Medano Pass

Great easy trail with lots of awesome camping spots. Water was low and only made it about half way up my tires on the deepest crossing. The air up station at the end was nice, much faster than I thought it would be. Ran the trail from east to west. Not sure why the rating is a four as I would call it a low end three.

Took the pass into the park. Water is pretty low, with only one significant water crossing. Pass was very foggy so unfortunately no cool views, it did create a neat misty atmosphere. The switchbacks just before WP 3 were very muddy and could have been concerning on the way down, but we were fortunate to avoid traffic there. There is also significant rutting all along the trail, but especially as you start to level out into the park. Shouldn't be any issue, but will likely continue to get worse. With all the rain, the trail is very overgrown. You can get a full size through, but you'll definitely earn some stripes.

This is a fun trail with lots of camping spots. We went eastbound from the National Park and found that the last campsite before Medano Pass was the nicest and least buggy. However, I would say that the rating of this trail needs to be reevaluated because it seems to have deteriorated somewhat since the time that the official assessment was last completed. We experienced deep mud ruts and pits in the trail as you approach Medano pass and pinstriping in the lower elevations where the brush has overgrown.

Ran it July 19-20 in a stock Gladiator rubi, camped on the spur to the Medano Lake trailhead. County road on the eastern approach through private property was rutted from earlier mud conditions. Once inside the public land a crew was working on the east side, repairing water bars and smoothing the road. On the west side water levels low and up to the hubs. Ran about 18 psi, and no problems with the sandy area. Kudos to NPS for their air station, it is wicked fast. No need to bother with your onboard air.

Ran the pass last week and had super great time! We spent June 7-10 camping in the dispersed sites. We watched beavers and deer and ducks and ducklings and even 2 bears wandering through. We spent time driving the road down the dunes to play in the creek and back to camp… awesome place! We love it.

Beautiful, easy, fun quick pass into the Great Sand Dunes with stellar camping spots. Highest water crossing came maybe 3/4 of the way up the wheel.

My first outing on a real adventure like this. We went East to West in a 2017 4runner OR, had no problems getting up or down, all stock (except AT tires). Did run into a small bit of trouble at one point due to very soft dirt and some ruts. Just had to back up and choose a different line. Water was deep, one crossing had the water come up to the body of my whip. All in all, lots of fun and surprisingly little traffic.

2019 4runner TRD Off-Road, with AT tires. The trail is open and fairly easy in a stock high-clearance SUV. One water crossing was deep (got some water partially over the hood). Just had to keep the momentum going through the crossing. A group of 4 vehicles; 2 of which got stranded (F150 had to be winched, Jeep Compass had a complete electrical failure) had to be rescued, lucky for them someone else had a winch.

Announced as fully OPEN by the National Park Service.

Excellent views, fun trail, cold weather! Closed at the fourth water crossing at about 6.5 miles from the "point of no return" so we camped at a completely empty primitive campsite because the one we had reserved at the Pinon Flats campground looked too busy to enjoy. Cold night! Trail was pretty dry. Website said air station was not open but it was so didn't have to break out our pump...

Medano was open with clear skies...If I had more time, would have taken it all the way through. Sand wasn't too bad. Definitely will be going back to 100% finish this trail! Beautiful views, just be sure to air down. There is an air up station at Sand Dunes National Park if you don't have onboard air.

Closed for the season per the National Park Service.

One last run before Medano closed for the year. The trail was snowy on the east side but clear and dry on the west side. We had to do a little ice breaking to get through the water crossings as we were the first ones through that day.

Tried running on 10/31/20. We started at highway 69 towards the pass and Sand Dunes park. About 1/2 mile in from HWY 69 was hub deep mud. Continued on for another mile and no change in conditions. We were breaking the "Neve wheel alone" rule and feared getting stuck in nasty must. Turned around.

Ran the trail East to West. Light trail traffic until we got down to the picnic area just east of Castle Creek Then it was a bit more crowded. Water crossings were fun, not too deep. The sand pit was easily enough done as long as you kept momentum. Most of the trees had dropped their leaves but there were a few pockets left to give some color. Many large trees have blown down and the NPS has cleared most of them but there were one or two that were still hanging into the roadway. We decided that next year we will do the trail again only slightly earlier in the "leaf-peeping" season.

Gorgeous trail!!! I went during prime "leaf peeping" so the trail was very busy, but (mostly) everyone was very considerate of others on the trail. No problems at all along the trail, the water crossings and sand make it a fun trail!

Ran trail East to West, which appeared easier than going the opposite. The sand is tricky - 4wd and momentum needed. Helped a stuck truck at the sandiest area about 2-3 miles East from the main park entrance. Beautiful Aspen forest and fall colors. 9 creek crossings with the deepest at about a foot - none were an issue. Very interesting history regarding the explorer Zebulon Pike at the summit.

We ran the trail from Hwy 69 into the park. We camped at one of the dispersed camping spots for 2 nights and ran the trail up to the visitor's center and back to our campsite once. We headed out before light on 9/25. No issues, the trail was a little challenging up to the pass but nothing too difficult, just rocky. The trail after the pass was easier, but the first water crossing was somewhat deeper than the rest. The trail was dry during our visit. I can see that if things were wet the road from Hwy 69 towards the pass could be very slippery.

One of my favorite trails. Started at Highway 69 and drove through the back entrance into the National Park. A few rocky spots but nothing tricky. Very narrow in spots so be cautious around several blind turns. The trail was very busy once we entered the park but the are plenty of wide spots. The sand was soft but not an issue. Highly recommend Medano Pass!

This was an excellent trail and an especially nice way to see the dunes away from the main crowd! We ran it from the dunes to Westcliffe but I think I’d run it the other way next time. It would definitely be an interesting way to take visitors to the Great Sand Dunes!

Recently maintained. EASILY completed with a (100% STOCK) 2020 Tacoma TRD Off-Road (on stock Wranglers) Also drove 559.1 and although more difficult, it was easily completed with the "Loose Rock" setting. Definitely well worth it, and a great one for beginners. 5 Stars for the fun factor.

Jeep Compass Trailhawk 2018. A great trail! Ran it West to East. The trail was clear but narrow in some areas, you may brush against a few branches. Colorado pinstripes. :) Creek crossings are a bit more than a foot deep, with rocky bottoms. Sand near dunes on the western edge was soft and on the dry side. Stay in the tracks and commit. I did not air down, but it would be helpful if you did. We ran it on a Monday, and saw maybe a half dozen other vehicles. Very fun run, most likely will revisit the trail.

Drove east to west. Pretty easy trail any stock 4x4 can handle. Water crossings not an issue. Lots of camping along the way, with most not far off the trail. There is a free air station at the park entrance.

I ran the trail from East to West. There is some great dispersed camping at the beginning of the trail on the East side, and some nice camp spots throughout the trail were it has been marked. I ran the trail in about 3 hours from my camp site down into the park where I was able to air up my tires, The park has a free air station. I pulled my Smittybilt trailer down the trail with me with no issues at all. Great vies from the mountain top and all along the trail. I talked to a few people along the route that had some troubles the day before due to rain making the sandy terrain a problem, but the day after when I ran it there were no issues. Plenty of small creek crossings throughout the trail all with a hard bottom to them.

We drove from Texas to drive the pass into Great Sand Dunes NP. It did not disappoint! We went from East to west with no issues. People who say it can’t be done in a full size rig are wrong. I took my Titan pro-4x fully loaded with kids, camping gear and a Smittybilt XL rooftop tent up and over with zero issues. It is a bit tight in some spots for a wide rig, but we also saw a full size square body 80’s model suburban come through with an off-road trailer, with no issues. If you air down and keep moving through the sand, you shouldn’t have any issues. There are a couple of deep, loose sandy spots near the park. As long as you have good AT or MT tires and don’t stop, your good. I did pull a 3/4 Ton Chevy with street tires out of a deep spot he had no business being in.

Day trip with Colorado Land Cruisers (Toyota 4x4 club out of Colorado Springs @coloradolandcruisers_tlca) on Saturday, June 20th, 2020. We had a small group of four; two Tacoma's, an FJ40, and FZJZ80. Road is in good condition, we were surprised to find the "usually deep" water crossing (Waypoint 6) was empty and the creek barely trickling through here. We didn't investigate but suspect that a beaver dam (or natural log jam) downstream had been cleared. Anyway, water levels at all crossings was 12-14" depth. The parking area at the dunes was crowded, but worth the wait to wade in the cool water.

Fun trail. I ran east to west and camped out up around the pass and then hiked to Medano Lake in the morning. Good options for camping with several sites open on a Sunday. It gets narrow and rough in spots on the western decent towards the dunes. Countless water crossings but none caused any concern. The sand at the bottom near the dunes was getting very loose and dry and airing down is advised. There is a free air station on the western park exit that works well. Saw some tourists in a shiny range rover get bogged down in the sand and it did not look fun. While this trail is not all that technical, a short wheelbase or lift will make it easier.

Ran east to west. Clear all the way through. Narrow in spots so, if you’re much wider than a Jeep, Colorado pinstripes could be a possibility... if that’s a concern. Creek crossings are no more than 14” deep, solid bottoms. Sand near dunes is dry and soft but shouldn’t be an issue if you stay in tracks. We did not air down and had no problems. Surprisingly busy having only partially opened two days ago; most of the designated camping sites were occupied.

Listed as OPEN per the National Parks Service. COVID-19 closures are still in effect, Park Open. Campground, Visitor Center, & Backpacking in National Park Remain Closed

Still closed by the Park Service due to Covid. Slated to open June 3rd

Listed as CLOSED for the winter per The National Park Service.

Trail was wide open all water crossings are at low levels. Is narrow on west side in places but but enough room that no special equipment needed and had brush touch side of jeep once. Camping sites along route clean well laid out with bear boxes. Difficulty is easy route this time of year. West side signs recommend airing down for sandy stretch how ever we went thru without airing down just keep steady pace and dont stop in sandy areas. Recomend taking trail to left at top of pass, it is a dead end however the view is worth the detour. West side is rough and slow but otherwise easy and beautiful drive .

Traveled east to west, camped on the west side just inside the preserve, plenty of spots. Trail got tight going into the Park but very beautiful.

We camped a few miles in at one of the designated spots just outside the park. Very windy but otherwise a great place to camp. The sand in the park was soft but not too bad. All the creek crossings were 18” or less. The trail is very tight on the west side though. I put limb risers on and I was glad I did. Definitely got some pinstriping still.

Per the National Park Service: The road is now fully OPEN all the way over the pass. Sandy sections of the road beyond Point of No Return are somewhat soft. Some high-clearance 4WD vehicles will need to drop tire pressure to 20 psi to drive through the sand.

Update from the National Park Service as of 8/2/19: Lower portions of the road on the west side the range have extensive damage from recent flash flooding. As a result, 5.2 miles of the road are currently CLOSED between the entrance of the road near Piñon Flats Campground and the park/preserve boundary. Parking areas at Point of No Return, Sand Pit and Castle Creek are not currently accessible by vehicle. The road is still OPEN from State Highway 69 to Medano Pass and down the west side of the range to the park/preserve boundary. Crews are working to repair the road, but there is no estimated time for reopening.

Trail is washed out with 5'-6' deep trenches carved out from a flash flood on the 23rd by the "deep sand area". Multiple washed out areas with quick sand in the road. All river crossings are passable.

The road is now CLOSED at the western entrance of the road, and at Medano Pass. The road has extensive damage from heavy thunderstorms the night of July 23. Crews are working to repair the road, but there is no estimated time for reopening

Ran from the center of the park up northeast to highway 69. No problem in the sand at 15psi. Water crossings are free of debris and never went above floorboards. Thanks to those who cleared this trail out. It is a must-run for scenery and landscapes.

Reported as open 7/16/19: https://www.nps.gov/grsa/planyourvisit/medano-pass-road.htm

Still only open from the West to the 4th crossing. Fairly busy, even with it closed, about 50% of the campsites where in-use. First time on the trail, wish I had the time to explore from the east.

From the east. Soft sand and easy water crossings. Trail closed at six miles in. Buggy

Per the National Park Service: updated June 21, 2019 The road is currently open only to the 4th creek crossing, 6.4 miles from the western entrance of the road. Only 10 campsites in Medano Canyon are currently accessible by vehicle. The road has had extensive damage from very high runoff, and repairs are underway. On the east side of the range, the road is still closed at Muddy Creek. The road will not open all the way over the pass until repairs can be completed. Snowpack was over 160% of average, resulting in heavy runoff this year.

From the website, verified in person: The road is currently open only to the first creek crossing, 4.5 miles from the western entrance of the road. Campsites in Medano Canyon are NOT currently accessible by vehicle. Creek flow is now over 50 cubic feet per second (cfs), mandating closure of the road to prevent vehicles being washed downstream.

From the National Park Service Website as of today 6/1/19: The road is currently open up to the 4th Medano Creek crossing, 4.5 miles from the western entrance of the road. Ten campsites in Medano Canyon are accessible by vehicle. Higher up there are a few snowdrifts on the road, and the roadbed is washing out from high runoff. On the east side of the range, the road is still closed at Muddy Creek. Water crossings are about 20 inches (50cm) deep. Sometime in the next 1-2 weeks, the road may be closed before the first creek crossing due to dangerously high water. The road will not open all the way over the pass until after flow has peaked, sometime in June. Snowpack is over 160% of average.

Spoke to Park Officials today and while the pass is currently open, they will be closing in the next week or 2 due to dangerous high levels of snow melt.

Road conditions per the National Park Service as of 4/26/19: "The road is now open up to the 4th Medano Creek crossing, 4.5 miles from the western entrance of the road. 10 campsites in Medano Canyon are now accessible by vehicle. Beyond the 4th crossing there are snowdrifts, so the road is gated at that location. On the east side of the range, the road is still closed at Muddy Creek. The first creek crossing is currently 14-16 inches deep and slowly rising from snowmelt. Sandy sections of the road beyond Point of No Return are relatively moist from recent rain. Most high-clearance 4WD vehicles are making it through the sand without dropping tire pressure. If you drop air pressure, the air station at the beginning of the road is open to refill tires after returning from the sand." https://www.nps.gov/grsa/planyourvisit/medano-pass-road.htm

Per the National Park Service: Medano Pass road is open to the National park boundary only from the west. This is Waypoint #10 in the trail guide. This access is only from the west side within Great Sand Dunes National Park. The road remains closed from the Westcliffe side. https://www.nps.gov/grsa/planyourvisit/medano-pass-road.htm

Went to go run this pass to head to the Dunes but the trail was closed (probably for the best, as there was already lots of snow before the trail head). Ended up camping just before the trail head where there was a really wide area for multiple vehicles to camp. At the dune's it was gated off inside the park at the end-of-trail way point.

Trail was clear over the weekend, just a little mud and low water. One crossing was deep enough to come up to the running boards of my stock Ford Raptor. Trail is a little narrow for a Raptor or Super Duty on the west side, but passable with some pinstripes, everyone else should be good.

Drove the pass east to west, starting in Westcliffe as instructed. Do not follow the way that google maps tells you to access the trailhead, it was not reliable. If you follow the instructions on this site they were accurate to the tenth of a mile. Just reset the odometer and you're good to go. The water crossings were all manageable with my stock 2006 Honda Ridgeline. It sounds like they would be much more challenging in spring and early summer. My truck has 8.2 inches of ground clearance, so I was mindful of choosing my path throughout the primitive pass and did not have any major issues. There were 2 sections that I briefly walked before driving to identify all the obstacles and find the best path. I only rubbed the bottom twice, once on an initial incline and hairpin turn combination, and once on a rock towards the end of the trail, nothing of significance though. It seemed like the first couple miles were more challenging than I had expected with some intense climbs and tight curves. I started driving the road around 7pm so the sun was down and getting darker fast. I would not recommend running it in the dark since it added difficulty and made it less scenic. The sand portion at the end was a relief and fun to drive this time of year. Make sure to bring a tire pressure gauge with you to drop to 20psi and then there is a free air pump located after the first left when you get to the pavement. Note: Hunting season is in full swing during the fall months. When we arrived we talked to one of the rangers who emphasized how important it is to wear orange if you're doing any sort of hiking. Lots of the campsites were occupied with hunters but there were still plenty of dispersed spots to choose from.

This is one of my favorite trails out here yet. The beauty and the variety of challenges. Ran it east to west. Fun slightly challenging hill climb at the beginning, a few stream crossings and sand at the end. The stream crossings were all pretty low except the first from the east. It was up to my knees if you stayed in the track. It was absolutely beautiful slowly coming down off the pass into the valley towards the dunes. You will get some trail striping it gets tight at times. Amazing campsites all along the pass although once your in the sand dunes park its forest service camping. Still free but defined sites. Would totally recommend this trail. Great way to see the sand dunes for the first time. Ran it in a stock Grand Cherokee.

This is an awesome 4x4 road suitable for stock-height Jeeps and SUVs. We camped on the trailhead Tuesday evening and drove the pass early Wednesday morning while it was relatively cool. The deepest water crossing is at Waypoint 6, which was 15-16 inches deep on June 12th. We played on the dunes and Castle Creek for about an hour--very little traffic on a weekday.

A group of 4 mostly stock trucks from the Pueblo West Amateur Radio Club did this trek on a busy Saturday. It's a fun trip, but not nearly as scenic as before the 2010 wildland fire. Much of the trail passes through the burn scar so one is exposed not having the shade of yesteryear. The aspens are doing a good job of recovering, but the once beautiful forest is now just open bushy areas. Besides the advertised camping sites in the park, there are a few dispersed sites along the trail just outside the park on the NE side of the pass. There is also a big open camping area where the road transitions from a washboard dirt road to 4wd road and enters the forest. This is just east of the junction of 559 and 559.1

Medano Pass was announced open by the Park Service on May 1, and I ran it on May 6, starting at the Sand Dunes and ending at Highway 69. The road was in good shape and I found it a pretty easy trail. The sand was still a little wet from a snowstorm a few days earlier (all melted by the time I was there), and I had no problems in the sand with the 35s on my Jeep aired down to their normal offroad pressure of 15psi. The creek crossings were all pretty low due to extremely low snow pack (the Park Service website said 10% of normal). The furthest east one was the deepest, around hub deep. There were a sections with small rocks on the east side of the pass, but still easy, before the trail turned into a 2WD dirt road out to the highway. Fun trail with great views of the Sand Dunes. I'd love to go back when I have more time to explore some of the side trails and hiking options.

As of January 1st 2018, Medano Pass road is officially listed as closed for the season per the National Park Service. https://www.nps.gov/grsa/planyourvisit/medano-pass-road.htm#Current

The road to the gate is very rough, rain has really done a number on this road. The first water crossing was the widest and the highest. I would not advise with a stock vehicle. Fall colors just starting to come out, probably a week to early for the full effect. Trail was moderately busy more so as we got closer to the dunes and the camping areas. Overall a great trail and some fantastic scenery.

We ran the trail from the dunes headed east. Airing down for the sand is always advised. I dropped to about 20psi and had zero issues. I was a bit surprised there was such little activity on the trail for a Saturday in late August. We camped about a mile from the Sand Pit waypoint; it was nice and secluded and all marked site's had bear boxes and grated fire pits. In the evening we continued east out of camp and up the pass. All water crossings we encountered (save one) were pretty tame, slow flow, and no more than 12-14 inches deep. Then we came up on the last (first if you run east to west) water crossing, shown as waypoint 4 in this guide. This water crossing was much deeper and longer than any of the others. I waded out up to my thighs and wasn't even to the deepest part yet. Water at this crossing is still at least 2 feet deep. We turned back at this point and headed back to camp.

Started by airing down slightly as soon as we got off the Highway 69. The road up to the first gate is is rough shape there have been heavy rains recently. The road was damp which was a plus to help with dust control.. Between the lower gate and upper gate the road was damp that showed signs of heavy rain and some wash outs. There was puddles in the low spots of the trail. from the upper gate to the first water crossing was not bad at all . just some puddles in the trail from the heavy rains. The first water crossing was the deepest. Made it through with no issues at all. We had a few rigs in our group the got some water inside there vehicle. Our jeep had 4" lift with 33" tires and the water was just a little below the front bumper. Through the burn area there is a section that was washed out in the spring and the trail was re-routed. The burn area is probably the roughest part of the trail. There is another water crossing that had some logs in the trail that someone put there for traction. This could be a little tricky area for stock vehicles. From the last water crossing to the dunes was smooth sailing. By the time we headed back out the same way we came in the trail was dry and a lot of the puddles had dried up. The afternoon clouds started rolling in and we did have a hail but didn't last very long. It turned out to be a great day of wheeling..

Visited Great Sand Dunes National Park and climbed the dunes, and drove the Medano Pass in our 2006 Jeep Wrangler in 2015 while living in Colorado (we are Texans). It was a beautiful trip with lots of trees, low water crossings, and mountains in the distance and we camped overnight in our tent. We had no trouble at all driving this trail.