June 8, 2022
Mount Sherman (14, 036 feet)
5 miles; 2100 feet elevation gain
Total time: 3 hours 25 minutes
Mount Sherman was my second 14er ever, in July 2019 almost 3 years ago! Nyx has never climbed it, so one to add to her list. I didn't have a ton of driving time available this week and the front range is still holding quite a bit of snow so the mosquito range was the best option based on current conditions. There were a few recent reviews for Mount Sherman and the weather looked good. I spent the night in Fairplay at my friend's house so we only had a short drive to the trailhead in the morning.
We started our hike at 5am. The road was snow free all the way to the summer trailhead/gate. This is an OHV road so if your car isn't capable you may have to park a little lower and add mileage. The hike starts up a mining road, past two old mines. I recommend having alltrails map downloaded and ready to look at because there are a few branch off roads that are not the route....we definitely took one of them but thankfully noticed quickly and didn't add on much distance. After the second mine you ascend to the ridgeline. This whole face is still snow covered and actually was last time I did it too so I have no idea what the trail is like with no snow. I imagine it is pretty similar to the path we followed, a diagonal line up to the ridge. It was easy to follow and solid/stable snow. We didn't feel the need for spikes at all. I recommend starting early so this part isn't a slushy post-holing mess. Once we reached the ridge the wind picked up significantly. The ridgeline is a gradual incline all the way to the summit. There are parts where the trail is narrow and very rocky but there is little exposure or risk. There is still a cornice on your right as you approach the top but it had minimal overhang and stable snow. We reached the summit in just under 2 hours. The snow on the summit was stable and packed. We got lucky and all the wind died down on the summit making it enjoyable to spend 20 minutes up there! The way down took less than 1.5 hours; once you climb back down to the base of the ridge the same snow you climbed up on has a direct down route that was very fun to glissade down and a much faster way to descend.
The most special part of the climb today was the incredible cloud inversion over the entire Fairplay valley. It was spectacular to see, photos don't even do it justice.
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