How South Colony Lake road compare?

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14erobsessedkansan
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How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by 14erobsessedkansan »

How do the current conditions of road to upper TH South Colony Lake for Humboldt compare to others? In particular, the road up to Antero which in my experience has been the most prolonged nasty 4wd road I've been on.
I've been on the roads to upper TH's of Gray/Torrey, Lindsay, Antero, Wetterhorn, Uncomp, Castle, Handies, Princeton, Tab...so I've seen some yucky ones, all with no issues thank goodness.
Give me the skinny on south colony lakes as a comparison please. I'll be in a RENTED high clearance 4wd so I want to feel confident.
thx
tsand
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by tsand »

I would rate it as better than Antero, Castle, and Wetterhorn. Worse than Grays/Torreys. Much better than Antero.
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two lunches
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by two lunches »

can i get a Nellie Creek comparison? they're both rated 4/6 with similar descriptions:
Nellie Creek Trailhead Road Difficulty
Moderate 4WD, long wheel base vehicles not recommended. Good clearance required. 4 (0=Paved, 6=Very Difficult 4WD)
2WD dirt to 9,300' at the lower TH. 4WD to 11,400' at the upper TH.
South Colony Lakes Trailhead Road Difficulty
Moderate 4WD, long wheel base vehicles not recommended. Good clearance required. 4 (0=Paved, 6=Very Difficult 4WD)
Easy 2WD dirt to the lowest trailhead. 4WD (high-clearance required) dirt to the upper trailhead.
“To walk in nature is to witness a thousand miracles.” – Mary Davis
ltlFish99
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by ltlFish99 »

I was there in may 2020 and thought it was a little rough in a few places, but overall it seemed to not be that bad.
There were a couple of spots I paused to pick a line so I could avoid scraping my undercarriage on rocks. I thought it was rougher than upper grays/Torreys, but not as bad as the short part of the matterhorn creek trailhead between the 2wd spot, and the upper 4wd area.
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mtnkub
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by mtnkub »

In 2015, i thought the SCL road was not a big deal at all, driving a subaru-like AWD vehicle (well-powered with 8.4 in clearance).
This year in a similar vehicle, i got out of the car 2-3 times each way to study the obstacles, and was not too happy with my decision to drive that road.
But some recent trailhead reports have indicated that the road has just been graded. So with a high clearance 4WD, i don't think there should be too much of an issue.

Compared to the Nellie creek road, I seem to remember that the SCL road is overall rockier (except for the first bit of the Nellie creek road). What i thought was hard about the Nellie creek road were the narrow steep turns after the water crossings (not the water crossings itself). It is also pretty narrow. SCL doesn't have those tight turns and has only a few narrow sections. Here, the recent crux was one short steep section that required either really good clearance or really good tire placement. (But apparently that crux has been graded recently). Oh, and for Nellie creek, i drove a much more capable car (an old Jeep Cherokee that also made the Jeep road on Antero seem easy), and i though that i personally would not want to bring anything less on that one. So, overall, i would rate the SCL road is easier than Nellie Creek.
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nmjameswilson
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by nmjameswilson »

I was up this road last week ... It has gotten a lot worse from last year but it is still not THAT bad. You do need high clearance and 4WD but it is easier than Antero or Nellie Creek
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mtnkub
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by mtnkub »

nmjameswilson wrote: Wed Aug 18, 2021 9:03 am I was up this road last week ... It has gotten a lot worse from last year but it is still not THAT bad. You do need high clearance and 4WD but it is easier than Antero or Nellie Creek
So, the recent grading didn't really help much? Or were you up there before 8/12?
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nmjameswilson
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by nmjameswilson »

mtnkub wrote: Wed Aug 18, 2021 9:56 am
nmjameswilson wrote: Wed Aug 18, 2021 9:03 am I was up this road last week ... It has gotten a lot worse from last year but it is still not THAT bad. You do need high clearance and 4WD but it is easier than Antero or Nellie Creek
So, the recent grading didn't really help much? Or were you up there before 8/12?
We went up on 8/11 and back down 8/13 ... we saw the grader but it did not make that big of an impact on the road where it is bad.
bking14ers
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by bking14ers »

This is a funny "quintessential" post. I've been up South Colony TH road twice. First time in "08" which I drove a car up all the way to the gate. The second time in "17", it took a 4x4 to get up there. The section of road just past the lower TH was by far the worst part in "17". Then two weeks ago. I went up Antero's 4x4 road in a 4x4, all the way above the switch backs. On the way down at tree line, I sliced a tire wide open that cost me the trip back up South Colony TH road to do The Needle this year. Bummer! So I did Pikes instead with the time I had left. I found a great used tire for $100 bucks at Chaffee Tire in Salida. Way to to save the (last) day Chaffee Tire!!!
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oldmanforest
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by oldmanforest »

Many times after I drive a road I was wishy washy about doing, I vow that next time I'll just bite the bullet and walk from the easier trailhead, because it creates about a thousand percent less anxiety on my day about destroying my vehicle and having to arrange a tow out of bum f**k Egypt vs just walking the road. South Colony is in that category for me.
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by bking14ers »

Oldmanforest I totally agree. My ass has been in a pucker numerous times on back 4x4 roads over the years. This year finally caught up with me. I've been so lucky. I still have to go back up South Colony next year. It's part of the adventure.
Everything you want in life is on the other side of fear. -- Margaret T.
You'll never have a better chance to climb that mountain than you do today. -- Dave C.
Dude! I knew you would cave-in once we got up there. -- Dean G.
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herdbull
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Re: How South Colony Lake road compare?

Post by herdbull »

The road is in far better shape since the grading. It's still no picnic but way more manageable. With that said it's still pretty rough and a slow drive. 4x4 helps but not necessary. I have now been up and/or down that road 10 times since early May. It is in the best shape it has been in for years. But please don't think that this means your mini van or 4 door sedan will make it. If there's that much doubt just park at the bottom and be nice to a passer by who may have a 4x4 or pick up and shoot them a couple bucks for a ride up. It's been quite busy this year.
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