Mt. of the Holy Cross
33/58
Halo Ridge is an interesting route with decent scrambling and no crowds. A night at Notch Mountain Shelter should be a standard item in the Colorado bucket list.
Day 1:
Hiked from Halfmoon TH to Notch Mountain Shelter at 13,100’. The consistently mellow approach is a well-kept secret.
The Fall Creek valley really feels wild.
We found water on the approach as high as 11,700’.
I discovered that Matthew had packed about a pound of matchbox cars for his entertainment at the shelter. Since we planned on descending the standard route, those would have to go up and over the peak tomorrow along with everything else.
We also brought a tent in case the shelter was locked this late in the season. It was open, but pretty dirty. We spent about an hour scouring the area for a campsite, but all flat spots were full of bony rocks. After cleaning up some broken glass, we made a fairly clean space inside.
We slept decently considering the elevation and the prospect of backpacking over a 14er the next day.
[ 5.8 miles / +2,832’ / -113’ ]
Time: 3:07
Day 2:
Ascended Halo Ridge up and over Holy Cross Ridge (13,850’) and on to summit of Mt. of the Holy Cross (14,007’).
We were rock-hopping about 75% of the time on the ascent.
We were glad we hadn’t tried to camp on the ridge beyond the shelter. There were no decent campsites to be found.
We saw no one until we reached the summit.
Descended standard North Ridge route to Halfmoon TH.
[ 10.3 miles / +2,867’ / -5,592’ ]
Ascent: 3:55
Descent: 4:40
Slow but steady progress
The crux was probably getting up and over the subpeak Holy Cross Ridge. Once in the next saddle, we hit a trail for the first time that morning.
Looking back at Holy Cross Ridge (13,850’) from just below the summit of Holy Cross.
View of Holy Cross from our descent of the North Ridge route.
