Sunlight Peak

From Chicago Basin, take the trail to Twin Lakes at 12,500 feet. Head northeast from the lakes toward the saddle between Sunlight and Windom, then climb the gully and ledge system on Sunlight's south side. The route works upward through Class 3 rock bands, with a couple of short chimneys and a tunnel-like passage between boulders, to the summit ridge. The last few feet are the famous summit block: a mantle onto a boulder with exposure on three sides, rated Class 4. From Needleton the round trip is about 17 miles with 5,800 feet of gain over a multi-day trip.

The lower ledges are loose and route-finding is by cairns that are easy to lose; a GPS track helps. The summit block is a single move, but the drop below it is long, and reversing the move is harder than making it. Many climbers stop on the platform below the block and count the summit; the choice is yours, and nobody on the mountain will argue. Do not attempt the block in wind or wet.

Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad to Needleton, then 6 miles up Needle Creek to the basin; or the Purgatory trailhead on US 550, about 16 miles one way. Train tickets for backpackers sell out early. No permit; Weminuche Wilderness rules, and no camping above the Twin Lakes trail junction.

Mid-July through mid-September for dry rock. The south-facing route sheds snow earlier than Eolus, but the gullies hold ice in shade into July. Monsoon storms arrive by noon in July and August; start at first light and treat the summit block as a fair-weather move only.

Camp in Chicago Basin, 100 feet from water, no fires, food secured from the goats. Windom Peak is usually climbed on the same day as Sunlight from the shared saddle, and Eolus on another. Durango has the services and the train; the Chicago Basin guide on this site covers the schedule and the walk-in options.