and wet rock up the traverse. Then crampons and axes again for another 25 minutes. The boulder field is mostly melted and all snow can be avoided. Slow and easy I made my first ice climb in 10 hours. We were passed by 4 climbers who went up Dream Weaver. They must have been pacing 8 hours. They were fast. Today was a great day for a hike. 

Route: Iron Gates
Posted On: 6/28/2014, By: cougar
Info: didn‘t climb it (very windy today up there), but the gully up the Iron Gates route is snow free, as is all of Meeker Ridge, a bit wet from the recent rains and dusting of snow though. Upper 2/3 of the Loft still holding snow with a break in the middle over wet slabs. The couloirs on Meeker are thinning out, especially the upper parts, and looking like mixed routes right now. 

Route: Dreamweaver
Posted On: 5/22/2014, By: Matt Lemke
Info: Did Dreamweaver last Sunday...trail up to treeline was very well packed to Chasm Lake. Snow headed up towards Dreamweaver on the Apron was still soft and post-holey. Saw big avalanches coming off Longs all morning and bombarding the Notch Couloir and Broadway. Parties turned back when they saw these. Reached the base of the couloir after what felt like hours of slogging and started climbing. Deep snow in the couloir and no ice on any of the steps. Soloed the entire route up to the final crux step which we roped up for and placed one piece. All the screws and cams I brought weren‘t used. Finished the slog up to the summit and descended the Loft which was terrifying and likely the most objective danger I ever put myself in. Had that steep slope right before the ledge slid we probably would have died. Wet slides were found everywhere. Once below the ledge on the Loft route, easy plunge stepping ensued and the hike out went smoothly. Saw parties on Martha all day and another party descended Iron Gates. Traverse to Meeker Ridge and Iron Gates descent was snowy but doable. Iron Gates descent itself had lots of talus. Photo descriptions: 1. Avalanche coming off Longs 2. Looking towards the Flying Buttress and the apron 3. Sam on the last crux step (the only part we were roped) 4. Loft Route descent 

Route: Southwest Ridge
Posted On: 4/12/2014, By: rambis_21
Info: Hey! Went and hiked Mt. Meeker via the Loft route today. Had pleasant weather with light winds. Sun behind the hazy clouds was very nice through the morning into early afternoon. Kept the snow from softening up (which could have been detrimental). Nonetheless, we hiked up the main trail which is boot packed basically all the way to above treeline. Microspikes/crampons helpful, hard pack snow. Headed up to Chasm lake. One large snowfield under Mt. Washington -- solid but has had recent running water going over it. Snow field all the way up the loft was solid (we followed fellow hiker footsteps which was awesome! Stair climbers!). Top of the loft was sketchy, we didn‘t feel comfortable at all. Took the standard route on the ledge and up. Crossed the ridge of Meeker and came down between the iron gates and headed out. Was a challenging hike but was worth it. Snow conditions were great today. No recent signs of slides. Can stay on rocks in a lot of areas as well avoiding snow.