Paradise Divide

We drove Paradise Divide on Saturday and we started with the Eastern half out of Mount Crested Butte. It was insanely busy so I would recommend this trail for a weekday. We drove the Western half in the late afternoon after finishing Schofield Pass. The Western half is much more scenic and I would recommend driving it first if you want the best photo opportunities. It was busy but not nearly as bad as the Eastern half in the morning. I hope to drive Paradise Divide again, but on a weekday and maybe not during fall colors.

A beautiful trail any time of the year, especially when fall colors are in full swing. Not a difficult trail by any means - the only obstacle right now is the cattle.

Ran the trail clockwise. We enjoyed the west side better than the east side. The scenery is better, and the trail less traveled. Although Emerald Lake is beautiful.

Trail was open all the way around. I ran it clockwise. Great views, classic single lane shelf road through majority of upper portion. One tight area after the pass, snow on tight area, should be gone soon. Minor damage between parking area and lake. Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk, mopar rock rails, additional Chief protection plates, Falken Wildpeak AT3W 265/60R18, OR1 ~9" clearance for most, aired down to 20 PSI. Only bottomed out once, after pass, on eroded drainage crossing. Trail Rating seems correct.

Made it 3/4 of the way from waypoint 6 to 7 before there was snow over the road. The snow was very soft so could be passable. As it was on a very narrow section with a very steep drop off I wasn’t risking it. Running in reverse you can get close to emerald lake (11). That section is covered in about 4 ft of ice at the moment though so you need to park and walk the rest of the way. Definitely no chance of getting through for a while yet.

Ran Paradise Pass on Sept 29 in my stock F150 4x4, no problems at all. Had some Oregon guests with us looking for fall colors. Found some, the leaves are a little late this year, but this is still a jaw-dropping beautiful route. We ran it backwards from the trail directions given, then went left on FR811 through Elkton. Beautiful leaves on that route. Pretty light traffic for a Saturday afternoon. The shelf section between point 4-5 on the route guide gave my guests sweaty palms, but they enjoyed it anyway. Tried fishing at Emerald lake...don't bother!

This is a fantastic drive in the Crested Butte area, suitable for stock 4x4 vehicles (even crossover/sport utility vehicles). The road is in very good condition, and there are no obstacles to impede travel. Be courteous to others and remember trail etiquette--uphill has the right of way, and four wheels yield to two wheels or pedestrians/equestrians. Be cautious of cattle on the road in this open range area.

Made my annual Created Butte trip and drove this on my way to some hikes in the area. The Gothic side (waypoints 10-19) is mountain bike central. They’re numerous and like to ride the middle of the road. Good views though and easy driving. Watch out for cows in the road!

It said the road was closed on the gothic side, we went to the snow bank walked up on it. It was hard packed I went over slow with no problems, Other than that nice trail

Still blocked with snow on the Gothic side. So much snow only plows would make this passable this year. Tons of people clogging the road on the Gothic side. We drove around from the Crested Butte side, which was a great drive and significantly less people.

Trail is absolutely gorgeous. Trail is closed at Waypoint 8 and impassable due to snow, so can’t get to Schofield Pass (pics 1, 2, and 3). 811 is fully open. Trail is also closed right after Waypoint 10 going north before Waypoint 11 due to a huge avalanche that is burying the road under about 50+ feet of snow (pics 4, 5, and 6). Emerald Lake is pretty much non existent at this point as it is just debris. Can park just before Emerlad Lake and hike up the road to where the avalanche covers the road and can walk down the road further on the other side.

Great road, and nothing super challenging. Some ruts in the road on the Gothic side could get interesting in rain. Partially closed due to avalanches, but hike-able from there to see Emerald lake (obstructed) and farther. Gonna take a lot of sun to melt all the snow, but hopefully open later in August.

Trail blocked by avalanche at waypoint 6 and between 10 and 11 from the gothic side. Small obstructions so hopefully they will be cleared soon

Got a message from a friend who is visiting the CB area; he says Paradise Divide is partially open but impassible, same for Schofield Pass. He says it will be a few weeks yet before they are open to wheeled traffic.

Only did half the trail (way points 10-18) on my way through Schofield to Crystal. Trail was in great shape and offered beautiful country.

Blocked by several snow drifts and an apparent avalanche between Waypoints 9 and 10. I drove from the Slate River side (west) over the divide with intent to drive Schofield Pass. Had to turn around at grid coordinate: 39.00518, -107.05708

I ran the western half of Paradise Divide (734) from Crested Butte to the intersection with Schofield Pass (317). The road is open and surface conditions are good. Dropped in to the Oh Be Joyful Campground to check on some details, found the sites to be clean and well maintained.