James Peak Via Saint Mary's Glacier: Winter Edition

 I get it. Winter hiking can feel limiting. The cold. The ice. The windy weather and frequent postholeing. The draw to go skiing instead. But it doesn't always have to be rough. Layering up, pulling out the extra thick mittens and going on a sunny day can really moderate the negatives of winter hiking, (that is, if you don't like the cold). 

Although not ALL trails are advisable to go on through the winter due to extreme conditions and avalanche risk. Hiking from Saint Mary's Glacier to James Peak is a wonderful option for this time of year. It is quite common for skiers to hike up the mountain and ski down due to its lower exposure and consistent snow pack. Saint Mary's Glacier is a place for many outdoor activities in the winter, from snowshoeing, ice fishing on ___ lake, skating, and sledding down the Glacier (YES Sledding!) You may see some families sledding along the slopes of the glacier.

                                         

James Peak is a 13er that overlooks the continental divide, and several other surrounding peaks such as Mount Flora, Mount Eva, and Parry Peak. At the summit you'll also likely see the ski slopes of Winter Park.

                                           

The hike will start at the Saint Mary's Glacier trail head. There is a parking lot right at the trailhead and a bit north on Fall River Road. Trailhead GPS here. The trailhead will be on the left of the road and will start along Saint Mary's Drive (this is a trail). There will be a short steep uphill that will mellow out as you follow Saint Mary's glacier trail. You'll continue on this trail passing over a short bridge that will lead to Saint Mary's Glacier and Saint Mary's Lake. This is the fun part, you'll walk past the lake, up and over the glacier to the top. Unfortunately Saint Mary's Glacier isn't a true Glacier but mimics one since their is snow and ice in this area year round. Once you get to the top of the Glacier you'll reach a bit of a plateau with James Peak directly in the distance. Depending on what time of year you go, there are a few options of trails to get to the summit. I went in the dead of winter where there was easily 5ft snow drifts (that led to lots of post-holing), and made it hard to find trail. So it was a bit of a pick-your-own-adventure format to the top. In all it was about 8 miles round trip with 2,949ft of elevation gain.

Parking Lot Direction's HERE

View from the Saddle

 

View from the Continental Divide