San Juan Range · Colorado 13er · No. 198 of the 13ers
East Ridge from UN 13,575
Fowler Peak, 13,507'
Class 4, loose and exposed
Near the top the ridge turns technical, and the way around is a loose Class 4 couloir on the south face with a small chimney. Helmets are essential, and the descent may cross private land. This page is an outline, not a move-by-move guide.
DifficultyClass 4
Round trip12 mi
Elevation gain3,500'
TrailheadRock of Ages
Trailhead elevation10,370'
Less traffic, less margin
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.
Fowler Peak, once called Big Bear Peak, sits on the ridge west of Wilson Peak. Congress named it for Charlie Fowler, a climber from the Telluride area. It's harder than its neighbor UN 13,575.
After UN 13,575, you follow a rocky ridge west to a saddle and up toward Fowler. About 120 feet below the top, cliffs cut the ridge, so you move onto the south face and scramble a loose Class 4 couloir to the summit. The way down is a very steep, loose gully north into the east fork of Elk Creek.
The loop, including UN 13,575, is about 12 miles with 3,500 feet of gain.
Plan of the day
Start by
By 6 a.m.
Turnaround
Be on UN 13,575 by 10:30 a.m.
Crux
The Class 4 couloir on the south face.
Route-finding
Moderate. Leave the ridge where the cliffs start and find the right couloir.
Water
None reliable above the trees. Carry what you need.
This week on the summit
Conditions on the summit
LoadingFetching the forecast for 13,507'…
—Summit temp now
—Sustained wind
—Gusting to
—Freezing level
Today
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Tomorrow
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Day three
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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.
Between Placerville and Telluride, about 6.5 miles south of the Colorado 62 junction at Placerville, turn south off Colorado 145 onto the Silver Pick road (County Road 60M), a graded dirt road. The trailhead is about 6.8 miles from here. At about 3.1 miles, pass an intersection and stay on the main road. In 0.7 mile more, turn right onto Forest Road 622. Passenger cars shouldn't go past this turn, and don't follow the private driveway farther right.
Climb Forest Road 622 about 2.2 miles to where the Wilson Mesa trail meets the road, then turn right 0.1 mile later onto Forest Road 645. It fords Big Bear Creek and curls around the ridge between Silver Pick Basin and Elk Creek to the large Rock of Ages lot at about 10,370 feet. High clearance is needed; SUVs and higher crossovers do fine.
There are plenty of primitive sites along Forest Roads 622 and 645, and you can car-camp at the trailhead. A few more spots sit near the San Miguel River just off Colorado 145.
Talus and screeTundraRidgeExposed 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
Rock of Ages trailhead 10,370' · 0 mi
Hike south into the forest. Stay left at a fork a short way in, where there may be a gate.
2
Talus junction 11,700' · 2.6 mi
At a signed junction in a talus field, turn left and climb northeast through more talus, rounding the ridge into Silver Pick Basin.
3
Silver Pick Basin 12,300' · 3.6 mi
Follow the trail up the basin toward the Rock of Ages saddle, the low point linking UN 13,575 and Wilson Peak. Stay on the official route; there is private land in the basin.
4
Rock of Ages saddle 13,100' · 4.6 mi
The last part is steep boulder talus and loose rubble. Early in the season, an ice axe or microspikes help.
5
UN 13,575 13,575' · 5.1 mi
Head west up the ridge crest, mostly on small chip rock and talus. It's about half a mile and under 500 feet, less than half an hour.
6
Connecting saddle 13,150' · 5.5 mi
Go west down the ridge over small talus, chip rock and broken but stable rock, sometimes on a faint path.
7
Leave the ridge 13,390' · 5.8 mi
Climb the ridge until cliffs on the northeast face cut into it, about 120 vertical feet below the top. Contour onto the south face to a couloir full of broken rock and small cliff bands.
8
Summit 13,507' · 6 mi
Scramble up the couloir (Class 4), including a short chimney or crack, then loose rock and ledges to the top. Rope wasn't needed, but care is.
Watch for: Loose rock; don't knock it onto others.
Getting down
Carefully reverse the couloir to the connecting saddle. Drop north down a very steep gully, about 400 feet of loose rubble and sand (or snow early), into the east fork of Elk Creek. Follow an old road or a trail through talus down the valley, then skirt the edge of the trees to the Rock of Ages trail.
If private land blocks the gully, go down Fowler's west ridge (some Class 3) to a saddle about half a mile west, then drop north to the Elk Creek trail and follow it east to the Rock of Ages trail.
If things go wrong
Turn back at the cliffs and return over UN 13,575.
3D flyover
No 3D flyover for this peak
Above the Rock of Ages saddle the route follows a rough ridge and a loose couloir with no trail. 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 Fowler Peak we list, with its class.
"Fowler Peak" East Ridge Approachthis routeClass 4 12 mi