Driving Directions:
To get to the Guanella Pass routes for both Mt. Evans and Mt. Bierstadt,
take I-70 west out of Denver, or east from Summit County to the Georgetown
exit. There is a road that runs under I-70 an into Georgetown. As
you enter Georgetown, there will be a stop sign with gas stations at the
corners. Take a right at this stop sign heading west into Georgetown.
Look for the signs in Georgetown to Guanella pass. The road ascends
via sharp switch backs, the mountain to the west . Take the Guenalla
Pass road for the next 12 miles past several lakes and campgrounds. The
road turns to dirt several miles up, but should be passable in any vehicle
with reasonable clearance. Look for the sawtooth ridge, on the left-hand
side of the road as you come off the last obvious switch backs. Choose
either one of the two parking areas and start the trip from here.
Mt. Evans from Guanella Pass:
There are two ways, and several variations, to climb Mt. Evans from Guanella
Pass. The most difficult, yet interesting would be the combination
route of Evans and Bierstadt. This route is a bit harder that the other
two as it crosses the sawtooth ridge and has some Class III moves to
get across. This combination can be done by climbing either Mt. Evans,
or Mt. Bierstadt first. For the purposes of this discussion, we shall
assume that Bierstadt is summited first as a warm up. So, if you are
looking for the Sawtooth traverse, jump to the Bierstadt section of this
page.
Begin the Mt. Evans route by sigining out and heading east
along the bridges that cross Scott Gomer creek, and the marsh that surrounds
it. The above picture maps out the approximate heading and direction
of the Evans route. Once across the creek, head northeast up through
a small group of trees. At this point, the sawtooth should be south
and east of you. Ascend the broad ridge, of what is actually Mt. Spaulding,
shown in the picture above as the highest rounded point on the left. Stay
south(right) of the actual Mt. Spaulding summit, that is of course unless
you want to climb it, and head toward the first false summit of Mt. Evans.
Traverse the ridge between Spauding and Mt. Evans that runs about
.75 miles. Descend the route you climbed. Enjoy laughing at
the people who drove up!
Mt. Bierstadt from Guanella Pass:
In the summer this route is extremely easy to follow. It
is also fairly well packed in in the winter. Basically you want to
head east from the trail register and follow the bridges through the swamp
and the marsh. You will then find a set of switch backs going across
the west shoulder of Bierstadt. Follow the obvious carined trail up
to the south ridge just south(to the right) of the summit in the picture
above. From the ridge, head north to the summit. Descend the
rough you climbed. It is difficult to get lost on this route even in
the winter. If you stay away from the north edge of the west ridge,
you will pretty much avoid any cliffs and unecessary boulder climbing.
Mt. Evans and Mt. Bierstadt Combination:
From the summit of Mt. Bierstadt descend down the east side of
the Sawtooth ridge, following the trail. Look for carines, and an
obvious route of the way down. There are a couple of saddles in the
ridge, and you want to be on the lookout for the second one. Just below
it, you will want to start looking for the carined route up to the actual
crest of the ridge. This part is a bit of a scramble, but you will
want to follow the carins that you see to the crest, and along the crest.
Look for the most obvious route, and cross to the west side of the
ridge along a large ledge. Once on the west side, continue north following
carins and carefully negotaiting the Sawtooth cliff bands. Look for
a large angled ledge, from which a slip would be bad, and take it . From
there the route joins up with essentially come in below the Guanella Pass
route. Head northeast to Mt. Evans summit.
