San Juan Range · Colorado 13er · No. 139 of the 13ers
Northeast Ridge
Mount Emma, 13,592'
Class 3 scrambling and private land
The upper ridge has short Class 3 moves and an optional Class 4 chimney; snow can make it easier or harder. The flat at Sneffels Creek is private property, so pass through and don't park there. This page is an outline, not a move-by-move guide.
DifficultyClass 4
Round trip4.5 mi
Elevation gain2,350'
TrailheadYankee Boy Basin
Trailhead elevation11,380'
Conditions on the summit
LoadingFetching the forecast for 13,592'…
—Summit temp now
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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 · Northeast Ridge
Overview
Mount Emma stands between Gilpin Peak and Stony Mountain on the south side of Yankee Boy Basin. It's often rated Class 4, but that is cautious: a normal summer climb has a few very short Class 3 moves, with harder options if you want them.
From the trailhead at the vault toilet, you take a side road to Sneffels Creek, cross it, and follow a smaller creek into the basin between Emma and Stony. A game-trail-laced talus gully leads up to the northeast ridge, and use trails follow the ridge past a headwall ramp and some towers to the summit boulders.
The round trip is about 4.5 miles with roughly 2,350 feet of gain. Mileage and gain are our estimates. The ridge to Gilpin Peak has Class 3 sections; doing both is about 6.95 miles with 3,295 feet of gain.
Plan of the day
Start by
By 7 a.m.
Turnaround
Be at the headwall by 11 a.m.
Crux
The ramp beside the tan headwall and the short summit walls.
Route-finding
Moderate. Find the faint trail into the talus, and note where the ramp tops out for the way down.
Take U.S. 550 to Ouray. About a quarter mile south of town, turn west onto County Road 361 toward Yankee Boy Basin. This is a dirt road. Keep right at the 4.6-mile mark. Around 5.2 miles the road runs along a shelf cut into the cliff, with rock hanging overhead. Stay right at the Imogene Pass turnoff near 5.9 miles.
At about 6.7 miles you reach the Governor Basin junction. Two-wheel-drive cars should park here; this adds about 1.75 miles round trip. High-clearance vehicles continue to the lower trailhead with an outhouse at about 7.5 miles and 11,350 feet. The figures on these pages start there. The last mile of road above the outhouse is very rough and only for high-clearance, short-wheelbase 4WD vehicles.
Camping inside Yankee Boy Basin is only allowed at the Thistledown and Angel Creek campgrounds lower on the road; check that they're open. Don't camp at the trailhead. Some flat spots near the toilet sit on old mining claims, and whether you can camp there is unclear.
Trail in the treesRidgeTalus and screeExposed 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
Yankee Boy toilet trailhead 11,380' · 0 mi
Walk up the road toward Mount Sneffels. After about 1/3 mile, a doubletrack spur heads downhill on the left. Take the next spur on the left just beyond it.
2
Sneffels Creek 11,300' · 0.65 mi
Follow the spur past a big pullout and a few bends for just under 1/3 mile, to a sharp right turn where the road heads steeply uphill beside Sneffels Creek. A use trail on the south side of the small flat here drops to the creek. Cross where a smaller creek joins from the south.
Watch for: The flat is private property. Don't park or linger.
3
Emma-Stony basin 12,100' · 1.4 mi
Follow the smaller creek southwest into the basin between Mount Emma and Stony Mountain. Stay on the slopes east of the creek to avoid marshes, aiming for the pointed end of Emma's northeast ridge. Don't head for the Emma-Stony saddle.
4
Spur at 13,000 feet 13,000' · 1.8 mi
At the talus fan, go right (west) along its edge and look for a faint trail into the rocks. Game trails on packed, flaky talus lead up the gully to a small spur with old lumber and trash on it.
5
Tan headwall 13,200' · 2 mi
Take one of the use trails south of the talus mound to the west onto the ridge, then follow the trail along the ridge's east side past two big outcrops to a tan headwall. Climb the steep, fairly stable boulder ramp on its left. Note where you top out; it's easy to miss coming down.
Watch for: Class 2+ to easy Class 3.
6
Summit towers 13,550' · 2.2 mi
Climb the last 400 feet, going over outcrops or around them, mostly on the right (west). Small towers near the top can be passed on the right. Or go left, return to the ridge at a big boulder, and traverse right around gravelly corners to a gully up to a small saddle below the summit boulders.
Watch for: Some steep, dirty Class 2+ bypasses.
7
Summit 13,592' · 2.25 mi
Climb the Class 4 chimney on the right, or take the easier line: up a leaning boulder on the left to a small platform, then mantle a short wall. Heading west, a second short wall separates the east summit from the true high point; some people want a spot there.
Watch for: Short Class 3 to 4 moves.
Getting down
Go back the same way. The first summit wall is easier going down. Watch for the top of the ramp on the small plateau.
If things go wrong
From the headwall, the talus gully leads back down into the basin.
3D flyover
No 3D flyover for this peak
The route leaves a side road at Sneffels Creek and is trailless or on faint use trails above. 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 Mount Emma we list, with its class.
Mount Emma Northeast Ridgethis routeClass 4 4.5 mi
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.