| Date | Status Information Posted by 14ers.com Forum Users | Posted By |
|---|---|---|
| 2009-11-20 | See Elbert TR for 11-18-09. Few icy spots on paved 2wd road. Icy spots but 30% brown ground on 4wd road to TH. One stream crossing on 4wd rd below TH that is a large mostly frozen puddle -- ice is thick enough to walk across. We didn‘t drive the 4wd road but a couple hundred yards, then pulled off and walked. From what we saw, suspect it could be driven. Bring chains just in case for the ice. | Dancesatmoonrise |
| 2009-09-27 | Open and dry all the way---dry trail to tree line then snow dusting | giarcd |
| 2009-06-26 | 6/23/09 4wd trailhead kinda muddy and lots of mosquitos plenty of places to park in between aspens on a small loop trail head begins at wooden sigh, creek crossing to Continental Divide trail break off to the left after 1/4 mile to South Elbert TH. there is an old wooden sigh at that intersection. | HD Producer |
| 2009-05-03 | Cleared to the 4WD trailhead | geno71 |
| 2009-03-14 | dirt road from the paved parking area is drivable about 1/4 mile. After that the snow drifts deeply in places. Packed down well for hiking, but not for driving. | mtnmike |
| 2009-02-08 | The upper trailhead is not passable by vehicle traffic. | 4HClimber |
| 2008-11-09 | 4Wd road is passible to the trailhead. I took the road 3/4 of the way until the large strem crossing. The stream has a thin layer of ice so I decided to turn off and not chance it. I am sure my vehicle (Honda Pilot) would have made it though. 3 inches of snow does make the road a little slick. | Gary Brady |
| 2008-07-08 | Road is passable all the way to the trailhead IF you have a high-clearance vehicle. There is a HUGE set of two sinkholes immediately after the 0.5mi mark on 125.1B. Definitely do-able if you take the time or if you have a shorter-wheel base vehicle. I saw a stock Suburban at the trailhead, but I ripped off a mudflap on my Z-71 Truck. Oops. After that, the road is dry, with one stream crossing. | azureabyss |
| 2008-05-12 | Broke through several snowbanks about .75 mile up the 4WD road and then towed some trees out of the road so 4WD vehicles can now drive 1.0 mile to the intersection where the road turns left. In about a week, you might be able to drive a bit further to a camping area on the left where it‘s flat, but the last 1/2 mile of the road still has plenty of snow on it. | BillMiddlebrook |
| 2007-06-24 | The trailhead is clear up to approx 1.4 miles. A small stream is there and it looks passable. 5 4WD cars had decided to try it and made it. | Denvergriz |
| 2007-06-15 | Made it up fine in a mod. Cherokee. Saw a few Liberty's all the way up, though. No snow whatsoever. | pvnisher |
| 2007-05-24 | Clear to the upper (4WD) trailhead. A few muddy spots, but nothing major. This is a 4WD road and has some rocky sections. Good-clearance 4WD recommended. | billmiddlebrook |
| 2007-03-12 | as of 3.10, 2WD parking is clear & dry. 4WD trail is melting down fast and was accessible to vehicles for about 1/2 mile in. | mtnmike |
| 2006-05-29 | Free and clear. Made it to the 4WD parking in a stock 4runner with no problems. I would not take a small SUV on the 4WD section. | jeffkoski |
| 2005-06-27 | 6-22-05: The 4WD road to the trailhead is completely snow-free. This road seemed a little rougher than a few years ago, but I was fine with a Ford Explorer. There is one fairly deep water crossing with a steep exit that might stop a smaller vehicle, but a good mid-size SUV should be fine. | sisyphus |
| 2005-02-18 | The South Mt. Elbert trailhead (125.1B road) requires 4WD in summer. In winter the road is closed and there is 2WD parking near the start. | BillMiddlebrook |
| Location: | Sawatch Range |
| 14ers Served: | Mt. Elbert |
| Road Type: | 2WD paved to the lower/main TH. 4WD dirt to 10,400' at the upper TH. |
| Winter Access: | Closed at the start of the 4WD road. |
| Directions: | From U.S. 24 south of Leadville, take Colorado 82 west toward Twin Lakes. Drive about 4 miles and turn right onto the 24 road. Drive 1.2 miles up a hill to the main trailhead parking area on the left. This is the lower trailhead at 9,600'. Park here or continue 50 feet and turn left on Forest Service road 125.1B. If you don't have a good-clearance 4wd vehicle, you can still drive up the road a bit and park in one of the pull-offs along the road. It's 1.8 miles to the upper trailhead at the end of the 4wd road.
On the 4wd road, stay right at 0.4 miles and left before 1.0 mile. Near 1.7 miles, stay right in an intersection. The last portion of this road is a bit more rough and is usually quite muddy in the spring. Continue to the end of the road where there is parking throughout the trees and a few places to pitch a tent. The trail starts at the sign/kiosk beyond the last parking spots. Calculate Driving Time from your Address | Trailheads on Google Maps |
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