Class 2 10.4 miles 3100 gain 3-5 hrs Out + Back Sep 15, 2021
Effort
Beauty
Personality
Solitude

Crested Butte GPX Track

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Crested Butte is a big hunk of mountain just outside the cute Crested Butte mountain town. In the winter the peak is covered in skiiers, and in the summer you can ride the gondola up to the Crested Butte Trail. However, I wasn't thrilled about paying >$20 to ride a tram, but that option ended up being moot since the tram was closed for the year anyway. Instead I drove to the free parking lot at the mountain base and followed a winding dirt road all the way up to the start of the official trail (which I marked on my attached map). Nothing evenful occurred on the hike up, just wide dirt road switchbacks through forest that passed over ski slopes.

Eventually I reached the start of the official hiking trail, which was quite nice. A few switchbacks through pretty forest lead to the talus slope on the northeastern side of Crested Butte. The trail then gains some elevation as it heads up to a minor saddle as it gets more rocky. It then wraps around to the southeast side of Crested Butte and loses a small amount of vertical gain before starting to ascend via the peak's southeast ridge. Initially the trail is hikable enough to be Class 1, but as I progressed up the ridge the trail becomes less obvious and Class 2 talus-hopping leads the last few hundred feet to the summit. At the start of the ridge ascent, there was even a newly-installed fixed rope to aid in a part of the trail that certainly didn't need a rope. I wonder if they're going to be adding more ropes higher up where the terrain is more rugged, and they just started down low?

On my way down, I cut a bunch of the dirt road switchbacks by taking efficient ski slope options, reducing the hike by a few miles. The hike stats assume you just hike the road up and back down, but the purple lines on my attached map give you an idea of the options for how to reduce the hike length if a long road walk sounds boring.

PEAKS ON HIKE
Elevation (ft) / Prominence (ft)
Peaks on hike
Elevation
Prominence
1
Crested Butte
12162 ft
2562 rise

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Crested Butte seen above from near the free lot where I parked.
Crested Butte seen above from near the free lot where I parked.
I hiked along this winding dirt road.
I hiked along this winding dirt road.
Making progress up the slope via the switchbacking dirt road.
Making progress up the slope via the switchbacking dirt road.
View back, Gothic Mountain visible in the center.
View back, Gothic Mountain visible in the center.
Close-up at some of my progress up Crested Butte via the dirt road. As you can see you can shave off quite a bit of mileage by cutting the road switchbacks and instead hiking up the ske slopes.
Close-up at some of my progress up Crested Butte via the dirt road. As you can see you can shave off quite a bit of mileage by cutting the road switchbacks and instead hiking up the ske slopes.
Along the road, a view to the northeast.
Along the road, a view to the northeast.
Image 6 from gallery
Approaching a ski lift on the north side of the slope.
Approaching a ski lift on the north side of the slope.
Final road ascent to the start of the official trail. Crested Butte is visible top right.
Final road ascent to the start of the official trail. Crested Butte is visible top right.
Start of the official trail.
Start of the official trail.
Nice little well-maintained switchbacks through the forest.
Nice little well-maintained switchbacks through the forest.
View back along the Crested Butte Trail.
View back along the Crested Butte Trail.
Entering the talus field on Crested Butte's northeast side.
Entering the talus field on Crested Butte's northeast side.
Crested Butte out of frame on the right. The trail ascends to the minor saddle on the right of the small bump in the center of this photo.
Crested Butte out of frame on the right. The trail ascends to the minor saddle on the right of the small bump in the center of this photo.
View back along the trail from the minor saddle before a teeny descent.
View back along the trail from the minor saddle before a teeny descent.
A short descent on the southeast side of Crested Butte before reascending to the peak via its ridgeline.
A short descent on the southeast side of Crested Butte before reascending to the peak via its ridgeline.
Some unnecessary ropes for this barely Class 2 section. There were no further ropes on my trip, so maybe this is a new feature they're adding for the whole hike?
Some unnecessary ropes for this barely Class 2 section. There were no further ropes on my trip, so maybe this is a new feature they're adding for the whole hike?
Ascending Crested Butte via its southeast ridge.
Ascending Crested Butte via its southeast ridge.
The trail fades away and some light Class 2 leads to the summit.
The trail fades away and some light Class 2 leads to the summit.
Crested Butte summit, view back along the ridgeline.
Crested Butte summit, view back along the ridgeline.
Crested Butte summit, view down into the town of Crested Butte below. Whetstone Mountain visible on the left.
Crested Butte summit, view down into the town of Crested Butte below. Whetstone Mountain visible on the left.
Wide-shot from the summit into Crested Butte. Gothic Mountain visible on the right.
Wide-shot from the summit into Crested Butte. Gothic Mountain visible on the right.

Hire me or show me some love!

Hire/refer me as a web developer or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I’m not sponsored, so all fees are out-of-pocket and my time preparing trip reports is unpaid. I really appreciate it!