Snowshoeing Trail Trip Reports

“Beautiful views from top.”

“Well marked, very rocky, pretty muddy a couple days after a rain in June.”

“Hiked a portion on 6/26/19. Still wet, muddy due to lots of snow this past winter. Wait a bit longer for it to dry out before hiking there. ”

“Went up after a rainy spell. Trail not bad at all. Early morning so we only saw one other couple on the way up and they were descending. Trail nIce and wide, no low overhangs. Our two pups enjoyed hopping from boulder to boulder. Steady ascent almost like climbing endless stairs. If you have breathing issues, just pace yourself for comfort. The view is well worth the effort. Be careful up top especially with children or animals. The ledge is a steep drop of a few hundred feet, but that probably allows for the incredible, expansive views! Unfortunately, we must have timed our arrival with a black fly and horsefly hatch. They were merciless so we did not stay long. Met about 30 people and dogs hiking up when we descended (multiple groups, late morning) ... but everyone was trail polite and friendly. The AMC volunteers were actively working on the trail as well. Overall great family hike with reasonable time investment. Total hike was probably 2.5-3hrs.”

“I climbed this at 11 years old to raise cancer awareness.”

“The Williams Lake area is just so beautiful. We were there early in the morning, and it was so peaceful. If you are hiking to the summit of Wheeler Peak, Williams Lake is well worth the short diversion before ascending Wheeler. The road to the trailhead is a little confusing in places. It travels through a residential area, and there's a lot of construction. Drive through the Taos Ski Village parking area to a road on the far end (Twining Road, not marked as I recall). Follow it just past a small lake, and turn left on Zap's Road. Take a right at the next T intersection. A parking lot for the trailhead is not far from there.”

“I did this trail with other members of the Colorado Mountain Club (CMC) on June 6, 2019. No spikes or snowshoes were needed. The trail starts as a rather wide, easy and soft trail and it opens into a really nice meadow as it quickly heads away from the highway. Instead of following the trail to the falls as described in the guide books, however, we left the trail at the beaver ponds (less than 1 mile from the start) and headed through the woods in a westerly direction towards Sentinel Point (shown in one of the pictures). At the beginning of the hike through the woods there is a semblance of a trail but that faint trail disappears quickly and you are on your own. Do not attempt this without a GPS or a good map and compass because is easy to get lost (I added a GPS recording here of our hike if you want to use it). The hike also took us through one or two boulder fields where we had to scramble. As we reached Sentinel Point we got above the tree line to alpine tundra and the last approach to the top also required some rather interesting scrambling. The hike is well worthed but not necessarily easy because of the scrambling. If you like that and some route finding this is a good hike to do though. We saw two other hikers at the top of Sentinel Point but we didn't see any additional people on the way down. The total mileage was 7.2 miles and it took us 6 and 1/2 hours including a 30 min lunch break and several rest stops. The trail starts at 9641 ft and the top of Sentinel Point is 12491 ft to give a total elevation gain of 2778 ft.”

“This has to be one of my favorite trails so far, we did it on a hot and humid day and ended up very sunburned and covered in bites from black flies. Despite that still worth it. Id save it fall or cooler summer days. Crowded narrow path, high traffic. Lots of dogs off their leashes, be warned pet parents. Stunning view at the top and a park ranger to direct you. The mile up from the lodge is all climbing so be prepared.”