Ryan Boudreau

The trail still remains closed from waypoints 1-4 due to the 2019 landslide. I did not make it all the way over to look for myself, just spoke to the tour guide of an ATV company on the pass. The trail was very busy with Rental ATVs and UTVs. The southern side of the pass has become extremely chewed up. It is very rough and rocky now making the progress a slow go. Didn't get many photos as I was up mapping other roads off of this one.

A nice day on the trail. Very limited traffic surprisingly for a Saturday. French Creek is extremely dry, and same with the rest of the trail. Saw 1 4dr JK flop on cleveland rock and also got to see 3 extremely well built rigs with stickies make the climb. I winched at cleveland.

Fun moderate trail for built rigs. Traffic was pretty minimal today.

As others have said, the water crossing is awesome and the rock obstacles between Middle St Vrain and the creek crossing are definitely challenging. After that though, the road is extremely slow and rough, extremely tight, extremely dusty, and boring in my opinion. There was pretty much no mud and the trail was extremely dry when we came though.

On July 18th, the trail was reopened for the 2020 season thanks to the efforts of the Western Slopes 4 Wheelers. Poughkeepsie is there adopted trail and they have been working for 2 summers to clear the trail of avalanche debris and resource damage done in early 2019. Gates on both the BLM side and the National Forest side are officially open.

Stunning trail! Magnificent views the entire way. Nothing hard, just a nice leisurely drive through the woods. I would say the trail is most difficult south the north as it climbs uphill very quickly. The elevation gain coming from the north and heading south is spread over a longer distance so your vehicle is not working that hard. Can't wait to come back here in the fall to see the colors!

What a hidden surprise this trail was! No, it is not difficult at all and any SUV with good ground clearance could drive this route. There are no steep incline requiring 4low, and no major rock sections. But the views are epic, the seclusion in fantastic, and the hut and tunnel at the ends of each spur cap an awesome ride through the woods!

Great trail for a cruise! It's extremely bumpy on the east side, but any 4wd vehicle with good ground clearance should be fine as long as you take it slow and pick your lines wisely in a few spots. The views are awesome all along this trail!! I couldn't get enough. I had heard this is a good fall trail, but I can't really see how. There are no aspen groves to speak of along the trail. Is it good viewing for other nearby mountains??? Guess I'll have to find out in the fall to be sure.

Trail is still closed between waypoints 1 and 4 due to the same order that closed in in 2019. The rest of the trail is accessible from the south, or from McAllister Gulch.

Ran the trail from the south. It was all but dry and mud free till you pass waypoint 5. After that, you cross an open meadow and hit a fairly large mudpit that is unmarked here. Had to winch 2 vehicles coming the opposite way. All the way to waypoint 6, the road is rough, rutty, and slow going. Just after waypoint 7 there is another long mud section that is unmarked here. The tire ruts are deep and I was dragging my axle on the center hump, even with 40'' tires. There is two lines through there, and the other one didn't have the big ruts, but was extremely slick. The trail became impassable just before waypoint 8 due to a small cluster of trees that had fallen across the trail. DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH THE WOODS AROUND THESE TREES! We opted not to spend the time on cutting them as just past that was the massive mud pit from waypoint 8. I have never seen such nasty mud in Colorado. I measured the depth with a branch and it was 4 feet in one spot and I wasn't even measuring in the center of the pit. The "bypass" is basically a mud bog itself with deep ruts filled with water. We turned around and headed back the direction we came. I called the Forest Service and they are sending a crew out to clear the trees. We tried taking a stock F150 through this, and although we got to the point we did, we winched that vehicle multiple times. I would not recommend this trail in its entirety to anything that does not have large tires and a winch.

Your enjoyment of this trail definitely depends on what you are looking for in the area. If you are looking for good camping spots, this is definitely a 5-star rating. There are many campsites and varying sizes, and they are all pretty much easy to access. There are big group spots right off the road, and small secluded spots back in the trees. If you are looking for good hiking trails and access to the Fraser River or Fraser Canyon, again, 5-stars. If you are looking for a scenic drive, this is only 3 stars as it is really only scenic for the first couple of miles as you climb out of the valley floor. After Buehler Creek, there is a nice wetland area that is peaceful and I am sure gets some wildlife visitors. Beyond that, you are pretty much surrounded by trees with not many views. If you are looking for a challenging offroad trail, this is far from it. Overall, it's all about what you are looking for, but don't visit this trail if you are only looking to going wheeling.

Trail is open and extremely busy over the July 4th weekend. The trail head at waypoint 1 is a nice place to have lunch if you are near there mid day.

This trail is a really nice surprise. There was not much traffic on it, even for being a holiday weekend, but there were a lot of campers on the east side. The views were fantastic, and the steep climbs made it interesting and not just another dirt fire road. The area has tons of aspen trees, so I bet this is a great fall colors trail.

Trail was open and easily completed all the way through. The trail itself was not that busy, but it was very busy with campers. No open spots we could find.

last switchback still has some snow so the trail is not 100% passable to the lake just yet.

After a very long and extensive day of trail repair, Red Cone is now open for the season. Be aware that you have to exit via Webster Pass to Montezuma and there is still an avalanche field you have to traverse that is still pretty deep. With the tracks we put on it and the shoveling, it will likely be melted in a week.

The gate on the Montezuma side (north side) is now open for the season. Be prepared for an avalanche field not far after the creek crossing (wp6) that has some deep, soft snow, for about 50 yards. Our group came over Red Cone and exited Webster in this direction. With the tracks we put on the avalanche field today, it will probably be melted out in a week. Note that the snow cornice at the top of Webster (wp9) is still huge and you cannot drive down into Hall Valley yet.

Trail was opened late Saturday after the adopted club ran it and cleared downed trees and performed necessary trail maintenance. Water levels are high.

Trail was opened late Saturday after the adopted club ran it and cleared downed trees and performed necessary trail maintenance.

Per the Forest Service, the road is closed from Buck Creek Road north to the Forest Boundary due to canal replacement, which is basically waypoints 4 to waypoint 5. The seasonal gate at Waypoint 1 is also still closed, but you can access 128 via many other roads.

A lot of great camping along this road, but it was extremely busy. I'm not sure if it's typically like this on a weekend, or if it is just the result of everything else going on this year. Seems like every trail I have been on is way more crowded than usual. Some really good views in my opinion, and the hike at the end is totally worth it. BRING YOUR FISHING ROD!

Per the district ranger, the lower gate has been opened, but the upper gate remains closed.

Jones Pass Road is closed until June 14th for drainage improvements being performed by Denver Water.

Trail is now open and passable till waypoint 7 and the 2 campsites located up there. (They are marked by the way so they are legal). I missed the turn to go up to waypoint 8, but remember seeing that turn. I didn't have the map downloaded so I thought that was a turn up to a campsite as it's not well marked. But it was dry. We busted through the avalanche and several other drifts near the top. In a couple days you won't even know we made first tracks today. Road was dry and snow free most of the way.

seasonal gate is open. No idea on conditions, just passed the gate on the way down the highway

the north end is still seasonally closed, but the southern end is open a little ways. Made it 2.8 miles from the red cone trailhead right where the trail drop down in the creek at the tailings pile. Deep snow covering the trail there makes it impossible to go any farther.

Deep snow started at waypoint 5. I was able to break trail to around waypoint 6, but gave up as the drift were getting bigger and more off camber pushing me towards the edge of the trail. Maybe a few more week until it is fully melted out. Trail was PACKED with campers along the first mile. Tons and tons of people!

Spoke to Clear Creek Ranger today and the trail is still closed due to Elk Calving.

The trail is open and plowed all the way through and all county visitation restrictions have been lifted.

The trail is open and plowed all the way through and all county visitation restrictions have been lifted.

The trail is open and plowed all the way through and all county visitation restrictions have been lifted.

Trail is clear all the way to the city. Schofield is snow packed and impassable.

Trail is now open for the season per the Forest Service.

Trail is open till the V-notch with some snow. Not sure how much farther it is passable.

Trail is now open, but snow packed and impassable all the way around.

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

Big snow drift between waypoints 7 and 8 make the trail impassable

Unlike other reviews below, I officially reached out to the Forest Service rangers and asked about the mud season closures, as others have been lifted. FS responded that Slaughterhouse is indeed open for the season.

Really cool and unique trail. Probably not great in the middle of summer as I imagine it's hot and dusty, but this was a great spring trip.

The seasonal closure for this area has been lifted and the gate is now open. However, there is still a lot of snow on the ground on the higher elevations in the area and it has created extremely wet and muddy conditions, just to get to the trail. I imagine along the trail is the same as I was not able to get my dirtbike across a large mudhole, so I explored by foot

Although super easy, this is a really cool canyon to drive through, with some killer views, and great camp spots.

My absolute favorite trail in Grand Junction! This trail changes everytime I run it. Obstacles that were difficult the last time are now easy, and obstacles that were easy are now difficult. It is also a good trail for newer wheelers who want to start getting into harder terrain as they can attempt the obstacles they want, and bail out if they find themselves in over their heads. I fully recommend making the trail an in and back out drive instead of looping all the way around, even if your vehicle is road worthy.

Great trail to add in combination with Billings. Really it's just adding one more big obstacle to your day, but it's definitely worth checking out if you are running big tires. Don't go in there if you are on 35s.

A great trail for the hardcore wheeler. The sign at the start says 35s, and I can only imagine how long the trail will take on that size tire. Be sure to have rocker protection and a winch also.

Made it just shy of a mile, not too far past the split with Democrat. The trail was busy with snowshoeing enthusiasts. The snow wasn't too deep, but was definitely icy in spots for the mile we traveled. After that, the trail begins climbing up hill and the snow got extremely deep and impassable, even on 42s.

Made it just shy of a mile along the trail, and it was an extremely hard, fought for mile. About 10" of fresh snow, deeper in some drifts, on top of a hard, frozen layer, made traction extremely difficult. But totally fun!

Knew the trail would be impassable, but wanted to check it out anyway and see what the snow conditions were like. This latest storm dumped a good amount of fresh snow on the trail. Only made it to waypoint 5. The uphill switchback there was extremely icy and difficult. One rig made it around that corner, but immediately the snow becomes very off camber leaning you off the trail. We opted to turn around instead of attempting to continue.

Ran the trail in the opposite direction of this guide, from Herman to Rampart. Trail had not been attempted since the latest snow, so we were making fresh tracks. We had a group of 8 with us. Just past the camp site at wp5, about 1.5 miles in, as the trail parallels Ensign Gulch, it becomes extremely dangerous. There was fresh snow on top, but a solid layer of ice under that and it leans off camber to the downhill side. I was lead and fell off the trail in a spot that appears to be a common spot for this due to the number of trees scarred by winch lines. We were able to get me back on the trail, but the next guy fell off also in the same spot. And then again 10 feet later. In the meantime, another member of our group fell off the trail about 200 yards behind us and kept falling off as he attempted to continue towards us. 6 members of the group turned around. The 2 of us up front self recovered a few times but eventually got out of the gulch. From there it was snow packed and fairly deep, but easily manageable. Super nice scenery along this trail. I wouldn't recommend it for current travel though, and if you attempt, you should have chains on all 4 tires, a working winch, and good recovery skills.

Ran the trail with a group of 8. No one had been down the trail since the last snow. The snow was pretty deep in spots, but passable for our crew. We made it all the way to the end, but coming back up turned out to be a little bit of a struggle. Under the fresh snow was a solid layer of ice, so a couple of the climbs out were tough for rigs without two lockers. Chains would likely be helpful on this trail. Great snow run though for groups.

Used this road to get over to Rampart and Balanced Rock. It was snow packed the entire way. The eastern side was very tracked out and just hard packed snow pretty much the entire way up. It was very icy in the morning too. After the second gate, there were less tracks and the snow was much deeper. Still passable, just significantly different than the eastern side out of town. Made our way back down this in the evening after dark. It was again pretty icy coming back down into town, but the flat section at the beginning had thawed a lot during the day leaving behind a lot of slush and muddy water holes. Great views of the city at night! And the views of Pikes Peak during the day were great too!

This trail does not have any type of seasonal closure. It is open all year long according to all Forest Service resources I could find and checked with. So we headed up to see what the conditions were like. With my LJ on 40s and a TJ on 37s, we made it 1.3 miles from the Forest boundary which is a little bit before this track begins. Officially we made it just past the restoration area at waypoint 3. The trail is consistantly snow packed and icy from the start. The center of the trail is hard packed and really soft on the sides. Both of us winched a couple of times just to get where we did. We turned around because the trail was beginning to climb and the snow conditions weren't allowing any further progress. Although open, the terrain makes this trail very difficult to run in the snow. It is also extremely popular and busy with cross country skiers, who didn't appear to appreciate we were on the trail. In my opinion, leave this trail to them. It's just not a worthy winter wheeling spot.

Trail to the seasonal gate was surprisingly dry. No fresh snow appears to have fallen in awhile. The road was mostly dry with patches of snow/ice and some muddy water holes. The closer to the gate, the more snow. A lot of UTV rentals on the trail! A lot of recreational shooters on nearby spur roads also!

The FS has been doing a ton of mediation work along this trail to keep users on the trail, and yet there were still off trail tracks in area. Please keep your machine on the trail. Iron Clads is surprisingly dry. Getting to the playground there was one stretch of uphill snow that was extremely icy, but with momentum from the bottom it wasn't a big deal. Please refrain from creating a new path through the trees to get up the hill. The playground area was bone dry! The loop around the top was mostly snow packed and extremely icy on both ends. Use caution.