Lookout - A name or a warning?

Trailhead & Approach

We climbed Lookout Peak (13,661') via the South Ridge route. This trailhead starts approximately 0.2 miles east of Ophir Pass. There was a fresh accumulation of up to 6 inches of snow on this climb. The ascent is up the obvious scree gully on the left:

Climb & Summit

After topping out above the gully, the route heads south along the ridge. Although we didn't know it at the time, you can keep this climb at class 2+, but we were pleasantly surprised to find a short 5th class section:


More fun scrambling awaits along the south ridge:

From the summit, Columbine Lake glistens below:

Descent & Climbing Notes

The descent was much easier than I thought it'd be on the way up. The scree was soft allowing quick and solid heel steps. The snow was firm enough to heel step as well. Here is a shot on the descent in the main gully.

The round trip took about 3 hours car-to-car.

This route was a nice surprise. Although the initial scree gully was tedious, the route along the ridge was quite enjoyable. During the ascent of the scree gully, I was sure this peak's name was a sharp warning, but upon achieving the summit, it's clear this peak is aptly named for its panoramic views, including U.S. Grant and the Vermillion group, the Grenadiers, Lizard Head, the Wilson group, the Sneffels range, Uncompaghre/Wetterhorn, and Coxcomb/Redcliff.

Images

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