Baldwin Gulch Trailhead

Posted On: 6/10/2023 By: Ssgustafson
Info: The road is almost entirely free of snow and drivable to 11,880' where there is also room to execute a (maybe 6 point) turn around. The highest available parking is at 11,770', but there are plenty of other parking / dispersed camping locations all the down to the river crossing at about 10,800'. Above 11,880' there is still a lot of snow blocking the road and some damage to the road that looks like it will take some time to get reopened.

Posted On: 5/6/2023 By: CheapCigarMan
Info: You can drive 1/3 of a mile up the 4wd road before being stopped by a snow drift.

Posted On: 4/10/2023 By: kyrawhitworth
Info: 2WD road easy dirt. 4WD turn off covered in snow not likely to melt out enough to drive up for a while. Evidence of tire tracks but only for a couple feet before it looks like they backed up. A few spots of ice flow on the 4WD road (one we had to avoid by hiking around it in the trees).

Posted On: 8/2/2022 By: Weekapaugn21
Info: Not so much a status report as a warning to fellow newbies like me: I made it to 13.3k in my stock 2 door wrangler and never bottomed out. But unless you are actually into off-roading, and accept the potential to damage your ride, I'd recommend hiking longer than driving up this. It wasn't enjoyable in the slightest and I cannot believe that I got down with four still-inflated tires. I've done Huron and Princeton, this is a significant step up and made me aware that off-roading ain't my thing.

Posted On: 7/22/2022 By: CommanderDawn
Info: Drove up to 13800 in a 2000 Wrangler 2 door with a 2 inch lift and had zero issues.

I am not an experienced off-road driver, so given the ease with which I did this, I think any 4wd truck or suv with decent clearance and a competent driver would be fine. Beyond the tree line, a long wheelbase vehicle will have to make 3 or 5 pt turns on tight switchbacks. Even I had to do one.

Also tracked excavators can make the top, dont ask how I know this.

Posted On: 7/17/2022 By: MaryinColorado
Info: Oof! I think I'd bump the rating up to a 5! Drove up to 12K in a Wrangler with 10" clearance and hardy tires. Even with a capable vehicle, this road comes down to quality of driver.(she says, sort of complimenting herself but also speaking the truth). The road was new to me but not to my significant other in another vehicle who said the road is way worse than it has been in the past. This seems to jive with my overall impression since some of the research I did about the road dated back 2-3 years, but compared to that research, the road was far worse than what I was expecting. It was navigable but VERY slow going, and I had to get out about four times to scope out obstacles for a good line. The creek crossings were among the easiest endeavors, actually.

Ultimately, made it up and down without incident, but it was among the most stressful off-road driving I've ever done, and I consider myself to be fairly skilled (not a newb).

In summary: really need to consider the vehicle's own capability, and definitely a fair amount of nav skill is needed to ensure you don't leave a trail of auto parts.

Posted On: 7/1/2022 By: jackjk1011
Info: Any vehicle can make it to the lower 2WD trailhead, where there is a reasonable amount of parking on the side of the road. I would not attempt *any* of the 4WD portion of the road without a proper high clearance 4WD vehicle, as it immediately becomes steep and rocky. There are multiple significant water crossings along the 4WD road including one right at the beginning within a few hundred feet of the 2WD trailhead. The entire 4WD portion of the road was dry (except for the aforementioned water crossings) and passible if you have the correct vehicle. Larger high clearance 4WD vehicles can make it to one of several places to park and/or camp along the 4WD road, but after a certain point (just above treeline) you're probably going to want a vehicle with a short wheel base to continue up. ATV, SxS, or Jeep Wranglers should be able to make it to the upper trailhead, which is only a few thousand feet from the summit and has parking for a handful of vehicles. The largest vehicle I saw at the upper trailhead was an FJ. If you are driving anything bigger than that, you will probably want to leave it further down and hike the remaining portion of the road.

Posted On: 5/28/2022 By: Jimmy Jay
Info: Road is passable for standard clearance 4WD all the way to the 4WD trailhead. You won't get far past the stream crossing without a tracked vehicle though due to snow, and there's a tree across the road close to the Cronin split.
Wouldn't try with a low clearance 4WD (Crosstrek Forester, etc) as there are a couple large rocks in the center right after the TH.

Posted On: 4/25/2022 By: aksean22
Info: The 4WD road is the worst of both worlds right now. There is still far to much snow to attempt to drive (someone tried and only made it about 20'), but enough rocky sections to make skiing back down pretty tricky unless you really don't care about your skis. Snow is unsupportive so bring flotation if headed up there anytime soon. The stream at 10,800' is flowing.

Posted On: 10/10/2021 By: funsizetiff
Info: Able to drive up to 12,850' before the road becomes impassable due to snow drifts. Last parking before the road blockage is at 12,700' on the final switchback (at location on attached screenshot).

Posted On: 8/23/2021 By: lauradaughtry
Info: Summer conditions. I drove my '17 Toyota 4Runner (TRD pro trim, but didn't use any of the bells and whistles) in 4WD low and made it all the way to the end of tree-line with absolutely zero problems. Yes, your 5th gen stock 4Runner would make it up here without issue! Honestly, the roughest part is the 1st mile; but it was hardly a worry. For any off-road enthusiasts, it was a beautiful drive with a few creek crossings. Plenty of pull-off space and areas to move over for passing vehicles coming the opposite direction. As the poster below me noted, the road is narrow at points, and assume people will be driving down from the peak after 12pm in a day; I'd think it considerate to, if you're going to, drive up early in the morning or very late afternoon/evening.

Posted On: 8/23/2021 By: Btuperkwh
Info: Haven't seen a Baldwin Gulch TH report in a while so here it is -->
First time driving up this road so I was a little nervous since I have hiked up and down that road a few times and know the conditions. Drove a lifted Nissan Titan up to the parking area after the dispersed camping spots and before the lower switchbacks to the saddle (~11,000) on Sat 8/21 ~ 7am. I only saw high clearance trucks, 4runners, wranglers, and 2-3 stock SUVs going up. Dispersed camping spots along the way were occupied. There were several 4WDs, ATVs and motorcycles going up the switchbacks and parked at the saddle, Antero summit "gate" parking area and on across the "valley" on White. First mile up the road is definitely worst part as you gain elevation - narrow, rocky, bumpy, rutted road with a few areas for vehicles to pass each other. After that it get a little better, road levels out a bit and there are areas to pullover for passing vehicles - still very rocky and rutty though. 3x stream crossings - easy, no issues. Water was running higher later in the day coming down but still no issues. Started down the road around 2:30pm, you have to go slow through a few of the sections due to the loose rocks and potential sliding. There are about 2-3 places where it gets a little intense going down due to big ruts and rocks but going slow and deliberate works. About 75% of the way down there were a dispersed line of vehicles and ATVs going down for the day - met a couple of vehicles coming up. There were enough pull off spots for the line of vehicles and ATVs (going much faster) to pass each other - no issues. Further down where the road gets very narrow and steep(er) and basically there is very little room for passing. Met a Mule coming up at a steep hairpin curve section with no passing anywhere. The Mule had to back down so we could pass. It seems logical that on a weekend, most of the traffic on the mountain are coming down in the late afternoon (2pm-5pm). Personally, I would go very early morning or wait until after 5pm to go up the road on weekends to avoid the traffic jams on the lower part of the road.

Posted On: 8/8/2021 By: Jnaffy
Info: Drove up to close to 13 K in a stock jeep wrangler. Definitely a class 4 road. You need to know how to drive lines in certain areas. Stock off-road Ing high clearance vehicle should be fine. I parked at the sign at an intersection. Beyond that road is still doable with the same notations as I listed above for the road blow. There are no pool off spots however should you have any issues so you have to commit beyond 13 K. Water crossings may be 5 inches deep. I honestly dont understand why people are trying to make this a technical class 5/6 road when it is very clearly not but again you need to be the kind of person who knows how to off-road and understands how to pick lines with high clearance. I would say the biggest issue would be minimal areas for passing just like Princeton and no extra room in certain areas to pass. On that note uphill drivers always have right of way!

Posted On: 8/10/2021 By: bking14ers
Info: I was able to drive a stock Jeep Grand Cherokee to over 13,000 ft. (above the switch backs) And it only cost me $100 for a good used tire afterwards. Seriously! Don't drive up that road unless you have decent clearance, and good aftermarket off road tires. I tore a hole in the side wall of a tire coming back down right at tree line, then it was an act of God I made it out on the cheap spare. I didn't think the road was worse than I've ever driven on, but it was just so long.

Posted On: 8/4/2021 By: sctbke
Info: Road seems to have been made a bit more difficult by recent rains. Some larger rocks exposed by the runoff, creek crossing a few hundred yards up 277 is flowing strong. Ended up turning around about a half mile in after a couple scrapes that werent avoidable. 07 Honda Pilot, larger A/T tires, a car that has been over Medano pass, engineer pass, and to nearly every other 14er 4wd trailhead in the state, but not this one! Youll want something better than stock until the rain damage gets better. Ive got 8.5 ground clearance and it wasnt enough to navigate the big rocks, another inch or so would be ideal. Stock Wrangler or TRD 4Runner would do fine with decent line choice. Will summit from browns creek trailhead now instead, road seems like a long hike!