Sawatch Range · Colorado 13er · No. 542 of the 13ers
South Ridge from Mount Kreutzer
Chalk Rock Mountain, 13,064'
DifficultyClass 2
Round trip8.15 mi
Elevation gain3,425'
TrailheadGarden Basin
Trailhead elevation10,835'
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.
Chalk Rock Mountain sits on the ridge north of Mount Kreutzer, above Tincup and Mirror Lake. It's usually done with Kreutzer and a ranked 12er, UN 12,730, as a Class 2 loop that can have you back at the car by mid-afternoon.
After climbing Kreutzer's west ridge, you walk north about 1.9 miles on mostly tundra with a few small ups and downs. The last part to Chalk Rock's top is rubble. Snow cornices can linger on the east side of the ridge into July, but you don't need to walk on them.
The loop is about 8.15 miles with 3,425 feet of gain, including UN 12,730. The narrow ridge east to Jones Mountain has a cliff on its north side; this page doesn't cover it.
Plan of the day
Start by
By 6:30 a.m.
Turnaround
Be on Kreutzer by 10 a.m.
Crux
Rubble near both summits.
Route-finding
Easy. Follow the ridge north; on the way down, find the ridge that runs west to UN 12,730.
Water
The Garden Basin creek low down. Filter it.
This week on the summit
Conditions on the summit
LoadingFetching the forecast for 13,064'…
—Summit temp now
—Sustained wind
—Gusting to
—Freezing level
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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.
From Gunnison, take Highway 135 north to Almont and turn right on County Road 742. It climbs the Taylor River canyon about 20 miles to Taylor Park Reservoir, past several small Forest Service campgrounds. At the reservoir's southeast end, by a few stores and cabins, bear right on Forest Road 765 and follow good gravel to Tincup.
In the middle of Tincup, turn left (east) on Forest Road 267. It's rockier and dusty, but most cars can get as far as the Mirror Lake area. About 3 miles from town, a turnout with a short loop and a toilet sits on the left (north) side. That's the Garden Basin trailhead. From Monarch Pass, you can also go north from Parlin through Ohio City and Pitkin and over Cumberland Pass into Tincup.
Mirror Lake campground is about half a mile farther, at the end of a short, steeper, rougher stretch. It has 10 first-come sites for a fee, a toilet and no water, and it's busy on summer weekends. Expect mosquitoes. There's lots of dispersed camping north of the reservoir.
Trail in the treesTalus and screeRidgeScramblingExposed 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
Garden Basin trailhead 10,835' · 0 mi
Walk northwest on the Garden Basin Trail (Trail 414, part of the Continental Divide Trail). It's really an old road used by ATVs.
2
Creek crossing 11,335' · 0.75 mi
After about 3/4 mile and 500 feet of gain you reach the creek. Don't cross. Turn east and follow the south bank up toward the upper basin, through trees with some deadfall.
3
Foot of the rubble 11,700' · 1.2 mi
Leave the trees at a clearing below a rubble slope.
4
West ridge 12,200' · 1.6 mi
Rather than go straight up the basin, climb southeast over boulders and rubble until you hit the west ridge. Mirror Lake shows far below. A faint cairned path may join from the south.
5
Mount Kreutzer 13,122' · 2.5 mi
Walk up the wide ridge on medium-sized broken rock and patches of tundra, about 900 feet, to a rocky top with a cairn.
6
Ridge north 12,850' · 3.4 mi
Head north along the ridge on tundra and embedded rock. Sanford Basin lies to the west. Watch for an area of exposed gneiss littered with quartz.
Watch for: Stay off any leftover cornices.
7
Chalk Rock Mountain 13,064' · 4.4 mi
Climb the final rubble to the top. Cottonwood Pass is in view to the north.
Getting down
Walk back south about 1.1 miles to where a ridge branches west. Follow it down about 600 feet to a saddle, then up about 400 feet as it bends northwest to UN 12,730 (about 0.7 mile in all). From that summit, go straight south down tundra to meet the Continental Divide Trail, cross the creek, and follow the trail out.
To skip the 12er, drop from the saddle straight into Garden Basin. Go around the willows along the edge of the trees on either side.
If things go wrong
The saddle west of the main ridge leads straight down into Garden Basin.
3D flyover
No 3D flyover for this peak
Past the Garden Basin creek the route is trailless. 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 Chalk Rock Mountain we list, with its class.
Chalk Rock Mtn. South Ridgethis routeClass 2 8.15 mi