Lake Como (Blanca Pk) Trailhead

Posted On: 6/2/2026 By: paigemoney
Info: Made it to the 10,200’ parking area in a stock Jeep Wrangler Moab. I aired down my tires and used 4WD low. The drive felt pretty casual up to the 9,900’ pullout, where there’s room for about three vehicles. The difficulty increases substantially beyond that point. Even with the short wheelbase of the Wrangler, I had to back up on two switchbacks to make the tight turns on the way up. I had no issues picking lines during the ascent, but the descent was noticeably more challenging. On the way down, I picked a poor line on the first switchback and had to back out of it. Having a spotter there was extremely helpful. I only scraped lightly in one other spot. Moral of the story: park at 9,900’ and don’t create unnecessary stress for yourself over 300 vertical feet.

Posted On: 5/30/2026 By: WinterisClimbing
Info: Road is snow free in its entirety. Drove my stock 2012 outback about .5 miles from the national forest boundary. No concerning potholes or divots that you'd need special tires for to the point I parked, it's just a question of clearance in my opinion. The rocks are pretty loose and fluid. There was a brave stock or lightly modified SUV that made it to the switchback at 9400 but I agree with the beta for the most part, SUVs shouldn't expect to make it above the NF boundary.

Posted On: 4/26/2026 By: kwagner27
Info: Road is snow free up to 10k+ with only a few patches to the lake.

Posted On: 3/21/2026 By: the_hare
Info: Got my Outback w regular all seasons to about 8500ft before encountering a long stretch of alternating potholes in the stony roadbed that I couldn't get traction on to cross. A much more capable truck also had problems with it and turned back. Otherwise I found the drive up to be kinda fun, the stones didn't feel as bumpy as I expected and felt kinda liquid instead.

I was nervous about break-ins until I learned from other forum members that the perp had been arrested

Posted On: 12/31/2025 By: daway8
Info: Got my 4Runner to the typical 9,850ft switchback I use in summer. No snow worth mentioning until the final straightaway right before the 9,850ft switchback. That whole section had snow and ice with some brief clumps of snow at least a foot or two deep. Previous tire tracks stopped partway up, indicating the last person didn't make it but I was already committed by the time I saw that so just stayed on the gas and busted up to the switchback. Should be drivable now unless melt and freeze cycles makes it impassable. If so, some very good pulloffs around 9,700ft and for a little ways above. Past the 9,850ft switchback it gets ugly quick for vehicles - probably not viable to drive much higher until springtime...

Posted On: 10/25/2025 By: Violet
Info: We drove our Rubicon ( high clearance) up to 9500 ft before the trail turned snow and ice ( right before mud holes). Then we hiked all the way to the lake como through 4-6 inches snow all the way there without spikes ( gaiters needed). The lake started to freeze. The trail is difficult without being able to see all the rocks under the snow, but not that slippery because the snow was fresh. It was nice to have the trail all to ourselves.

Posted On: 10/22/2025 By: ryanchrys
Info: this road is the worst, right from the very start. I have an Xterra Pro4X stock but with off-road mud tires and I was bouncing in 4Low and spitting rocks, bashed my undercarriage and broke my mud guards and that was just to get to 9,000 feet. It took well over an hour to do that because the road is like that from the very bottom. There are places to pull off most off the way, so you can go as far as you feel. but all terrain tires aren't going to work on this road, you need off-road tires and experience. For stock 4x4's with regular tires, be prepared to not get far. I recommend hiking into Lake Como and camping there for the night then doing the hike in the morning. Como has lots of awesome tent spots.

Posted On: 9/29/2025 By: Buckie06
Info: Made it to 10,260' with a Nissan Xterra Pro4x with off road tires, and aired down tires. Was pretty casual with a spotter

Posted On: 9/15/2025 By: aprb
Info: Saw Killian Jornet at about 18:30 near 10k. Looked like he had somewhere to be.

Posted On: 9/15/2025 By: Boludo
Info: Made it up to the 10,200 camping spot with a stock 2020 Ford Ranger FX4. I’m not the most experienced off-road driver, so I did scrape the bottom of my side rails a few times (but hey, that’s what trucks are for!). Like others have mentioned, the toughest sections are around 8,800–8,900 ft and again near 10,100–10,200 ft. The rest of the road isn’t bad at all.

Funny note: on the way down, near 8,600 ft, I came across a red Tundra with out-of-state plates completely blocking the road. They were spinning their wheels aimlessly, stuck sideways across the trail. I suggested turning on the rear diff lock, but they said they didn’t even have 4WD. Luckily, some rock crawlers with winches showed up and pulled them out—otherwise we could’ve been waiting there for hours. Worth noting: if your Toyota has the “TSS Off Road” package, it’s just cosmetic, not the real deal.

Posted On: 7/28/2025 By: Azheng418
Info: Made it up to 10.6k (first jaws) in a stock Tacoma. Hardest sections up to 10.6k imo is between 8.8k and 8.9k and between 9.9k and 10k. Everything else up to the first jaws can be done in 2wd.

It’s fairly narrow and loose and crappy through 8.8k to 8.9k. There’s a few bigger rocks between 9.9k and 10k. I wouldn’t dare attempt any of the jaws without a purpose built crawler.

If you have good AT tires, good clearance, you shouldn’t have an issue getting up to the first jaws. The road is seriously bumpy and you need to drive slow but other than that, it’s just a long slog of a road.

Posted On: 7/28/2025 By: Azheng418
Info: Made it up to 10.6k (first jaws) in a stock Tacoma. Hardest sections up to 10.6k imo is between 8.8k and 8.9k and between 9.9k and 10k. Everything else up to the first jaws can be done in 2wd.

It’s fairly narrow and loose and crappy through 8.8k to 8.9k. There’s a few bigger rocks between 9.9k and 10k. I wouldn’t dare attempt any of the jaws without a purpose built crawler.

If you have good AT tires, good clearance, you shouldn’t have an issue getting up to the first jaws. The road is seriously bumpy and you need to drive slow but other than that, it’s just a long slog of a road.

Posted On: 7/6/2025 By: MaryinColorado
Info: "The Lake Como road is hideous." - Bill Middlebrook

Facts. 😂

Drove my stock 4Runner to 10,100. I do off-roading for fun, so I actually somewhat enjoyed the drive up (minus the absurd amount of scratches from trees and shrubbery along the road). The narrowness is tricky, so mental note of all reasonable passing spots is good idea throughout. This is not an "uphill gets right of way" road, this is a "whoever can, should" road. I was able to back down a switch back to let a Tundra pass, and later on had to angle sharply into a side slope to let three side-by-sides pass (that were tethered together, for some reason).

Right at 10,100 is enough room for three vehicles if all park thoughtfully. When I got back, there was a 4th parked there that I think tried to leave good room, but anybody descending the craptacular hill above it deserves as much room as possible near the bottom to pick a good line. So highly recommend not trying to be a 4th vehicle there. There are a couple decent pull-outs prior to 10,100 that are a good option if 10,100 is taken.

And yes, the hill between 10,100 and the 10,200 parking option is 100% craptacular. No room for error in my stock 4Runner, and right out of the gate attempting it I was super grateful for my rock rails. Decided not to risk it.

4x4 power and clearance are a must, and I'm going to say especially for the descent. Just as important: skills. I was also really glad to have all my recovery gear along and the ability to air up/down. I ended up not, but I think it's ideal, and I likely will next time.

The road lives up to the hype, that's for sure!

Posted On: 6/24/2025 By: EH03
Info: Multiple car break-ins:

On 6/19/2025 between 0700-1300 my car was broken into at 8,800 just above the recommended parking. Another car was broken into in the lower lots below 8,000. Both were broken into through the windows (Passenger and Driver for mine, back passenger on the other). Food, climbing ropes, and winter jacket taken. Seemed from the tampering (center console and gas cap) that they were searching for car keys. Take caution parking down low, seems like your pretty solid past the Jaws. Also found a right ear bud along the trail if your missing one.

Posted On: 3/30/2025 By: Cruiser
Info: Road is clear of snow to 10k then a little patch at a switchback before it clears up again to the camping/parking spot at 10.2k. There's a decent sized pine (14-16") across the trail about 1/4m above the parking area and then the road is snow covered between jaws 1 & 2. After jaws 2 the road has intermittent snow depending on aspect up to the lake. It's low tide in the Sangres but it's still going to be a while before you can drive to the lake. I didn't use any traction above the parking area until I got to the lake. Snow is not continuous enough to ski or skin until just below the lake.