South Boulder Peak (8549 ft) from South Mesa Trailhead, 3/11/2006
Due to the not so nice weather, there were plenty of parking spaces at the South Mesa Trailhead on this Saturday when we arrived. This was a cloudy cold day with some snow on the ground as we started from the South Mesa Trailhead at 11:30. The forecast for the day was 20% chance of snow. The hike from South Mesa Trailhead to South Boulder Peak is great for staying in shape during the winter since the altitude gain is about 3000 feet. We turned left onto the Homestead Trail, then left again after about two miles onto the Shadow Canyon Trail. The Shadow Canyon Trail started out with a couple inches of snow which increased in depth to several inches once we reached the saddle between South Boulder Peak and Bear Peak. From the saddle to the summit of South Boulder Peak there were no tracks in the snow, so it was slow going. We reached the summit at 14:05. Normally we can reach the summit in about 1.5 hours, but due to the snow, it took us about 2.5 hours today. As we began our descent the snow started falling again. While the descent was a bit slippery, the fresh snow made it not quite as treacherous as it sometimes is during the winter when there is black ice on the trail. We returned to the parking area at 16:08.
Elevation difference from lowest (South Mesa Trailhead) to highest (South Boulder Peak): 8566-5642 = 2924 ft
| Place name | Elev [ft] | Accuracy [ft] | Lat/Lon |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Mesa Trailhead | 5642 | 9 | 39.93849/105.25814 |
| Saddle between South Boulder Pk & Bear Pk | 8202 | 13 | 39.9565/105.2973 |
| South Boulder Pk summit | 8566 | 18 | 39.9539/105.2992 |