San Juan Range · Colorado 13er · No. 59 of the 13ers
East Ridge over Monitor and Peak Thirteen
Animas Mountain, 13,789'
Class 4 on the way
Animas itself is Class 3 with a harder exit near the top, but this route reaches it over Monitor Peak and Peak Thirteen, which have Class 4 moves and severe exposure. This page is an outline, not a move-by-move guide.
DifficultyClass 3
Round trip11 mi
Elevation gain6,215'
TrailheadNeedleton
Trailhead elevation11,625'
Conditions on the summit
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Afternoon storm risk is the line that matters. Everything else is comfort. In summer, plan to be off the ridge before the build-up starts, not as it starts. Forecast for the summit point, adjusted for its elevation · data from Open-Meteo.
Colorado 13er · East Ridge over Monitor and Peak Thirteen
Overview
Animas Mountain is the highest of the three rugged peaks at the head of Ruby Creek in the Weminuche Wilderness. It looks across at Pigeon Peak's east face and north to The Heisspitz.
It is a hard backpack trip. From the Needleton train stop, the Ruby Creek trail is about 4.5 miles and 3,400 feet up to a flat meadow camp at about 11,625 feet. The trail is hard to find at the start, brutally steep in places and choked with willows near Ruby Lake. From camp, the loop climbs Monitor Peak, crosses to Peak Thirteen, and follows the ridge north to Animas, finishing up a steep summit couloir with Class 3 moves.
Monitor, Peak Thirteen and Animas make a loop from camp of about 2 miles and 2,800 feet; from Needleton the whole trip is about 11 miles and 6,215 feet.
Plan of the day
Start by
Leave camp by 6 a.m.
Turnaround
Be on Peak Thirteen by noon.
Crux
Peak Thirteen's east face, then the exit from the Animas couloir.
Route-finding
Moderate. On the way down, avoid the heads of side gullies.
There is no road to these peaks. Ride the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad from Durango and get off at the Needleton flag stop. Check the railroad's current schedule and rules, reserve ahead, and know which train will pick you up. Boarding in Silverton for a Needleton drop may not be offered.
At Needleton, cross the Animas River on the footbridge. The cabins by the bridge are private. You can camp past the last cabin to the south toward Needle Creek, or north in the meadows after you cross Pigeon Creek. This is the Weminuche Wilderness; follow its rules.
TundraTalus and screeScramblingRidgeExposed to lightning
The line is elevation, the band underneath is the ground, and the numbered dots match the steps below. Mileage and elevations are approximate.
1
Upper Ruby Creek camp 11,625' · 0 mi
Hike the Ruby Creek trail from Needleton to the flat meadow camp (see the approach in the overview). Bold marmots live here: hang your food and keep gear packed away.
2
Basin below Peak Thirteen 12,400' · 0.3 mi
From camp, walk a bit north, then head northeast into the big basin under Monitor, Peak Thirteen and Animas. Climb steep grass with some willows toward Peak Thirteen.
3
End of tundra 12,800' · 0.5 mi
Follow a tundra slope just west of Peak Thirteen until it ends, then climb loose talus below the cliffs.
Watch for: Rockfall from above.
4
Upper ramp 13,100' · 0.65 mi
Two ramps cut up and right across Peak Thirteen's southwest face. Bear a little left to the upper, gentler one, a huge ledge at least six feet wide with loose rock and sand. The lower ramp is steeper Class 3.
5
Monitor-Thirteen saddle 13,350' · 0.75 mi
The ramp ends at the left side of the saddle. Spires and crags fill the crest, so drop a bit on the west side.
6
Couloir crossings 13,350' · 0.85 mi
Cross three or more steep sand-and-gravel couloirs. Between them, short rock ribs take Class 4 moves of about 10 feet. Follow whichever cairned line looks best.
Watch for: Class 4 moves.
7
Monitor Peak 13,707' · 0.9 mi
Past the couloirs, scramble the ridge over broken Class 3 rock to the top.
8
Back to the saddle 13,350' · 1.05 mi
Climb down Monitor's north ridge and cross the Class 3 to 4 saddle again to its north end, below Peak Thirteen's south ridge.
Watch for: Class 4 moves.
9
East face traverse 13,350' · 1.15 mi
From the tundra at the foot of the south face, traverse onto the east face, staying near saddle height.
10
Peak Thirteen 13,725' · 1.2 mi
When you are below the summit, go straight up about 350 to 400 feet of short outcrops and narrow, grassy ledges. Below you, the face drops off a cliff of about a thousand feet. It is solid Class 3 to Class 4 and slower than it looks.
Watch for: Severe exposure.
11
First saddle 13,450' · 1.4 mi
Climb down the north ridge with care, mostly on the east side among big rocks, cracks and sandy ledges.
12
13,500-foot saddle 13,500' · 1.5 mi
Walk the tundra-and-rock ridge northwest, passing west of Point 13,620, to the saddle below Animas.
13
Summit couloir 13,700' · 1.55 mi
Climb a big, obvious couloir toward the top. It is steep with a few Class 3 moves. Near its top, exit right over blocks and ledges, the hardest part.
Watch for: Class 3, maybe 4.
14
Animas Mountain 13,789' · 1.6 mi
Turn left and hop boulders to the summit.
Getting down
Return to the 13,500-foot saddle below Animas and go down the wide gully to the south on sand and talus. Lower, pick a line across sloping granite and gravel ledges, avoiding the heads of side gullies, back into the basin under the three peaks. Tundra leads to camp.
If things go wrong
The 13,500-foot saddle has the descent gully, so once you are past Peak Thirteen it is the fastest way down.
3D flyover
No 3D flyover for this peak
Above the Upper Ruby Creek meadow the route is off trail, on ramps, couloirs and rock ridges. A flyover only works when there is a set trail to trace. Without one, the line would be a guess, and a guess could send you the wrong way on the mountain. Use the step-by-step route with a good map and GPS track instead.
See the trail on video
No video yet
We haven’t found a good video of this route that matches the way we describe it. The route strip, junctions and 3D flyover show the way in the meantime.
Other routes
Every way up Animas Mountain we list, with its class.
This describes the route on a dry summer day. Most 13ers see few people, so there may be no one along behind you. Check recent conditions the week you go, carry a map, tell someone your plan, and turn around when the day tells you to.