Trip report
Jul 31, 2026 — Castle Peak is the highest point in the Elk Mountains of Colorado and a popular 14er outside of Aspen. Conundrum Peak is unranked, but it’s often counted as a 14er on various peakbagging lists. The pair are linked by a trail along their shared ridge, and most parties hike them as an out-and-back. On a whim, I decided to make this outing a bit more spicy by turning it into a partial loop, and then also tacking on the neighboring 13er, Malemute Peak.
I was a bit worried about Pearl Pass Road (39.0291568, -106.8078706), which leads to the trailhead, but the road was surprisingly decent, and my crossover SUV had no trouble. This was welcomed news, since I’d expected to walk an extra 4 road miles round-trip. A creek crossing (39.01508, -106.81657) gave me pause, but despite what previous reports said, I had no difficulty, maybe thanks to the low snow year. The last few switchbacks up Pearl Pass Road to the junction with Montezuma Road get significantly steeper and rockier, so I kind of wished I’d just parked at the last pull-out (39.00481, -106.83527). Plus, the trailhead at the junction only has room for a few cars. I got lucky, but otherwise I would have had to drive back down a bit. The other big benefit of getting my car that high was that I could return to it to restock food and water after Castle Peak, Conundrum Peak, and Malemute Peak before heading up Pearl Mountain and Oyster Peak later in the day.
The night before, I camped at one of the meager designated dispersed campsites along Pearl Pass Road. On my way back down on Friday afternoon, three separate cars stopped me to ask if there were any spots higher up, so it’s clear the dispersed camping fills up on weekends.
I was glad I didn’t try driving Montezuma Road. It would have been far too rough to be enjoyable, though a hardier vehicle could keep going and shave off over 1,000 feet of vertical. Like most hikers heading up Castle Peak, I walked this section.
Several miles on the old mining road took me up Montezuma Basin, beneath Malemute Peak (which I’d tackle later), to the road’s end at a sea of talus. Thanks to the hike’s popularity, plenty of cairns marked the way through the initial terrain, and then a more obvious trail continued up the steepening talus-covered slope. Once Castle Peak came into view, the trail bent slightly left and switchbacked up to the north ridge.
The north ridge gradually introduced some obstacles, though none harder than Class 2/2+. I recommend staying on the ridge, or just slightly below it, for the rest of the route. It’s very steep below on either side and riddled with little cliff bands. Another party had somehow lost the very clearly-worn trail, and I could see them on dangerously loose terrain below. I’m honestly not sure how they managed to do so, so I hung around to ensure they decided to turn back for safety.
A final steep push brought me to Castle Peak’s summit, and the trail continued down its northwest ridge toward Conundrum Peak. The descent from Castle was steep, but the stretch between the two peaks had even fewer obstacles than the climb up Castle, and a good trail kept it barely Class 2. Conundrum Peak’s summit area has a few contenders for the high point, and the southern one is the tallest.
With the lack of snow and my lack of an ice axe, I quickly dismissed the idea of returning to the saddle between the two peaks to drop back into Montezuma Basin. I’d read that this was a route, but certainly not in these conditions. Instead, I continued to the northern point of Conundrum Peak to scope out a possible descent to the north, rather than going back up and over Castle Peak. I figured I’d give it a try, even though all I knew about this route came from some photos I’d taken from below showing a few spots where I might leave the ridgeline and drop back east. I did know this ridge was part of a very sketchy traverse between Castle Peak and Cathedral Peak, one I’d opted to forego years ago, but I wasn’t sure at what point it would get truly sketchy. I could always turn back, I supposed.
Conundrum Peak’s north ridge quickly narrowed, and the larger talus and lack of trail totally changed the vibe of the outing. It narrowed further into an increasingly exposed crest scramble, now venturing into Class 3. I planned to drop off the crest as soon as an option presented itself, but at this point the way down was a cliff, then a slope leading to another cliff, so I continued along the ridge. A short scramble led down to a notch below an outcropping. I kept left of the outcropping, rejoined the crest, and found a weakness in the form of a chute. This Class 3 chute took me off the crest and onto the eastern slope. I could see Montezuma Road below, but there was still some complex terrain to come. With some care, I picked a Class 2 route that wrapped north around a substantial cliff and took a bouldery slope down to the road. This partial loop was a fun, spicy addition that spared my legs a reascent of Castle Peak, but I don’t recommend it for the casual 14er hiker.
At around 12,600 feet, I left Montezuma Road and took a steep, loose Class 2 slope up to Malemute Peak’s west ridge. This is an awful 13er. All of its routes are gross, and neither my ascent nor my descent was fun. I guess not all peaks have to be good. I had to claw my way up the first couple hundred feet from the road, but higher up the rocks got larger and more embedded, and therefore less tedious.
Malemute Peak’s west ridge was loose but had a social trail, and the views were great. I encountered some Class 2+ along the crest, though there might have been a way to bypass it on the north side. Rather than backtrack after reaching the summit, I descended what looked like a loose but reasonable gully to the south. I moved more slowly than I expected, since it wasn’t the fun, scree-skiing kind of gully, but the kind that alternates between hardpan and scree that’s just slightly too big. After passing some mining remains, I was able to pick up the pace and rejoin the road below once the slope eased.