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| Mount Sniktau |
I often say that the mountains give us all an opportunity to
visit old friends. Well, this hike was a bit of that and more. The first time I
hiked Mount
Sniktau was back in March, 2012. That trip was my first Colorado 13er. I
followed that trip up with a hike of Cupid
and Grizzly Peak in April, 2012. So, now it’s been 14 years since I’ve visited
the summits of these old friends. The conditions of March vs August are much
different, and I have to say much more comfortable.
Those of you in Colorado who drive I-70W towards the
Eisenhower Tunnel get a nice look at Mount Sniktau from the freeway. This peak
sticks out over the southwestern portion of the Loveland Ski Area. The hike
itself starts from Loveland Pass which is just shy of 12,000 feet in elevation.
This is a busy place and presents its own set of concerns with all the parked
cars, people crossing the road and the traffic heading over the pass. If you
intend to hike these peaks from this trail head, I highly recommend an early
start. We arrived just before 6:30 a.m. and the parking area at the trailhead
was already full. There is additional parking available on to the south of the
pass, and this is where our hike began.
We set off from the car around 6:30 a.m. We got the pleasure
of adding another .3 mile and 80 feet to our hike given our parking situation.
Not bad going up in the morning, but as the cars filled in, our way back was
far less comforting where we had to walk on the road at times. To put everyone’s
mind at ease once you are at the trailhead, which I mark as the White River
National Forest sign on the west side of Loveland Pass, there is a trail that
will lead you to both of these summits. If you are up for it you can continue
on to Grizzly Peak or do several variations of these peaks. I’m not certain if
there is an official name for this trail, but the southern portion is labeled
as Grizzly Peak Trail on the GAIA Topo Map.
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| Torreys, Grays and Grizzly from Cupid |
I joked with Brian when he suggested this hike, calling it
the “stairway to heaven”. I think he soon found out what I meant. There is no
warm-up, you get right to gaining elevation. From the trailhead to cresting the
ridge is about 900 vertical feet in about a mile. I believe a lot of visitors
do this as an acclimation hike if they come here to climb 14ers. Whatever you
are here for this certainly is a nice way to get the blood flowing early in the
day, and nothing beats a slow steady pace.
From the ridge crest, follow the trail heading to the north.
You will gain one false summit before reaching the true Mount Sniktau summit. This
section has less vertical gain, approximately 350 feet in just under a mile,
but this is all at elevation which presents its own challenges. In the Front
Range you will be hard pressed to find a much better view, especially if you
are out hiking on a blue-sky day like we had. You are surrounded by the giants
of the Rocky Mountains. I love it. It really brings you back, when you are on
these summits, to each of the climbs of these surrounding peaks. A great
motivator to get back into the game.
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| Nick and Brian on Mount Sniktau |
We saw a fair number of people along the way, but somehow
Brian and I were able to have the summit to ourselves for a bit, which is a
true treat for a Saturday morning in Colorado. I had an initial goal of summiting
in an hour and half, and was able to meet that goal, so I was very pleased with
how my body reacted given I have been out of this game for quite some time.
We didn’t linger too long since we wanted to get over to
Cupid. On our way towards Cupid, there were droves of people on the way up
Sniktau, maybe 30-40, so just a reminder of how important that early start is.
It didn’t take us long to get back down to where we crested the ridge earlier.
From there, there is a quick drop of about 200 feet then a gain of about 400
feet. This seemed to go pretty quick and before we knew it, we were on the
summit of Cupid and is was only 9:20 a.m.
The Grizzly Mountain Trail skirts around the Cupid summit,
so you will need to head off trail for a bit to truly claim the high point.
Most people are heading towards Grizzly, so here we had another summit to
ourselves. We could have been adventurous and headed off towards Grizzly, but
it’s important to ease into these mountains if you have been away for a while.
I look forward to coming back with Brian so he can summit Grizzly on a future
hike.
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| Trail Junction |
The descent went far better than I anticipated. I chose to
use my Topo Athletic trail shoes with gaiters, and both worked really well. I
enjoyed not having my big boots on and the gaiters helped keep rocks out of my
shoes. Trekking poles were also a big bonus on this descent. All in all, a
great gear selection for this hike.
We finished the hike around 10:30 a.m. A great 4-hours in the mountains and we were able to summit two Colorado 13ers. I liked that I had not previously hiked these peaks together, but I absolutely didn’t mind visiting my old friends again. Hopefully this is a start to get me back in the mountains more consistently. Either way what a great way to feel alive! Happy trails everyone.
Hike Date: August 1, 2026Starting Elevation: 11,897 feet
Mount Sniktau Elevation: 13,242 feet
Cupid Elevation: 13,112 feet
Total Ascent: 1,716 feet
Class: 1
Total Distance: 5.58 miles
Total Time: 4 hours, 3 minutes
Moving Time: 3 hours, 22 minutes
Stopped Time: 40 minutes
Climbing Partner: Brian
GAIA Link: Mount Sniktau and Cupid
*All data is tracked using the GAIA app
