Hike California Peak and Lilly Lake 13ers Loop Rio Grande National Forest, CO

Jun 09, 2022 — The closure of New Mexico National Forests due to drought and wildfires prevented me from enjoying the state's hiking, but the absurdly low snow this year meant I could run up to Colorado to get some early-season butt kicking with Whiley. We planned for two days of peakbagging the 13ers/14er in the Blanca massif surrounding the Huerfano River. Our first day would be to go for the western ridge, including California Peak and various unnamed 13ers, looping in Lilly Lake. Kind folks had just cleared the road of deadfall, so we were able to drive to the trailhead. Any car can make it to here (37.66455, -105.45968), but at least a Crossover vehicle is required past this point. If coming from the north, getting there's no problem, but from the south Google had difficulty. I recommend you navigate here (37.60875, -105.21967) and head north on the primary road (572), which avoids private property and uses an excellent dirt road.

We parked at a pull-out where the Raspberry Trail crosses the road, though there are plenty of other spots to park before reaching the trailhead. The Raspberry Trail is not well-marked, but after we located it we headed west up the slope, only some minimal deadfall slowing us down. We were pleasantly surprised at the good quality of the trail. After about 1500 feet of climbing we reached a saddle where we left the trail, the first goal to the north to get Peak 12180, a nice tundra walk warm-up. After its summit we backtracked to the Raspberry Trail and continued south along the ridgeline toward California Peak. The next 2000+ vertical to reach the peak was overall pretty easy along the tundra, the slope angle mostly consistent, though there were some steeper sections and a couple of minor humps adding some extra work.

From the summit of California Peak, we dropped south along the ridgeline (Class 2), passed over a small lump, and then scrambled up (more Class 2) to reach the summit of Peak 13577. We'd be returning to this peak later for our descent to Lilly Lake. First, we continued along the ridgeline to get to Peak 13654, Class 2 down from Peak 13577 and then some fun Class 2+/3 up to Peak 13654. This minor 13er was thought to be the high point for years, but has actually been recently relegated to standing lower than its southern neighbor (Peak 13656). I marked both points on my map for reference. The traverse from the old high point to the new high point was quite fun, some short Class 3 sections and great views along the way.

We backtracked along the ridge to Peak 13577 in order to take what's commonly known as the "standard" route to gain California Peak. I'll note that at the saddle just south of Peak 13654 we saw a steep hardpan descent that could take us down to Lilly Lake and prevent the need to backtrack all the way, but neither Whiley nor I were excited to potentially be scared. We later learned this route goes at low Class 3, but we agreed we were happy with backtracking. The Class 2 talus and then scree descent from Peak 13577 to Lilly Lake was perfectly fine, though ascending it would have been far less fun than the loop route we chose to do. When descending this slope, it's important stay clear of the ridge crest, instead dropping to the right (south) since the crest has some cliffy stuff toward the base, whereas keeping right keeps the terrain Class 2/2+.

We lingered at Lilly Lake for only a short time, but it was enough to watch clouds building, forcing us to hastily head down along the Lilly Lake Trail. The views along this trail toward the blue-tinted north face of Ellingwood Point had me stopping regularly to take photos, despite the rain potentially breaking my camera yet again. The Lilly Lake Trail reached a junction with the Upper Huerfano Trail, which we followed to its head, and then the road led us back to the cars. This was an excellent loop in a gorgeous area.