| Date | Status Information Posted by 14ers.com Forum Users | Posted By |
|---|---|---|
| 2009-11-16 | Was able to drive to within 100 feet of the upper trailhead. There‘s snow on the road but I only needed 4WD in a few spots where the snow was about 8-10 inches deep. It will not be open much longer. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2009-11-09 | 11/8/2009 drove all the way up to the fee area. a few snow patches but nothing that cant be done in passenger vehicle. | zoriloco |
| 2009-10-24 | Still dry on 10/24/09. No problem in a Neon all the way to Kite Lake using due care in the rough spots | GregEFGreenLeaf |
| 2009-10-17 | Dry to Kite Lake but for a little slush just before the parking lot and some inconsequential drifting in the parking area. | Wyoming Bob |
| 2009-09-17 | No problems in a corolla. | eagle06 |
| 2009-09-04 | passable (but rough) by a low clearance car | BFPD630 |
| 2009-07-19 | trail road in great shape, can be made by almost all types of cars/2 wd except for maybe very low sports cars ( and a good driver might even make it in one of those too). Some holes and rocks but all can be avoided. road is dirt and bumpy but no problems when dry. no idea if it is wet. | Bergs |
| 2009-06-20 | Still totally clear as of 6/19/09. | rustynorman |
| 2009-06-13 | clear all the way---some folks camping at TH | giarcd |
| 2009-06-04 | Clear to within a hundred feet or so. A four wheel drive vehicle could make it without too much effort. I saw a Honda Accord parked just before the snow. | TylerStorm |
| 2009-05-31 | Totally clear to withing 3/4 mile of Kite lake. Saw a Lexus sedan parked there. Vehicles with decent clearance can make through the broken drifts to withing 50 yards of the Kite Lake trailhead. Still a 3-4 foot deep drift there, but the snow is melting fast. | CO Native |
| 2009-05-17 | Drove to ~11,550‘ where a large snow drift still remains. Plenty of parking. This is about 3/4 mile from the summer trailhead. We saw somebody get stuck in the snowdrift late in the day when it was a big soppy mess. | scotthsu |
| 2009-05-09 | One drift remains at the standard winter closure which as of 5.9.09 was passable on the right hand side for any vehicle with a decent clearance (done in a Subaru Outback Sport). This opens an additional 1-1.5 miles up towards Kite Lake. Closure now appoximately 1.5 miles shy of the summer trailhead. | E-dorvs |
| 2009-04-28 | Winter closure still in place. Large drifts at closure, but after closure a mix of dry road, some snow drifts in laces, mostly firm snow. Kite Lake completely snowed in | fox_inthesnow |
| 2009-03-09 | Winter closure still in place. The road has plenty of snow and will be closed off for some time. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2009-02-02 | The road past the winter road closure is mixed: dry, scoured and hard-packed. Snowshoes ARE NOT needed. Even at Kite Lake itself, the snow is so firm, boots are just fine with very minimal postholing. | Kiefer |
| 2009-01-12 | Plowed 2.5 mi. from turn off highway. Then sporadic snow coverage. The road is about 50% clear from wind. | Media Dude |
| 2008-12-06 | As of today, the road is plowed to within 2.5 miles of Kite Lake | heather14 |
| 2008-11-21 | Road still dry to the trailhead. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2008-10-07 | Road still dry to the trailhead. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2008-09-21 | The road to Kite Lake has several slightly rough spots, but is accessible by all vehicles. Camping across the creek is closed, but plenty of camping on parking lot side. Outhouse is clean and in good condition. | Scatman |
| 2008-06-26 | 6-27-08 Made it to the lake in my subie...drift was there, but melting fast. Anything with any clearance can make it. | yellowstone96 |
| 2008-06-25 | The snow drift is still there and there was a Nissan Extera from Texas stuck there which required a tow truck to pull him out. It‘s melting fast though and somebody with a shovel could clear it in 30 minutes. | gregpeak |
| 2008-06-22 | ditto - did notice the south side of drift melting fast so 4wd might be ok by weeks end with some fast melting | dpk |
| 2008-06-21 | Road is clean almost to the lake, where there is one last snow drift that is pretty nasty and off camber just before the switchback. Didnt want to risk the 500 dollar tow job. Short walk to Kite lake from there.. Plenty of opportunities to park before the snowdrift. I would say it is going to take another week or so before that snowdrift melts. | Rockymtnhigh69 |
| 2008-06-10 | 14ers are CLOSED this year for trail maintenance. that would include Mt‘s Democrat, Lincoln and Bross. Kite Lake Campground still open for now. Just got this info from the US Forest Service in Fairplay. You can call them for more info at 719-836-2031. | smallcheetah |
| 2008-05-25 | Last report still current. After the drift at ~11,000, road is mainly snow free until the last mile before Kite Lake. | Wisco |
| 2008-05-18 | Last report still current as of 16 May 2008 | comin2getcha |
| 2008-05-11 | Last status still current. Deep snow still blocking the road at about 10990‘. Looks like it may be a while before it melts. | Scanner |
| 2008-04-21 | Last report still current. | covfrrider |
| 2008-04-07 | The road to the Kite Lake is unploughed to about 3 miles before the TH. The snowed part of the road is mostly snow covered, with a couple sections that are wind blown down to the gravel. | Snaggs |
| 2008-02-12 | Road is plowed to the Paris Mill, 3 miles below Kite Lake. The remaining road to the lake is mostly snow-covered and wind-packed. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2008-01-17 | The road is closed near the Paris Mill. Above that, it has moderate snow cover to the upper mine area. The remainder of the road to Kite Lake has deep snow and no snowmobile tracks. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2007-06-16 | Improvements have been done! The road is now 2wd and dry all the way to Kite lake. | moonnugs |
| 2007-05-29 | Still blocked by snow about 1/2 mile below the trailhead. | billmiddlebrook |
| 2007-05-19 | The road is dry a little above the upper mine (about 4 miles up Kite Lake Road and 1.5 miles from Kite Lake.) Higher clearance vehicles were making it to approx. 1 mile from Kite Lake, there is still significant snow from this point on. | roozers42 |
| 2007-01-13 | the road is plowed, very well in fact, to its normal winter closure at the paris mill. this is located 2.65 miles from alma at 11,000 feet. | shanahan96 |
| 2006-08-18 | Road fairly smooth all the way to Kite Lake. There are some bad areas but can be avoided most of the time. Even saw people in cars at Kite Lake. | rollin |
| 2006-07-17 | Road clear right up to Kite Lake. If driving low clearance vehicle, be warned that there is one very small uphill (around a turn, about 1.5 miles before the Lake) where the road seems too bad to continue. If you make it up the small hill, the road is good again until right before the lake. | offdisc |
| 2006-05-26 | OPEN to within 100' of the Kite Lake TH. I had to blast through the edge of some snow along the way but any 4WD should be able to make it. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2006-05-15 | The road is open to the upper mine at 11,400' - 1.5 miles from Kite Lake. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2006-04-21 | Winter closure still in place at the Paris Mill (2.75 miles below Kite Lake). | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2006-03-06 | Was up at there on 3-4-06. I was able to get 3.5 miles in till the snow was blocking the road. Had to hike the last 2.5 to Kite Lake. | wilhite38 |
| 2005-10-24 | Drove up on 10/23/05, road is clear all the way to the trailhead. There was some snow reducing it to one lane near the turn for the road to Windy Ridge, but after that it is clears up the rest of the way. The last hundred yards or so before the parking area is really rutted out and will stop any passenger car at that point. | chicago transplant |
| 2005-08-26 | As of 8/21/05 the road is in excellent condition to within 200 yards of the pit toilet at Kite Lake. At this point a large washout stops most 2WD vehicles and results in haphazard and crowded parking along the roadside. | contour900 |
| 2005-07-03 | road was in good shape, just a little rocky in spots. I was able to make it past the switchbacks (really close to kite lake) with a jetta (low clearence 2wd)with not problems, just had to go slow. The road is passable to the trailhead without 4wd needed, just good ground clearence | downhilldave |
| 2005-05-31 | 5-31-05: Memorial Day Traffic pushed through the remaining snow on Kite Lake Road. Tracks went all the way to the pay parking area. A burly 4WD would be necessary to negotiate the remaining snow patches. | sisyphus |
| 2005-05-26 | 5-26-05: The Kite Lake Road is melted out above the Sweet Home Mine now. You can proceed almost a mile past the mine. Snow blocks progress just after the sign that says, "Pay Parking One Mile." So, you're about a mile from Kite Lake camping. | sisyphus |
| 2005-05-13 | 2WD accessable to Sweet Home Mine. 4WD could make it further in frozen snow conditions. | doumall |
| 2005-05-10 | The road is now "open" to the upper mine at 11,400' (4.1 total miles up the Kite Lake road, and 1.5 miles from Kite Lake). 4WD is still recommended to get past a couple of stubborn snow drifts. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2005-04-26 | The road is clear for 2.6 miles to the intersection with the Mineral Park road (2.5 miles from the lake). | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2005-02-18 | The Kite Lake road is closed in winter and usually melts out in mid to late May. In summer, good-clearance 2WD vehicles can drive to Kite Lake (12,000') or fairly close. The last 1/2 mile of the road is a little rough. | BillMiddlebrook |
| Location: | Mosquito Range |
| 14ers Served: | Mt. Democrat, Mt. Lincoln, Mt. Cameron, Mt. Bross |
| Road Type: | Rough 2WD dirt to the TH. |
| Winter Access: | Closed at the Paris Mill site which is about 3 miles up the road and 3 miles below Kite Lake. |
| Directions: | Take Colorado 9 to Alma. In the middle of town and on the west side of the road, look for a small sign for the road to Kite Lake. Turn here and drive a bit through a residential area. Continue 6 miles to Kite Lake. The last mile of this road can be a bit more rough, but a good-clearance 2WD should still be able to make it when the road is dry. There are restrooms and some camping spots at the trailhead. You must pay a small fee to park/camp at Kite Lake. If you park below (no fee), walk up the road to Kite Lake. Calculate Driving Time from your Address | Trailheads on Google Maps |
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