LoJ: #473 (Pre-LiDAR #475) / 13,217' Homestake Peak

When we drove up FR145 in 2007 in out T-100, we did not drive all the way to the trailhead. The rough, narrow first mile and a half of road left us concerned that things would only get worse, so we parked and hiked the remaining distance to the TH. We should have kept going in the truck because the road got better. However, if you do end up hiking the road, once it gets the elevation gain over with, hiking the road goes quickly.

From the trailhead location, a good trail continues on up to Slide Lake which is an attractive, timberline lake with gentle, Colorado peaks behind it. In the winter, we could see several good possibilities for skiing from the 10th Mountain Division Cabin, but these mountains on the west side of the lake may be conducive to high winter winds.

Stroll on past the lake, (stopping for numerous pictures along the way because there are some nice areas of wildflowers to photograph). From the lake, head south and then gradually turn southwest up a broad gully that leads to a saddle north of the Homestake summit which is clearly in view from the lake. There will be some willows to work through lower down. For about half the distance up, you can walk on nice tundra which eventually will give way to the more rocky summit area. Overall, it is easy going with no real obstacles. At the time we hiked this peak, there were abundant wildflowers in this area.

The summit of Homestake is a rocky place (small to medium rubble) with a small protected area built up with rocks that multiple hikers have piled up over the years. A considerable amount of wind was building up the day we climbed so we took shelter in the rocks after marking the event with photos. From the summit, the peaks of the Holy Cross Wilderness are visible to the west including those around the Missouri Lakes. More to the south are the mighty Sawatch summits of Massive & Elbert.

For a descent: Instead of going down exactly as we had gone up, we took a different path and began walking down the very broad east ridge of the peak. This was a nice, typical, Colorado alpine slope of rock and tundra and wildflowers. About half way down this slope, we left it and headed north down a tundra filled trough that led back in the direction of Slide Lake. At the bottom of the trough, we walked on down and dropped into a broad bowl of tall grass and headed more easterly again, hoping to come out on the south side of the 10th Mountain Division Cabin. We passed through some nice forest and meadows that would be excellent skiing with adequate snow and then emerged close to the cabin. Some people were there so we walked on up and asked if we could look around. It was a very nice facility with enough sleeping space to handle 16 people and some upstairs rooms that would offer some privacy. We looked at some of the printed material, talked to the people staying there some and then departed. From there, it's a short jaunt back to the road and wherever you may have left your vehicle.