Posted By: pucmw11 Info: This trailhead is no longer a valid option to summit Mt. Lincoln by way of the East Slopes route. There is signage at Crest Dr on the way in indicating that Kite Lake TH is the only option, but nothing preventing taking the road all the way up to the Quartzville parking site. However the end of the 4WD road as of 9/19/2021 is super rutted at the end causing traction issues with good tires and a 6" lift. Got past it on the right side of the ruts and parked. No trail head signage preventing starting the climb but there is a barricade across the trail at 13,070ft preventing further ascension of Mt. Lincoln. At present with Kite Lake TH closed, the two primary routes up are off limits. Consider seeking very atypical routes for Lincoln/Democrat bagging. | ||||
Posted By: MWally8 Info: This is a rugged AWD, high clearance road about 1/2-mile long to the TH. Do NOT drive this if you dont have BOTH AWD AND HIGH CLEARANCE! TH impassable the last 200 feet due to washout & deep ruts from snowmelt runoff. I parked in the only place you really can park just right before that, on a tiny little slope on the right. Do not park anywhere else along the road. Do not attempt to drive over the mud & washout area to the TH. | ||||
Posted By: gregpeak Info: The 4WD trailhead is still not accessible due to many snow banks on the road. The main road (Roberts Road) is clear to the turnoff to the 4WD trailhead. It’s about 1/2 mile walk to the trailhead from where the road is blocked with snow. | ||||
Posted By: TheseThousandHills Info: Mostly melted out, but still some significant drifts on the road that we did not try to pass | ||||
Posted By: Tim Edinger Info: (a.k.a. Roberts Road) The Jeep Trail (Crest Road) is currently impassable due to snow. There are deep drifts that won’t melt out for the better part of a month I suspect. The good news is that the trail is excellent for skinning and skiing. The bad news is that no vehicle will be getting up to the trailhead proper for quite some time. I called Park County Roads & Bridges to confirm that I could park on Roberts Road so long as I did not block the right of way. I parked at a wide area of the shoulder literally just at Quartzville Creek where Roberts Road and Quartzville Road intersect. I had no problem with neighbor or authorities regarding my parking. I am not recommending this course of action - I am simply stating this is what I did. | ||||
Posted By: shettelbus Info: Last 1/2 mile to the trailhead on Crest Drive is rough and deeply rutted / washed out in places but navigable with a CR-V type vehicle and careful tire placement. | ||||
Posted By: Nelson Info: You can easily drive to Crest Lane. From there you can go .25 miles before the snow turns you around. I would guess another week or two to get to the summer TH. I would suggest a small change to the directions. At 2.2 miles you have to make a hard left to get on Quartzville road. | ||||
Posted By: saustin125 Info: The forrest road (Crest Drive) has not been plowed and is still not assessable. I searched for a good place to park to hike the east slopes of Lincoln and could not find any. I had to head Kite Lake TH which is about 15 mins away. | ||||
Posted By: 14erFred Info: Drove a 4WD Ford Expedition from Roberts Road up Crest Drive to the Quartzville trailhead on 08/08/16. There were several heavily rutted sections with loose rock, but the track was passable. It would be a much tougher drive if the road were wet. Most of Crest Drive is wide enough for only a single vehicle, and the only viable spots to park along the road are either at the first sharp switchback to the west or at the top of the hill at the Quartzville trailhead (11,650 ft.). | ||||
Posted By: BillMiddlebrook Info: Still snowed-in from the start of the main road, so there is no place to park. The only good option is to park at the Moose Creek "trailhead," at the junction of the Quartzville and Zinc roads. It will be a few weeks before the Quartzville trailhead is available. | ||||
Posted By: akafuzzjones Info: The final half mile to the trailhead an absolute mess. The site shows it as an "Easy 4WD" but that isn‘t current. While I was able to (barely) navigate it in a Hyndai Santa Fe, there are 4-6 spots that would swallow up a 2WD so please don‘t think you might be able to make it. | ||||
Posted By: Alan Ellis Info: Road was clear until the forest road turnoff. Parking is available at the Zinc Road intersection, then hike up the dirt road about a half mile to the forest road turnoff. | ||||
Posted By: Nelson Info: Intermittent snow of 1-2 inches after 2.2 miles. Should be no problem for just about any vehicle. | ||||
Posted By: cyrrus Info: Quartzville plowed to the forest road. 1-2 feet of snow throughout forest road. Didn‘t want to chance getting my car stuck by myself so didn‘t chance it. | ||||
Posted By: rpdawes Info: On September 10, I went up to Crest Drive where a 4WD road to Quartzville Trailhead began. I have my Jeep Grand Cherokee with a high clearance. I did drive it up about 100 feet and decided to drive in reverse to Quartzville Road to play it safe. I found a vacant pulloff to park the vehicle along the road about 1/2 mile from the junction. Then I took a walk to Quartzville TH and inspected the condition of the 4WD road. The road (Crest Drive) did not look bad until about 200 feet from the TH where there was a total washout. So I advise anybody not to try the road with any vehicle except a modified 4WD vehicle. I am glad that I did not risk my Jeep all the way to the washout. Otherwise, it would take me a long time to drive in reverse over 1/2 mile since there is no pulloff along that road. Without any future improvement to the washout, I believe that no vehicle can make it to the TH in 2 or 3 years. I suggest that the currently easy 4WD road be upgraded to Rating #5, rough 4WD. | ||||
Posted By: pdenman33 Info: Trail is pretty blown out right at treeline. Creek cuts right through the road, leaving it only passable by (I would imagine) capable lifted trucks with lots of clearance. Yawning sections of the road are washed out. Probably would have tried to continue on if I had not been alone | ||||
Posted By: CO Native Info: Drove all the way to the Quarzville site. Snow drifts are out of the way now. We even were able to drive a short ways past. The road is very washed out just below Quartzville though, making the road a bit rougher than Bill currently has it rated. It is not an easy 4wd right now. | ||||
Posted By: Nelson Info: The 4wd road is thoroughly blocked in several places. I would guess 2-3 weeks before it is passable. I parked at the 3.5 mile parking spot adding an extra half mile and a couple of hundred vertical. Nelson | ||||
Posted By: alanecharlesworth Info: The 0.5 mile jeep road was barely doable in my Forester. The CFI could hire some road machinery to smooth out this road, so that some use of Kite Lake TH could move here | ||||
Posted By: Unknown Info: The 1/2 mile of 4-wheel drive trail before the flat area mentioned in the route description is passable with any 4x4 but I would not attempt this in a car as there are many deep ruts in the road from water runoff, some of which can be avoided by straddling them or going around, but some just need to be crossed. | ||||
Posted By: jefwerner Info: I found this TH to be quite confusing as there is no signage for parking or a TH. Only after the sun came up and we gained some elevation were we able to understand. After turning onto Crest Drive and going 0.5 miles, there are two options: a parking area on the right and following the road to the left. If you stay on the road, it splits just after turning onto it with a rough section to the left and a less rough section to the right. You can go either way, as they join back up. We took the smoother section and followed the road for another mile from the parking area and slept on the side of the road. As we climbed up the road in the AM, we went up into the amphitheater and started switchbacking up the shoulder of Lincoln. Just before taking the ridge, there is a sign and chain across the road. As we were descending, we saw a Jeep that had driven all the way up to that point. I would be wary of driving that far, not because of difficulty on the road, a regular 4x4 can make the climb, but because of the convoluted patchwork of private and public property. | ||||
Posted By: FatBaxter Info: Plowed and easy drive to Crest Drive. Deep snow at Crest Drive turnoff is undrivable. Many No-Parking and Your Car Will Be Towed signs at this junction caused us to turn around and go to Kite Lake. | ||||
Posted By: jimmtman Info: Quartzille road has some patchy ice but driveable in 2WD. The jeep road (Crest drive) has deep snow and 4WD would be required. The jeep road has some tire tracks but I did not try to drive up the 1/2 mile to the TH. | ||||
Posted By: alanecharlesworth Info: The 0.5 miles of jeep road leading to the parking area was passable with care in a Subaru Forester. There was one gully that looked chancy, but it was OK. |
