6/6/2025 Posted On: 6/7/2025 By: Cuttlefishette Info: Creek's running high! Hiked up 6/6. Road actually looks to be in really good shape, considering all the rain, but both creek crossings are pretty gnarly right now. One little spot of old snow, but nothing to write home about. Mud's a little rough on the way down though. Saw the same trucks and jeeps at the TH that always make it. Creek's another story. At the first crossing (~2mi), you're going straight against the current for maybe 40 feet before you hit the main creek, which gets to be about knee deep towards the left side and looked even deeper to the right. Rocks aren't too slippery or sharp if you want to barefoot it (I did, no regrets, actually not that cold) but no way to boot across without getting soaked. At the second crossing, there're a couple navigable logs a few yards upstream of the road; they're a little PG-13 when dry, but get slippery enough in the rain that I'd bump them up to an R. Campsites up top were mostly dry and mostly empty on a Friday afternoon, I recommend the little meadow at around 3.7mi. A little farther from the TH than other options, but way better views. Overall, if you're walking the creek road this season, I'd bring a towel, trekking poles, and a change of socks. | 3 |
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2/10/2025 Posted On: 3/31/2025 By: jacolc Info: CR20 dry in 99%. Winter gated 0.3m above intersection with 4WD, 5miles from LakeC. 4WD section above CR20 well packed by skiers, snowshoers and scouts (they bivi 0.6m below upper TH). No sign of snowmobiles. | ||||
10/16/2024 Posted On: 10/16/2024 By: indyjmatt33 Info: Made it to the top in a stock 4Runner. Can honestly say this is the worst road I've driven on. Very narrow, with very sharp turns up the switchbacks. Myself, or others, had to backup several times to allow others to share the 1 lane road. Got a few pinstripes from how narrow the road is. I tapped my skid plate twice going down--likely user fault, but still difficult. Tons of side-by-sides and ATVs. Only other cars we saw were another 4Runner, Bronco, and a Jeep. | ||||
9/16/2024 Posted On: 9/16/2024 By: DrewJHartmann Info: Pretty gnarly drive; but fun and doable if you are prepared & capable! I made it to the upper trailhead in my stock Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk; I had a spotter which was tremendously helpful and didn't have any issues getting up there. Only thing is, there are very few places to pull off, so traffic can be a bit sketchy. Overall, this road is doable with 4wd, off-road experience, and high clearance; I would highly suggest having a spotter as well for when it gets tight or traffic arrives. | 2 |
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9/15/2024 Posted On: 9/16/2024 By: ColoNativeGal Info: Didn't think it was as bad as what I had read. Definitely need a good 4w vehicle with good clearance. Road is narrow and S curve is very tight. Would not recommend for full size truck, but did see stock F150, Tacoma, 4Runner, Jeep and I think a Tundra at the upper TH. We made it no issue in a Jeep Gladiator with 4" lift. | ||||
8/17/2024 Posted On: 8/23/2024 By: mountainero Info: Drove a 2DR JK Rubicon on metric 33's to the TH, took about 30 minutes both ways. Hard to measure the difficulty given the capability of my vehicle, but in my opinion, as long as you've got some good tires (aired down) and decent clearance you'd be fine. I thought the worst part was the off camber section at ~3 miles. It's slow, but nothing crazy and faster than walking. Saw a one ton dodge and a suburban at the TH. | 1 |
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7/20/2024 Posted On: 7/23/2024 By: djrey002 Info: This road is technically Subaru-able but don't think I would do it again. I made it to the top in a stock Subaru Forester Wilderness (~9.2 inch clearance) but would think you would want to have a Wilderness or modified Subaru to even attempt it. I did air down the tires to ~20 PSI, picked lines very carefully, and still scraped the skid plate in a few spots. It took about 45 minutes each way and I only had to pass a few vehicles on the way down. Creek crossings were not an issue. I was the only Subaru at the upper TH and other vehicles that I saw at the top included Tacomas, FJ's, Tundras, Wranglers, and somehow a Jeep Liberty and a Suburban. | 1 |
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7/19/2024 Posted On: 7/19/2024 By: F5fourteeners Info: Definitely a 4x4 road above the 2-wheel trail head. 4-wheel low, take your time, and pick your line. I wheeled a full sized Tundra up there, no problem. 2 water crossings, and couple of hair pin turns that required a 3-point turn, but totally manageable. Not many places to pass opposite traffic, but its workable. Note: The high trail head toilet is still not open. Appears that maybe its permanently closed. Only about half of the camp sites were occupied on a Friday morning. | 1 |
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7/17/2024 Posted On: 7/18/2024 By: ScottHendrick Info: This is a challenging four miles. We needed 45 minutes in our 2022 Tacoma. Had to drop into L4 twice, including the second stream crossing. Encountered no vehicles driving in on Wednesday night. | 1 |
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7/4/2024 Posted On: 7/6/2024 By: IHikeLikeAGirl Info: Made it to the top in a Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk, ~8.5" clearance. The only issue I had was coming out of the 2nd creek crossing. Steepish bank on exit, then sharp left, steep, rocky switchback left. I couldn't see the line to take ahead of time and didn't have enough speed. Spun tires. Should have gotten out and viewed how to back up and get a better run at it (there's a pull out there). Instead I put in 4 low, spun the tires a bit more and got thru it. I did not hit bottom once (up or down). As the previous posters have said: go slow, pick your line, and know your vehicle's limits. This is not a road for people inexperienced on 4wd roads FYI: There was a Subie Forester up there. | 1 |
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6/30/2024 Posted On: 7/1/2024 By: chrislwillers Info: Made it to the top relatively easily in a stock Tacoma. After a lot of rain on Saturday night, both creek crossings were wider, but not necessarily deeper. One heads up for anyone wanting to camp. The pit toilet is boarded shut. | 1 |
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6/29/2024 Posted On: 6/29/2024 By: PJ88 Info: Road to the 2wd should be easy for most vehicles. Walked the 4wd road so can't speak to driving it, but it did not seem too bad for Colorado 4wd. Posted pictures of the creek crossings for reference. | 2 |
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6/23/2024 Posted On: 6/25/2024 By: mountainmanAJ Info: This road is definitely a 4x4 trail. The 2 creek crossings are pretty blown out and about 1ft deep, probably will get better as the snow finishes melting. If you have a good clearance vehicle with 4x4 and know how to use it you can definitely get to the trailhead without issue. I made it in a 98 tacoma with plenty of ground clearance, but there was a rav-4 and a subaru up there. Know what you are getting yourself into on this road. IT IS ROUGH, and it gets worse as you get up. There are some features that require good line choice or you will cause damage to your vehicle. Other than that it was a super fun trail to drive. | ||||
11/12/2023 Posted On: 11/13/2023 By: kriddle Info: I was able to make it up to the 4wd trailhead on 11/12 in a slightly modified F150 (2" lift & 33" tires). The road itself wasn't a problem but there is a significant amount of smooth, slick ice and we needed to put on tire chains to make it. The ice was intermittent above ~10,400 ft. We ascended the night before in the dark so these photos are from the descent the following day. It might be possible to make it with ample use of traction boards and a shovel to cover the ice with dirt/snow but I wouldn't attempt it without chains at this point. | 2 |
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10/7/2023 Posted On: 10/7/2023 By: brech Info: Road is still clear of snow. I drove it with a high clearance 3/4 ton truck. A number of trucks, jeeps and larger subs. This road is rated 4 out of 6 for good reason |
