South Colony Lakes Trailhead

Posted On: 9/17/2020 By: k_fergie
Info: Road is snow free all the way. Additionally, I didn't know this in advance, but I assume its common knowledge by now, the infamous drain pipe has been removed

Posted On: 9/11/2020 By: Herbert
Info: Made it to the 4WD trailhead today in an unlifted 2015 Jeep Wrangler, 32 AT tires, manual transmission. There was much more snow than I expected. I had to drop into 1st gear 4-lo twice to clear steep gnarly humps. 2d gear 4-lo is normally where I hang out. No dragging. Honestly I dont know if all the slipping and sliding made it worse or cushioned the ride.

Posted On: 8/31/2020 By: irolhiking
Info: I drove up to the last parking lot at the TH. 8/25 in a Rubicon with a 3 inch lift & it was not a problem at all. But can't imagine doing it in anything less than a jeep or truck. First time on this road so I can't say if its worse than prior years.

Posted On: 8/31/2020 By: irolhiking
Info: I drove up to the last parking lot at the TH. 8/25 in a Rubicon with a 3 inch lift & it was not a problem at all. But can't imagine doing it in anything less than a jeep or truck. First time on this road so I can't say if its worse than prior years.

Posted On: 8/31/2020 By: SanJuanShaun
Info: Just made it up the road in a stock Subaru Forester. Like, literally just now. It can be done. But I wouldnt recommend it.
Also, for the record the South Colony Lakes trailhead has solid cell/LTE coverage (AT&T).

Posted On: 8/27/2020 By: zsmith
Info: The road has become extremely rough. Truck-based vehicles and pickups will have a challenging drive, but most will make it with a lot of jostling. A 4-Runner next to us 'hit lots' according to a passenger and suffered a fuel leak. Depending on how much damage you're willing to cause your vehicle, a Subaru *might* be able to make it with very careful spotting, but it's hard for me to imagine. We were in a lifted XTerra with skid plates and made it fine with careful maneuvering. On the good side, the bottom of the road has become so bad that you'll know within a few minutes whether it's too much for your vehicle. It only gets worse, so don't think you're out of the woods if you barely make it the first 1/2 mile.

Posted On: 8/29/2020 By: LetsGoMets
Info: Nothing to add on conditions, but noting that we saw a bear on the road between the lower and upper TH (closet to the lower) in the early morning.

Posted On: 8/23/2020 By: Ev_p303
Info: Drove to the upper trailhead yesterday in a stock 4runner SR5 and honestly would not do it again. Some better tires would have probably helped but there were 3 spots going down that were very tricky and required spotting. I honestly don't know how anyone could drive this in a Subaru it was very rough.

Posted On: 8/25/2020 By: BethL
Info: I made it up the road this Sunday in a stock 2000 Dodge Dakota. This was my 3rd (and plan for it to be my last!) trip up this road over the past 5 years, and this is definitely the worst shape it's been. There are several obstacles about a 1/2 mile up from the 2WD trailhead. I waited while 3 4Runners came down this section as we were headed up. They were going slow with spotters and the drivers looked stressed when they passed. We went slow and got through without bottoming out, but this section will quickly tell you if you should keep going.

The rest of the road definitely requires attention and careful driving, but there was only one more obstacle 1.25 miles from the 4WD trailhead that required spotting. This is the crux of the road. There are some pictures from other posters (I failed to take one) but the ruts are deeper than what you see in posts from earlier this year. We went up driver's right on the way up, and down driver's right on the way down. In hindsight, probably should have stayed Left up/Right down going the same path both directions due to the ruts on the right. It took two tries to get over this section on the way up, with a spotter.

Never bottomed out on any spot, but thanks to the very bumpy ride one of my exhaust hangers broke. Thankfully not drive-ending damage, but worth the warning that you don't always have to hit something to cause some damage. ;)

Also be prepared for a LOT of traffic. We were heading up around 3:30pm on Saturday, and stopped every .25-.5 miles due to other vehicles coming down (passed at least 10). On our way down Sunday evening (7pm) we still encountered 4 vehicles heading up. Keep an eye out for pullover spots as you'll most likely need to use them. While everyone attempted to honor the right of way for the vehicle heading up, be kind and backup to the nearest passable spot regardless of which vehicle you are, especially if you're in the easier terrain.

Posted On: 8/17/2020 By: abbie_sunshine
Info: We rented a Jeep Wrangler to get up this road and were so happy we did. It felt easier to go up the road than come down. There were a few pretty big holes that took some thought and negotiation, so I appreciated the clearance of the Jeep. I don't know how anything with less clearance would be able to get up to the upper trailhead, but on the way down we saw a Subaru giving it a try.

Posted On: 8/9/2020 By: litote312
Info: Got a 2018 Subaru Outback to the 4wd trailhead. Having a spotter was very helpful. Fortunately a few of the hardest spots are early on so youll know if you can make it up before committing too much.

Posted On: 8/9/2020 By: LoveThisSite
Info: Road is in much worse shape than previous years. I managed to drive my Subaru Forester up all the way (with winter tires) but it was very sketchy. I had to use every bit of my driving skill (with a bit of help spotting) to get past 3 particularly tough spots. Pickup trucks, Wranglers, 4Runners should be fine.

Posted On: 7/27/2020 By: davedad
Info: Recent torrential rains have made the road tougher. Made the drive in a stock Tacoma but it required care and spotting in 1 place. Unless you really wanted to shorten the life of your car only drive this if you have good clearance.

Posted On: 7/26/2020 By: Clint the climber
Info: The road is rowdy. I managed to get my 2008 stock 4runner to the trailhead without bottoming out. I spun in multiple places even in 4low and just had to send it to get through a couple of spots. I had my partners get out and spot me in multiple places as well. You'll need some courage to get up this road, don't even think about driving it if you're a hesitant driver. We saw a Subaru Outback up there and another car very similar to the outback, both had obvious damage.

Posted On: 7/25/2020 By: LetsGoMets
Info: Pretty rough, was in a buddies stock Grand Cherokee who made it without any bottoming out but needed a couple spotter moments. Saw a Subaru up there but personally would not do that.