Redcloud Peak: The iron-stained San Juan classic
Redcloud Peak is named for the deep red color of its upper face — iron-stained volcanic tuff that gives the peak a distinctive russet hue against the surrounding gray San Juan rock.
Redcloud Peak is one of the most-distinctively-colored 14ers in the state. The upper face is built of iron-stained volcanic tuff that weathers to a deep russet red — visible from miles away in the Lake City area. The peak is climbed almost always with neighboring Sunshine Peak as a Class 2 double.
The peak at a glance
- Elevation: 14,037 ft (4,278 m)
- Rank in Colorado: 48th of 56 peaks above 14,000 ft
- Range: San Juan Mountains
- County: Hinsdale County
- Coordinates: 37.9408° N, 107.4214° W
- Standard route: Northeast Ridge from Silver Creek (Class 2) — 9 mi RT, ~3,700 ft gain
- Public land: BLM (Hinsdale County)
How Redcloud Peak got its name
Named descriptively for the red color of the upper face — applied by mining-district prospectors in the late nineteenth century. The name appears in records from the 1880s.
The standard route
The standard Northeast Ridge route ascends from the Silver Creek trailhead on the Cinnamon Pass road. The trail climbs steadily through the basin and ascends Redcloud's northeast ridge on a Class 2 line. Most parties continue to Sunshine Peak — about a mile of additional ridge — before descending. About 9 miles round-trip with 3,700 feet of gain.
When to climb
The Colorado fourteener climbing season is short. The standard window runs from late June through mid-September — after the snow has melted off the trail and before the first serious autumn storm. Outside that window, you're committing to a winter ascent: snow travel, avalanche assessment, post-holing through drifts, and route-finding without a visible trail.
Inside the window, the rule that has saved more Colorado lives than any other is be off the summit by noon. Afternoon convective storms build over the high peaks almost daily in July and August. Lightning is the leading weather killer in the Rockies. Plan for a pre-dawn start — most experienced climbers leave the trailhead between 4:00 and 5:30 AM.
Where it sits
What climbers wish they'd known
Add Sunshine. The Redcloud-Sunshine traverse is the standard. Skipping Sunshine for a separate trip is unusual.
Before you go
A 14er is a long, exposed day at altitude. Read these first if you haven't already:
- Planning your first multi-day backpacking trip — same logistics apply to a long single-day summit push.
- How to choose the right trail difficulty — converting class ratings into honest fitness estimates.
- Leave No Trace, in one minute — alpine tundra heals on a geological clock. Stay on the trail.
Looking for the standard route on the map? Browse Colorado trails on Outdoors or jump to the Near Me view if you're already in-state.
If you liked this peak
- Sunshine Peak — the traverse partner
- Handies Peak — the easy San Juan
- Uncompahgre Peak — the San Juans' highest
Hero photograph: Redcloud Peak summit, San Juan Mountains, Colorado. by Mitchtobin, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
