Cuba Gulch Trio — PT 13,076 + Unnamed 13,003 + PT 13,179 (San Juan Mountains)¶
At a glance — recommended day
13.7 mi · 4,771 ft gain · Class 2 · 3 peaks · ~7.5 h drive
Researched: 2026-06-08
NOAA weather link: Cuba Gulch Trio Weather
CalTopo research map: https://caltopo.com/m/DCQ8UKS
Status in DB: All three 0 ascents (unclimbed), all ranked San Juan 13ers (PT 13,003 = id 822, Class 1). The trio rings the head of Cuba Gulch, but the practical approach is up Minnie Gulch from the Animas / Silverton side — in the Half Peak pocket of the Grenadier-fringe San Juans.
Note: the recommended route was distilled from 22 recorded GPS tracks of real trips (14ers.com · ListsofJohn · peakbagger · Kyle's recordings) — all layered on the interactive CalTopo research map.
Other climbers: Emily Sharpe — not yet · Shawn D Keil — 1 of 3 (PT 13,076)
Peaks covered¶
A three-in-one ridge day climbed together in trip reports across all three sources. The peaks sit on the divide at the head of Cuba Gulch, but the recorded approach is up Minnie Gulch (CR 24) from the Animas / Silverton side — a legal public route that avoids the patented mining claims lower in the neighboring drainages. All three are ranked San Juan 13ers, so it's a true 3-ranked-peak day; the neighboring ranked peaks (Half Peak, Quarter Peak, Canby, Cataract, Sheep Mtn A) are already done for Kyle.
| PT 13,076 | Unnamed 13,003 | PT 13,179 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 13,076' | 13,003' | 13,179' |
| Lat / Lon | 37.82997, −107.52956 | 37.84968, −107.49465 | 37.84723, −107.47533 |
| Class (standard) | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Rank | ranked (CO 589) | ranked (CO 635) | ranked (CO 497) |
| 14ers.com | 10577 | 10871 | 10527 |
| LoJ | 752 | 822 | 639 |
| peakbagger | pid 15336 | pid 39877 | pid 39878 |
| Peak DB id | 752 | 822 | 639 |
The three sit in a ~2.3 mi arc: 13,003 is the middle peak (~1.1 mi from 13,179, ~2.3 mi from 13,076), so the natural order is 13,076 → 13,003 → 13,179 (or reverse). All three are ranked 13ers.
Recommended route — up Minnie Gulch, the 13,076 ↔ 13,003 ↔ 13,179 ridge ⭐¶
The composed line follows the recorded Minnie Gulch approach and the connecting ridge — ~13.7 mi · ~4,770 ft, Class 2, from the Minnie Gulch TH.
Combo options:
| Option | Peaks | Distance | Gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recommended trio (Minnie Gulch) | 13,076 + 13,003 + 13,179 | ~13.7 mi | ~4,770 ft |
| Bigger traverses (LoJ 8472, etc.) | + Half Peak / Cataract neighbors | up to 21.9 mi | up to ~12,500 ft |
Class 2 throughout for the clean three-peak day — gain grows fast if you add the ranked neighbors (those are already done for Kyle).
Route sequence¶
- From the Minnie Gulch TH (CR 24, ~11,050'), hike up Minnie Gulch to the basin under PT 13,076 (the SW end of the arc).
- Climb PT 13,076, then follow the connecting divide ridge over Unnamed 13,003 → PT 13,179 (or reverse) — Class 2 tundra/talus.
- Return along the ridge / Minnie Gulch back to the TH. Stay on the ridge and Minnie-Gulch side — the lower Cuba Gulch and Maggie/Minnie drainages hold patented mining claims (private).
Per-peak route notes¶
- PT 13,076 — Class 2; the SW end of the arc. No formal 14ers route description (TR-only beta).
- PT 13,003 — Class 1; the middle, gentlest peak (ranked, peak_db id 822). Grabbed on the ridge between the other two.
- PT 13,179 — Class 2; the NE end, ~1.1 mi from 13,003, near Half Peak's south ridge.
Getting there — Minnie Gulch TH (Silverton side)¶
| Drive from Boulder | ~7h 30m via Google Maps (~370 mi; via US-285/US-50 → US-550 to Silverton, then CR 2 + CR 24) |
| Access corridor | Silverton → CR 2 (Animas Forks / Eureka road) → CR 24 (Minnie Gulch Road) — the Animas side, not the Lake Fork/Lake City direction |
| Trailhead | Minnie Gulch TH (CR 24 upper), ~37.8414, −107.5489, ~11,050'. CR 24 is a rough gravel shelf road (high-clearance / 4WD up high); park where the driving ends and walk up the gulch. |
| Note | A long haul (~7½ hr each way) — most reasonable as an overnight out of Silverton. |
Permits / access:
- BLM / Gunnison NF, San Juan backcountry — no permits; the summits are not in designated wilderness (per peak_db). Standard Leave No Trace.
- Private mining claims: the lower Minnie/Maggie/Cuba Gulch floors hold patented mining claims (private property) — stay on CR 24 and the public ridge; do not cut across claim parcels or old mine workings.
- Minnie Gulch Road (CR 24): rough gravel, high-clearance recommended; check conditions.
Gear & season¶
- Best window: July through September. High San Juan tundra; the Minnie Gulch (CR 24) road opens late and the upper section is rough.
- Storms: standard San Juan afternoon monsoon exposure on the open ridge — early start, off the high ground by early afternoon.
- Terrain: Class 2 tundra/talus throughout the standard line — no technical sections.
- Cell coverage: no submitted 14ers.com reception reports for these summits; the Minnie Gulch approach and basin are almost certainly dead — deep in the Animas/Silverton backcountry. Summits may catch intermittent signal but treat it as unreliable — carry an InReach / satellite messenger.
Trip reports & GPX (all three sources)¶
Sources confirmed logged in: 14ers.com ("Basin"), listsofjohn.com ("letsgocu"), peakbagger.com ("Kyle Knutson"). 15 GPX tracks swept (LoJ combos + peakbagger ascents) plus Kyle's own Cuba Gulch tracks — all layered on the CalTopo map, colored by source.
listsofjohn.com¶
| GPX | Peaks |
|---|---|
| 8389 / 14398 | PT 13,076 (+combo) |
| 8472 / 14373 / 2271 | PT 13,179 + neighbors |
| 13242 | Unnamed 13,003 (+combo) |
14ers.com (logged in, "Basin")¶
Peak pages exist for all three (13,003 as "Unnamed 13003"); no formal route descriptions — route beta is TR-only.
peakbagger.com (logged in, "Kyle Knutson")¶
Ascent GPX pulled for all three — PT 13,076 (pid 15336), Unnamed 13,003 (pid 39877), PT 13,179 (pid 39878), 3 tracks each — layered on the CalTopo map.
Sources checked: 14ers.com ✓ (logged in, "Basin") · listsofjohn.com ✓ (logged in, "letsgocu") · peakbagger.com ✓ (logged in, "Kyle Knutson")