Hike Mt. Princeton

Nathrop, Colorado

4.5/5

based on 2 reviews

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Distance

13.25 miles

Route Type

Out-and-Back

Description

Added by Madison Sankovitz

This is a beautiful 14er in Colorado that requires no technical skill to climb but offers amazing views of the Sawatch Range and the Arkansas Valley.

Starting at 8900 feet of elevation, this 13.25 mile roundtrip hike begins its 5400 foot elevation gain on a dirt road that winds for 3 miles until you break the treeline. If you have 4WD and good clearance you can drive most of the way up this road, shortening your entire hike by about 6 miles. Just out of treeline, locate the Princeton trail on the right as the road curves around Tigger Peak (the small peak south of Mt. Princeton) to the left. Follow the trail up to 11900 feet on the tundra ridge, them continue onto the large scree field on the north-facing slope of Tigger Peak. Here you can see the Mt. Princeton summit to the west. Follow the trail west over the rocks. Near 12800 feet turn left to ascend the Tigger-Priceton connecting ridge. Once on the ridge between the two peaks, turn right and follow the ridgeline up to the summit of Mt. Princeton. The ridge can get a bit steep but it does not exceed a difficulty of Class 2. Enjoy the broad, amazing summit views!

Be sure to start your hike early in the morning to ensure you don't run into afternoon thunderstorms on the mountain, which can be uncomfortable and unsafe.

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Reviews

Claire Bryan

Hike Mt. Princeton

09/24/17

Awesome, yet incredibly difficult hike for a beginner. Once on the trail, it winds through boulder fields up to the summer. There was snow on the ground (2nd weekend of September) so the trail was slippery as it started to melt. It is an incredible view and worth the hike, but definitely a more difficult 14er to summit. I also think the mileage is wrong. It's closer to 6-7 mile round-trip.

5.0

Nate Kantor

Hike Mt. Princeton

11/27/16

Great hike. The road is definitely rough. Almost bottomed out in my Honda CR-V. Also I think the mileage noted is wrong. I was able to drive about 3 miles up to the radio towers. From there it was a 9.5 mile hike round trip with 1.5 miles of road walking before the trail splits off. The route up gets a little confusing once the trail turns to scree. We went up to the saddle between Tigger Peak and the summit and followed the ridge up like the description says, but there are several routes up straight to the summit from where the trail starts switchbacking to the saddle which could shave off some mileage, but it's steeper. Super windy, but there are a bunch of wind shelters at the top which is very nice! Pretty insane view at the top.

4.0

Leave No Trace

Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

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Hike Mt. Princeton

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