Holy Cross Mtn from Gunnery Creek Scramble on 4-Sep-2026

Participants: Sim, Jeannine, Bruce, Pam, Tatyana, Casey

On our trip together last week with Sim, Bruce and Casey, the idea of Holy Cross was brought up and while all but three of us had done it the traditional way, Sim and I were intrigued to try a route Bruce had done a few times in the past - connecting the ridge between Colonel Belcher and Holy Cross. The forecast for the trip was great, but as we all know, not dependable. As we neared the trailhead, light rain began to fall. The rain, although light, continued to fall intermittently until we reached the summit of Colonel Belcher, where it turned to light snow. From there, we continued a short distance, but the scrambling at the beginning of this section was more difficult than I had posted for and with the rock being wet and the temperature dropping, we decided to return to Coloner Belcher and descend its northeast ridge back to the valley. Interestingly, once in the valley, the rain stopped and the sun came out along with more summer-like temperatures, so we enjoyed a pleasant walk out.

I hope to redo this one in better weather one day as the scrambling, in dry conditions, would have been quite fun! Thanks to a patient and supportive group and to Bruce and Casey for pausing to take photos.

Pam