LoJ: #517 (Pre-LiDAR #521) / 13,157' Taylor Peak B

Taylor Peak is sequenced with Powell Peak in our route descriptions for a long-mileage, full-day hike. Assuming you're able to begin at the Glacier Gorge Trailhead parking lot, head off from the SW end of the lot on a trail that drops down a little toward Glacier Creek, then crosses it to continue SW to a trail intersection. The trail passes briefly through a nice little fern forest. At the intersection, (.3 mile from the Glacier Gorge parking) a trail comes in from the right which comes down from the Bear Lake parking area. Make a left turn and head for Alberta Falls, a half mile away. The trail to that point is highly used. Pause to view the impressive, roaring falls if you have time. Continue past the falls gaining more elevation now to another trail intersection. The left fork heads up Glacier Gorge to Black Lake. Stay right at this junction to reach "The Loch," a beautiful lake at the head of "Loch Vale" valley. The Loch is about .8 mile from that last intersection. It took us 67 minutes, to cover the three miles or more to “The Loch” on this trail familiar to us. Continue past The Loch on the same trail another .8 mile to the turnoff for Andrews Tarn and Glacier. It took us 90 minutes from the TH to reach this intersection.

The .9 mile trail up to Andrews Glacier and Pass is another well-marked and maintained trail, but early in the season, you may begin to run into some snow once you get into the highest trees and the upper basin. A sign post pointing the way was nearly buried in the deep snow when we did this in mid-July. Footprints of other hikers assured us of the best route. Just above the last main group of trees, a valley comes in from the south identified as “The Gash” on the survey map. At the head of The Gash is “The Sharkstooth,” a highly pointed and technical looking spire visible from the Sky Pond side, but more impressive from the trail to Andrews Tarn. The trail then climbs steeply up 400 feet to the Andrews Tarn, a nice little lake really, and the Andrews Glacier that flows directly into the lake. This so-called glacier is mostly a large snowfield that rises almost another six hundred feet to Andrews Pass. A well-worn path will typically lead up the glacier, which we never found too steep, however an ice axe is nice to have, especially for the descent back down. By the time we arrived at Andrews Pass, three hours had elapsed since leaving the TH.

From the pass, it's about a mile to the summit of Taylor, but it seemed to take inordinately long to get there. From the east end of Andrews Tarn, it's 1.7 miles. We hiked up just moderate slopes covered in tundra with ribbons of exposed rocks where earlier snowmelt flows course their way down the mountain. It is another 1,200 feet of gain and eventually, you'll be standing on the summit. The summit view is spectacular. To the west is the vast valley of the “North Inlet” to Lake Granby. Immediately east of the summit, there is an abrupt drop of over 1,500 feet to the valley of Glass Lake and Sky Pond below. The sheer cliffs at the head of Loch Vale are simply amazing. Breaks in the summit plateau afford views down sheer couloirs of rock that plunge to deadly depths. If not going any farther, simply retrace your route back to the Glacier Gorge TH. Otherwise, continue on to Powell Peak.