Silver Crk/Grizzly Gulch Trailhead

Location

RangeSan Juan Mountains

Elevation10,400'

Lat/Lon37.93694, -107.46083

14ersRedcloud Peak, Sunshine Peak, Handies Peak

Road Difficulty

3 Easy 4WD/AWD, good clearance

Normally it's rough 2WD dirt to the TH. In early summer, and even some entire summers, the road may be rough and require 4WD.

Driving Directions

From Lake City, drive about 2 miles south on Colorado 149 and turn right on County Road 30, toward Cinnamon Pass. From the start of the 30 road, it's nearly 16 miles to the trailhead. Stay right near 11.8 miles. After 12.5 miles the road becomes more rough, and between 13 and 14.5 miles it's a shelf road that hugs the south side of Sunshine Peak. Reach the trailhead before 16 miles.

On-Site Info

ParkingRoom for ~25 vehicles and more along the road.

CampingPlenty of places to pitch a tent near the trailhead or up the road a bit.

Restrooms?Yes

Fees?No

Photos

Winter Access

Usually closed about 6 miles below the TH.

Trailhead added by BillMiddlebrook

Status Updates
Map


7/13/2023 Posted On: 7/13/2023 By: Mark Goldstein Info: The road from Lake city is dry and summer conditions. Subaru Outback's made it to trailhead. Any 4X4 will get you there. Remember road ledge is one lane, so honk when you are traveling the blind corners. Last trip was in 2018. The road is the same. A little bummy near the end. Enjoy!
7/12/2023 Posted On: 7/12/2023 By: saru9283 Info: The last time I was up here was 4 years ago, and the road is certainly rougher since then. That being said, I had no problem in my stock Crosstrek sport. The last 4 miles to the TH are the worst, but it only took me about 35 minutes. Just over an hour from town total.
7/10/2023 Posted On: 7/10/2023 By: KMoore32 Info: Road was super manageable for me in my Mazda CX7 with 8.1 inches clearance. I definitely overhyped it in my head prior to the drive up. No scrapes or issues of any kind. Just take it slow and youll be fine.			1
7/9/2023 Posted On: 7/9/2023 By: MetricAssLoad Info: SUVs and crossovers with a little clearance can make it to the trailhead by going slow and choosing a good line, lifted vehicles will make it with ease. My outback made it to the trailhead and farther up the road without any issues. Wouldnt recommend a sedan you are gonna bottom out. Plenty of areas to camp around the trailhead and more private spots up the road past the trailhead.
7/2/2023 Posted On: 7/16/2023 By: ZooDude Info: Went up to the TH in my stock Chevy Colorado 4x4. No issues. I'd consider this an easy class 3. Took me about 45 minutes.
6/28/2023 Posted On: 6/29/2023 By: JaiBalayya13 Info: The road is really bumpy and also has several small rocks. I was assuming people were exaggerating and boy I could not be more wrong . I would not recommend a sedan at all on this route. I made to the trailhead with Subaru Crosstrek by driving really slow. The last 4 miles took me about an hour.			1
6/23/2023 Posted On: 6/27/2023 By: ltlFish99 Info: Road has very little water/mud with just a couple of small puddles. i think it is a somewhat rough road, and high clearance is very helpful in 3 or 4 spots. Road does not seem any worse than last October. Personally, i would not take a sedan type vehicle up this road, but i did see one at the trailhead.
6/19/2023 Posted On: 6/21/2023 By: scott_s Info: Last 3-4 miles are pretty rough, need high clearance. Do not try to take a low clearance car up there right now - the only one I saw try it was damaged
5/28/2023 Posted On: 5/28/2023 By: kylewiley Info: Perfectly Clear. We got up it no problem in our crosstrek.		1
4/10/2023 Posted On: 4/11/2023 By: Dagmar Info: CR30 is closed form CR30/CR35 junction. The first mile is dry dry. Afrer that there is a significant snowpack with several avalanche debris blocking the road all the way to the TH. After snow warms up , postholing is significant as the snow pack is still very deep. Postholed 3-5 feet the entire way, flotation device was useless. Tough going for sure .
11/3/2022 Posted On: 11/3/2022 By: markf Info: I parked just above the CR30/CR35 split on 11/1 and walked to the Silver Creek/Grizzly Gulch trailhead. The road looked doable in a Subaru or crossover SUV, so it's possible that some maintenance was done since the last condition report. This morning (11/3) I woke up to 6" of snow at the trailhead, and I found about 8" on my car at midday. CR30 was plowed to the CR30/CR35 split and beyond, but I suspect that CR30 will close for the winter at the split pretty soon.
10/1/2022 Posted On: 10/3/2022 By: JQDivide Info: CR 30 is in awful shape. It is the worst I have seen it in 20 plus years. Getting a 2wd vehicle to the Grizzly Gulch TH used to be the norm. I would not take a regular 2wd up that road anymore. It is rough, rocky and washed out, repaired in spots. Between the heavy rains and OHV traffic this summer, the road is no longer an easy cruise. Even 4wd vehicles will be driving slower, so add anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes to your trip. You will want a 4 x 4 to get to the top of the pass, some of the switchbacks are all rock. I spoke with a sheriff deputy on top the of the pass, and he said the road has gotten worse since this spring. Not sure what it will be like once the snow melts for the 2023 summer.
9/24/2022 Posted On: 9/25/2022 By: JasonCrane Info: CR30 is fine for 2WD until the winter gate & turn-off junction at about 12.5 miles. From there, road is in very poor condition -- deep potholes, protruding rocks, ruts, wash-outs, rock fall, & narrow passes. A majority of traffic was ATV/OHV. There were a number of pick-ups, Jeep Wranglers & a couple of SUVs at the TH. Due to road condition, I ended-up hiking Handies from this TH rather than driving another 3-4 miles to American Basin. Made to Silver Crk in a GMC Acadia by driving cautiously & with a lot of luck involved. Drivers with high clearance vehicles & who are experienced with these road conditions did not seem to have much trouble. "Fun" is not my choice word to describe the road, but the OHV crowd was all smiles seemed to be enjoying themselves. Use your best judgment.
9/10/2022 Posted On: 9/15/2022 By: 1brokedad Info: Drove my 1995 GMC G25 Vandura van to the trailhead without any issues. Just took it slow when going over potholes. There were many cars at the TH Saturday and one person even pulled a popup trailer. I did see a couple of sedans parked there too.
8/12/2022 Posted On: 8/14/2022 By: Shaller13 Info: Made it to the trailhead just fine in stock Jeep Cherokee. Did not use 4HI(nor Low) at all. Low clearance vehicles may have trouble in some spots from mm 12-15.

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