Grizzly Peak rides the Continental Divide a few miles south-southwest of Independence Pass, and it carries an odd crown: no summit in the country stands higher while still falling short of 14,000 feet, which puts it first among the Colorado Centennial 13ers. Early surveys once counted it as a fourteener. The dark, broken slopes are andesite lava flows and breccias from the Oligocene, roughly 24 to 33 million years old.
The East Ridge route leaves the McNasser Gulch trailhead (4WD with good clearance, or a lower start that adds distance) for about 6 miles round trip and 2,800 feet of gain. A gated road passes old mine workings, then rock and scree climb the north slopes to the saddle east of the summit. Three gendarmes guard the ridge above it; skirting them on the left keeps the day at difficult Class 2, while going straight over turns it into Class 3. The Garfield Combo adds neighboring Garfield Peak for about 7 miles and 3,400 feet with easy Class 3 moves. From the Lincoln Gulch side, a south ridge approach from Grizzly Reservoir runs about 10.8 miles and 3,790 feet at Class 2+, and the road past Portal Campground can stay gated until early July.
Expect loose talus, real rockfall potential and route-finding on the ridge, so helmets make sense and an early start beats the afternoon storms that build over the Divide. The summit looks back down the ridge toward Garfield and across the Sawatch.
