Last Dollar Road

Open for the season

Updated rating is spot on for section between waypoints 8 and 9. Rains this summer have made ruts deeper in this section and to a lesser degree on the north side as well. Still nothing a stock truck with low range shouldn’t be able to handle. Dry the day we ran it, but I can see where wet roads make a big difference.

Did this trail on 9/7/22 easy trail. Greats views. Did it from Ridgeway to Telluride, not many others on road.

Took Last Dollar Road from Ridgeway to Telluride looking for a place to camp and found I really enjoyed this trail. Found a great campsite at 10-miles across from the Alder Creek Trail turnoff. Road is rutted but otherwise this is a beautiful and easy trail.

Beautiful drive! Easy all the way through although the spot after check point 8 is to be taken seriously. It's fairly short though and you're rewarded with a beautiful little Alpine Valley. Highly recommended.

Trail is now open for the season per Ouray Road and Bridge.

Great road. Most of the road is easy. Beautiful views. Some parts of the road goes through tunnels of aspen trees that I bet is extremely beautiful in the fall.

Fantastic road! From Telluride it's a nice country road, pretty tame until you get to the big turnout which is a nice camp spot. From there you enter USFS land and the road gets a lot rougher! Nothing a stock high clearance SUV can't handle though. The other end of the road outside the USFS land is much easier and more great views, tons of wildflowers. About 2 hours and a must do if you're in the area.

Nothing that hasn't been said before - super easy trail with amazing views!

2018 Subaru Crosstrek 1.5" Lift 235/75R15 Toyo AT2 Beautiful trail that was not difficult at all. There are a lot of beautiful views and plenty of camp spots along the way. We did this trail on our way from Telluride to Ouray.

This was a really nice trail to take a scenic route from Telluride to Ridgway. Beautiful views all along the trail, and we drove it during peak aspen colors which made it even more enjoyable.

Ran the trail from Telluride to Hwy 145, then on to Ridgway. Interesting to see where scenes from True Grit were filmed. Road is in good condition, really don't need 4wd except for a couple of places where it makes it a bit easier to take the bumps. Lots of campers, probably hunters, in the area. weather was fantastic for trail running.

Ran this road from the Ridgeway side to Telluride. Loved all the huge Aspen groves and views. We are hoping to make it back out in a few weeks when the leaves turn. Best highlight of the trip was passing an old van with a few young guys in it with a dog running behind them. We flagged them down and asked about the dog and the driver said "Yeah, we know She refused to get in this morning! She'll run after us until she gets tired". Sure, ok!!

Took this route on the way home from Ouray pulling my trailer (Easy Peasy). It was awesome to see the road is in great shape, but not as awesome to see so many abandoned backpack tents set up on the sides. There were a great number of campers out at waypoints 5 & 6. I did this from Ridgeway to Telluride (So backward from the trail guide). Made the obligatory "Aspen Tunnel" stop for a picture. I watched lear jets taking off from the Telluride airport at a lower elevation than I was watching them from!. I'm a little surprised that there's not a waypoint for the "Ross Ranch" from True Grit, which has been undergoing restoration. But maybe that is not on what is considered the official "Last Dollar Road".

As advertised, great views, easy wheeling, lots of camping. However, the camping is CROWDED right now. Hit the north end for less crowding.

Great trail to find some last minute camping. The camp spot at waypoint 5 was very busy but we found a camp spot just between 5/6 in the trees. It was on the road but very quiet place with cell service close to town.

Beautiful trail! We ran it from Ridgway to Telluride. I ran it in 2 WD until we started to descend. There were a few folks camping and ran into a little traffic. This was my first pass in Colorado. I was definitely impressed.

Beautiful easy trail starting an extended weekend into the San Juans....

We Explore Last Dollar Road near Telluride, CO

Ran this trail in reverse (as compared to this guide), from Ridgway to Telluride. Spotty sprinkles and no issues with the road, even though there is a warning sign regarding "4x4 and good tires" requirement for the road condition when exposed to rain. For our trip, previous weather had, evidently, done a number on the South side of the mountain, between Waypoints 10, 9 & 8. A prior storm had soaked that area. We did not anticipate the soaking on that side and did not make an inspection before moving on. Once we began our descent, heading toward Telluride from the Alder Creek Trailhead parking area (Waypoint 10), we reached a "point of no return." The mud became so slick that there was nothing left to do but to try and navigate the slope, in 4-Low, lockers engaged and 1st gear only. Meeting another vehicle on this slope, under these conditions would be truly problematic. The ruts tossed us left and right, at their whim, as the rear end wanted to fishtail. I made every effort to stay with the crown of the road (as much as there is, of a crown) and avoid the hillside slop. There is nothing on this slope to which you can anchor for self-recovery as it is treeless for a significant stretch. A land anchor or some type of recovery boards would be necessary, should you find yourself buried in the mud on this slope. Other than this section (between Waypoints 10, 9 & 8), our trip over Last Dollar Road was wonderful and presented spectacular views. Warning: As you should with any hiking endeavor, pay attention to the weather and pay attention to the road signs for traveling this road. Any significant rainfall can make portions of this road an extreme hazard. Some literature uses the word "impassable" and I fully believe that would be the case at various times during the monsoon season.

Ran Last Dollar from Telluride towards Ridgway in a stock JKU. We were looking for a more interesting and scenic way back to Ridgway and Last Dollar did not disappoint. The trail was bone dry and in good shape. Some sections of the ascent the road was rutted pretty good. After a heavy rain the road would be extremely muddy. Definitely observe the warning sign and don't run it without 4WD and good tires. The views were amazing the whole way. The wildflowers were in bloom and entire hillsides were covered in purples and yellows. Glad we chose the road less travelled.

Last Dollar Road is open from Hwy 62 down to Telluride. Most of the trail was dry and it was easy to navigate though higher clearance and 4x4 would be recommended. If the area were to get any rain then the road would be much more difficult to travel due to muddy conditions. There's lots of scenic beauty through out the road.

County announced that Last Dollar is closed as of 12/4.

Great dirt route from Ridgeway to Telluride. Strangely enough, the aspens on the north side are not yet changing much, but on the south side, they are spectacular. Incredible views along this trail! It's super easy and we saw a lot of traffic... everything from Audi sedans to pickup trucks and Jeeps. Great trail for Aspen viewing!

Great trail, very easy in good weather for 2WD which I was driving. I suggest going south from Ridgway if you can. It is a spectacular view going down into Telluride.

Trail was dry except at creek crossings made it all the way thru in a 2wd RAV4 had a good time and scared wife at the same time it's her car lol

The trail is now passable.