South Colony Lakes Trailhead

Location

RangeSangre de Cristo

Elevation9,950'

Lat/Lon37.97611, -105.50651

14ersHumboldt Peak, Crestone Needle, Crestone Peak

Road Difficulty

4 Moderate 4WD, good clearance

Easy 2WD dirt to the lowest trailhead. 4WD (high-clearance required) dirt to the upper trailhead.

Driving Directions

Take Colorado 69 south from Westcliffe. Drive 4.5 miles and turn right on Colfax Lane. Drive 5.5 miles to the end of Colfax. Turn right and drive 1 mile on a dirt road to a junction. Continue straight up the 120 Road for 0.3 mile to the Lower 2WD Trailhead at 8,800'. To reach the Upper 4WD Trailhead, continue 2.7 miles to parking/camp spots before a river crossing, near 9,950'. Note that in 2009, the South Colony Lakes road was permanently closed at this point (with a gate), and the official trailhead was established here. The trail begins next to the trailhead kiosk located in the main parking area.

On-Site Info

Parking~20 vehicles at the lower, 2WD trailhead. No parking along the first 1+ miles of the 4WD road due to private property. Some pull-offs before the upper trailhead. Upper, 4WD trailhead has room for ~25 vehicles.

CampingNo camping at the 2WD trailhead. Not much camping along the 4WD road but there are a few spots. Some established camp sites near the 4WD trailhead.

Restrooms?No

Fees?No

Photos

Winter Access

Usually closed near the lower TH at the bottom of the road.

Trailhead added by BillMiddlebrook

Status Updates
Map


4/30/2011 Posted On: 5/4/2011 By: Weenus Info: I think we were in the same spot as Terry, but we camped ~0.8 miles from the Rainbow Trail trailhead. The snow was melting off on Saturday and should continue to do so with the warmer weather.
4/16/2011 Posted On: 4/17/2011 By: sgladbach Info: Toyota Rav 4 easily made it 20 minutes (2/3 mile?) below the Rainbow trail. That was the high point for all vehicles. Changing by the day!
4/2/2011 Posted On: 4/3/2011 By: Carl Info: 4wd can make it through some snow patches to 9,500ft. Approx 1.4 miles past the lower trailhead.
3/5/2011 Posted On: 3/9/2011 By: tmathews Info: Road to lower TH is clear and accessible.
1/17/2011 Posted On: 1/17/2011 By: hollamby Info: Dry to lower 2wd TH. There is no snow until you hit the trees (roughly 1/3 mile from lower TH). It is completely impassable at that point. Snowmobiles are the only form of motorized transportation that can make it. Pic 1: Looking down the road to the lower TH Pic 2: The start of the snow (heading down). Snow is thin on this wind sweep corner but increases fast & deep. Pic 3: What the road looks like for 95%.
12/22/2010 Posted On: 12/23/2010 By: Kiefer Info: Lower 2x2 TH is clear and dry. snowline starts about 8,800-9,000ft up the road. Only a few inches at most on road and is driveable in trucks or Jeep only. Snow depth increases about 1.5-2.0 miles up the road to the point where even a 4x4 would be helpless. Rainbow Trail (the new TH) has about a foot of snow on the ground with some drifting.
11/27/2010 Posted On: 11/27/2010 By: Alby426 Info: There is about 4-5 inches of snow on the road but, had no problem getting to Rainbow Trailhead with my X-terra. Road is passable with a 4WD that can handle the snow.
10/16/2010 Posted On: 10/17/2010 By: sunny1 Info: There are some rough sections to the upper/new TH. At a minimum, high clearance is a must. A 4WD is ideal
7/11/2010 Posted On: 7/11/2010 By: Kojones Info: Gate is there. Somewhat of a rough drive up, but the stock ‘97 Cherokee did fine. I‘m not sure I‘d say a 2WD can make it... rear tires were slipping before I kicked it into 4WD, not sure front would have done better.
5/23/2010 Posted On: 5/23/2010 By: mtnmaneric Info: The road is clear all the way to the new gate.
5/7/2010 Posted On: 5/9/2010 By: BillMiddlebrook Info: Good clearance vehicles can now drive nearly 1.5 miles up from the lower trailhead to a point just prior to entering the National Forest. There are a couple of pull-offs in the area. This leaves you a mile below the (new) upper trailhead.
4/22/2010 Posted On: 4/22/2010 By: BillMiddlebrook Info: Good clearance vehicles can now drive about 3/4mile above the low 2WD trailhead before reaching snow. After that there‘s still plenty of snow on the road.
4/10/2010 Posted On: 4/11/2010 By: emcee smith Info: Road was still snowpacked above the 121 intersection, but looks to be melting fast. I suspect somebody with 4wd (and possibly chains or straps to get out when it is soft) could make it to the lower parking area (about 1/4 mile further). There were tire tracks for about a mile up the road, but I think they had to come in and out in the morning when the road was frozen. Still postholed up to my knees in places up to the Rainbow Trail, so I suspect it will be a while before vehicles can get up very high.
3/27/2010 Posted On: 3/27/2010 By: BillMiddlebrook Info: Trailhead directions (above) have been updated to reflect the new trailhead location.
3/26/2010 Posted On: 3/26/2010 By: Alan Ellis Info: Talked to the ranger in Westcliffe today. There is now a permanent closure of South Colony road at 2.6 miles past the lower TH/parking lot (approximately one-half mile past the Rainbow Trail marker). At the closure is a new gate and parking for about 30 vehicles. They also have new designated campsites along the road and are in the process of constructing designated campsites in the basin. The ranger also told me today that eventually, there will be a permit/fee system to access the South Colony area, but that is several years away.

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