Castle Peak / Conundrum Peak Combo
- two of the easier Peaks in the Aspen area compared to
the Maroons, Pyramid Peak, and Capital Peak

Our drive to Aspen for our last 14er
Castle Peak

Our long walk up the mining road to
Castle Peak in
the morning light

After 4.2 miles on the old mining road
we reach the upper basin of Castle Peak with our friend Jon

From the upper basin we headed left up
the NE ridge to the summit of Castle Peak

A look at the upper basin with the
steep snowfield and Conundrum Peak on the right

The view of Conundrum Peak from the
summit of Castle Peak

The summit of Conundrum Peak, yes, I
do believe I am getting thinner, 40,000 feet of hiking later!

Our descent back to the
Castle/Conundrum saddle with the descent of the snowfield to the left
Castle Peak / Conundrum Peak
Combo
Scramble: Class 2 / Class 2+ – Steep Hiking
Altitude: Castle Peak 14,265 ft, Conundrum 14,060 ft
Elevation Gain: From TH at 9,800ft Castle Peak 4,465ft,
13.0 miles return: From dispersed camping 1.3 miles up the 4x4 road at
10,300ft just before creek crossing Castle Peak 3,965 ft 10.4 miles return:
From Pearl Pass junction at 11,200 ft 1.7 miles further or 3.0 miles from
lower TH Castle Peak 3,065 ft 7.0 miles return : to add the summit of
Conundrum its another 240 ft of elevation gain provided you glissade the
snowfield and do not have to climb 445 ft back over Castle
Start Time: 5am to 8am to be on your way down by noon and
avoid potential lightning storms, 5am for the combo recommended
Ascent Time: Castle Peak 3-4 Hours, add 30-40 minutes to
drop to saddle at 13,820ft and climb the 240 ft to Conundrum
Highlights
This combo was very enjoyable although you hike an old
mining road up to 12,800 ft. You don’t actually even see Castle/Conundrum
until you’re around 12,400. Then there is a lower basin and upper basin with
a permanent snowfield. We went left after climbing the first slope from the
12,800 ft parking lot and ascended the NE ridge which has a few class 2+
spots. From here we dropped down 445 ft to the saddle between Castle and
Conundrum and climbed the 240 ft up to the summit of Conundrum. From there
it was back to the saddle, then we dropped down onto the permanent snowfield
and glissaded to the bottom of the upper bowl. Ice axe is mandatory for this
although I shortened my Black Diamond poles and we used them for speed
control. They worked quite well but an ice axe would have been best.
Getting There
Castle Creek Trailhead – 9,800 ft – No restrooms
Take Castle Creek from the roundabout just west of the
center of Aspen. Drive 12.5 miles (paved) to the Castle Creek trailhead. To
the right, Forest Road (FR) 102 continues on and goes all the way to
12,800'. Some passenger cars can drive about 1 mile up this road to reach
the dispersed camp sites along the road. The last dispersed campsite at
10,300 ft is 1.3 miles up the road just before the road crosses the creek.
If you want to shorten your hike by parking higher, you must have a 4WD
vehicle with good clearance. From the lower trailhead parking area, proceed
1.3 miles to a river crossing. In spring and early summer, this crossing is
a challenge for some 4WD vehicles. Continue another 1.7 miles up FR 102 to a
junction. Left will take you up the nasty Pearl Pass 4WD road. Staying right
will keep you on the Castle Creek 102 road. If you drove up this far, there
are a few parking spots at the junction. The road gets worse as it ascends
into Montezuma Basin all the way to 12,800 ft.
Updated trailhead info can be found
here
https://www.14ers.com/php14ers/trailheadsmain.php
Camping
From the Castle Creek trailhead at 9,800 ft it is 1.3
miles up to the creek crossing at 10,300 ft and there are dispersed camping
sites all along the road. There is a sizable rock step coming out of the
creek crossing (assuming the creek is summertime low) and a pretty rough
section of road for a ¼ mile after the crossing then the road is not too bad
the remaining 1.7 miles until just before Pearl Pass junction. Definitely
4x4 with a few moderate to hard sections after that. We saw a Jeep TJ,
Nissan Xterra and Toyota Tundra at the 12,800 ft parking lot.
Route Description