Route: Snake Couloir

Team: Ted, Kevin Dunnett

It never dawned on me that you might be able to ski the Snake Couloir in November.

My friend Kevin Dunnett and I were planning a fall road trip. We figured we could still rock climb in places this time of year; it wasn’t too cold. We could also ice climb; Lincoln Falls was reportedly in good condition. Skiing has been possible around Castle Peak lately as well. But was there anywhere else we could go?

While scouring the internet for ice conditions, Kevin saw some pics from the San Juans showing what looked to be very good snow in the Snake Couloir on Mount Sneffels. So we went.

Driving the nine-mile road to Blaine Basin TH often can’t be done in the winter or early spring due to snow. But in November, it was clear and easy. We camped at the car the night before. The following morning, we set out on foot for 2.5 hours, reaching the continuous snow beneath Sneffels’ north side. From there, we skinned until about 12,500 ft., where the skis went on our backs, and the crampons were put on.

The lower couloir was only about seven feet wide in spots, barely enough room to fit a turned ski. Above that, the deep snow was tough to ascend. It was a lot of work. As we arrived at the top of the Snake Couloir, I recall having wet gloves and a headache. From there, it would be about fifty feet of 5th-class climbing to the summit, which felt like committing moves in ski boots on snow-covered rock. We didn’t climb the final pitch with our skis. We left them below at the highest skiable snow.

Back in 2000, I remembered looking down into the Snake Couloir, where a fixed rope aided a short rappel. Today, it was neither short nor fixed, and we had no rope. We did have two shorter, thinner cordelettes but nothing with which to build a real anchor. That was better than nothing. We tied the cords together and slung any horn-like features we could find, lowering ourselves back down to the skis one short section at a time. From there, the skiing was sweet.

We got back to the truck just before dark, totally psyched. What a day! Maybe it’s not the perfect aesthetic ski because it doesn’t go from the exact summit, but it sure was cool. If anything, the scramble-ey finish added to the experience. Tomorrow, we would head to Shelf Road for rock climbing and Lincoln Falls the following day for some ice. What a classic Colorado road trip.