Rock of Ages Trailhead

San Juan Mountains

Road Difficulty

3 Easy 4WD/AWD, good clearance

Location10,400 feet
37.88296, -108.01848

Driving Directions

From Ridgway, leave U.S. 550 and take Colorado 62 toward Telluride. Drive over Dallas Divide, down to Placerville and turn left onto Colorado 145. Drive 6.7 miles and turn right onto the Silver Pick road (dirt). From here, it's 8.5 miles to the trailhead. Drive 4 miles to an intersection and turn right onto "59 H" which is also Forest Road 622. Continue 2.3 miles, turn right onto FR 645 and continue 2.2 miles to the Rock of Ages trailhead, near 10,350'. Notes: After 1 mile on the FR 645 road, you must cross the stream in Big Bear Creek which usually isn't too bad by mid-July. Also, there are some designated camp sites along this road.

Notes

Easy 4WD dirt to the TH. A few rough sections and the stream crossing at Big Bear Creek make good-clearance a must on this road. A 2WD vehicle will have troubles crossing the creek but you could park along the road, before the creek crossing, leaving you 1.2 miles from the trailhead.

Trailhead Status Updates

Most Recent Update 8/4/2026:

Parked my Subaru Crosstrek and camped just before the huge rut mentioned in other reports, just short of the stream crossing. This provided an opportunity to observe a few people navigate, and it’s definitely doable on the left side. Care is just needed to go as far left as possible and avoid having the right side dip into the rut. The stream is running low, of course. Again I opted to avoid it ...

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Winter Access

Usually closed near the intersection, 4 miles up from pavement.

Trailhead Facilities & Fees

Parking: Room for roughly 30 vehicles.
Camping: Not much available at the parking area but there are some pull-offs along the road.
Restrooms: Yes, porta potties
Fees: No

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