Hiking the Four Pass Loop Trail: Essential Guidance for Your Expedition
The goddamn Four Pass Loop in Colorado is a fucking iconic hike, and for a good reason. Motherfuckers, this trail is beautiful as hell. Sure, you'll see other people on the trail, but it still feels secluded enough that you can get some peace and connect with nature.
Now, why is it called the Four Pass Loop? Well, dumbshit, because you're gonna summit four goddamn mountain passes, each exceeding 12,400 feet in elevation. There's West Maroon Pass (12,500 feet), Frigid Air Pass (12,415 feet), Trail Rider Pass (12,420 feet), and Buckskin Pass (12,500 feet). Each pass and valley offers its unique characteristics and obstacles, with some people arguing that some passes are tougher than others. But they're all ambitious bitches, so don't try them if you're just a casual hiker.
Specs
- Distance: 27-30+ miles
- Route: loop with optional side trips
- Difficulty: extremely difficult
- Features: mountain views, alpine lakes, forests
- Time of Year: July-early September
Hiking The Four Pass Loop
From the West Maroon Trailhead, it's about 3 miles to the loop intersection, but the majority of this stretch is relatively flat compared to the rest of the hike. We found the best wildflowers in this section, even though we were there a bit past peak time. The closer you get to the intersection, the steeper it gets, and you begin your ascent to the first pass, West Maroon Pass.
The views from this pass were the best (in my opinion), with uninterrupted vistas of the surrounding mountains and the trail in both directions. This pass was also the busiest, with lots of day hikers summiting this pass from both the Crested Butte and Aspen starting points. Don't let the crowd scare you off; they'll clear out in the afternoon, and you'll see less and less people as the day goes on.
The Descent
The descent from West Maroon Pass was the longest descent on the loop and felt like we hiked down for fucking hours. This slow descent did make for an easier time on the knees, though. We planned on camping at site #0 or #1 just past Crater Lake, but we didn't make it that far and camped at site #9 at Crater Lake instead.
Day #1 was our longest day, with over 8 miles. Our goal was to knock out a significant amount of mileage while our legs were still fresh. Using the extended downhill to our advantage, we tried to make it as far as possible to save ourselves miles the following day.
Buckskin Pass
Leaving Crater Lake the next morning, we started the climb towards Buckskin Pass. Since this section was steep and longer than yesterday's uphill, the day #2 ascent was quite challenging. The views were stunning, and in the bowl below the pass was a beautiful cascading waterfall. Ain't that just something?
The descent down Buckskin was long and had lots of switchbacks. It was one of the easier descents because it was less rocky and more sandy than other sections of the trail. At the base of the valley, there's a river crossing. Several stacked logs make it passable without taking boots off and offer a nice change of scenery from the constant uphill/downhill. After the river crossing, there's a slight ascent to Snowmass Lake.
Snowmass Lake
We camped near campsites #13 and #14, though the sites aren't numbered in person and aren't very organized in this area. Basically sites #12-18 are cleared of brush, offering lots of space to set up tents. This area is very crowded, so don't expect any privacy, but the views made up for it.
Snowmass Lake was easily the best feature of the entire hike. It was picture-fucking-perfect, with a mirror reflection that photographers can only dream of. In the heat of the afternoon, we took a quick swim in the icy cold water. This cleanse felt like a godsend after two days of hiking in the same clothes. This experience was a great midway reset and we highly recommend taking a dip.
At sunrise, the lake was perfectly still. You could spend hours mesmerized by the tranquil setting while pure silence embraced you. Truly an experience we'll never fucking forget.
Trail Rider Pass
We had a late start on day #3, but luckily the ascent to Trail Rider Pass from Snowmass Lake was short and steep. We summited within a couple of hours and enjoyed breakfast at the pass. You could see Snowmass Lake below looking northeast. Looking to the west/southwest, you can see multiple intersecting valleys, including the trail that accesses Geneva Lake. We opted out of this side trek and descended down the valley to the left.
This is the part where things got brutal. Our initial descent from Trail Rider was just like the other passes - steep switchbacks with slippery rocks that make the going slow. The trail flattens out temporarily, and you'll pass a small lake. Once the trail starts to descend again, the fun stops. It's very steep, has minimal functional switchbacks, and tons of tiny little rocks that leave you slipping all over the place unless you go 1/2 mile per hour. This portion was long, grueling, and we wouldn't recommend being in this area in the heat of the afternoon.
The Crossing
The light at the end of the tunnel was a large stream crossing at the bottom of the valley. We got there as fast as we could, stripped down to undergarments, and sat in the cold water until we couldn't feel our toes anymore. Combine the cold dip with fresh water and a snack break, and we were feeling much better moving forward. This stream would be quite difficult to cross without just taking your shoes off and wading through knee-deep water. The next mile or so is relatively flat, and we soon arrived at the best waterfall on the trail. You can't miss it!
Some steep switchbacks take you up the height of the waterfall, then the trail flattens out to a steady but smoother incline heading towards Frigid Air Pass. We aimed to hike up to the last possible camp site just below Frigid Air so we could watch the sunrise the following morning from the summit. We ended up camping at site #34, perfectly setting us up for our goal. This ascent was the most docile of all the passes, which was a relief for our last two days on the trail.
Frigid Air Pass
Day #4 began with a dark start and packing up camp with head lamps. We took about an hour to reach the summit, just as first light was shining but the sun hadn't risen yet. We made coffee and a dehydrated breakfast as we waited for the sunrise, and I sat in my sleeping bag for warmth. This sunrise scene was one of the highlights of the trip and was the perfect ending on our last pass. We reveled in a stunning view and the lighting was perfect during golden hour. This experience was well worth the 4:30am alarm and long hike on day #3.
Hasley Pass
After spending quite a bit of time at the top of Frigid Air Pass, we started making our way down and back towards the car. On the All Trails map, we saw a connecting route that seemed to be more efficient, which is how we inadvertently made this hike the Five Pass Loop. We had a tough time following the trail and it was significantly less established. We ended up summiting Hasley Pass, and enjoyed views in all directions. Hasley Basin had unique rock formations, and we got to look back upon Trail Rider Pass and our less-than-fun descent from day #3. This view was an early morning treat and a nice surprise.
Leaving Hasley Pass, the trail was quite steep and had limited switchbacks. To stay on track, we had to navigate using our downloaded All Trails Pro map. We could understand how it's a bit of a shortcut, but we would recommend staying on the main trail unless you're up for a little adventure. Once you get back down into the basin, it's a relatively flat trek back to the car. We were so exhausted that the trail couldn't pass fast enough, but we made it, and celebrated in the parking lot with a tequila shot. We experienced a bit of trail magic when we found three ladies who had just finished about 30 minutes before us. They had shot glasses, lime Topo Chico, and seasonings to rim the shot glass. We shared a shot before heading into town for a big meal from a local restaurant.
Getting There
Aspen Start
Most hikers begin in Aspen, but this starting point can be quite difficult since you can't just drive to the trailhead. Personal drop-offs are allowed before 8am, but not everyone has someone to drop them off. If you don't have an early morning ride, you must book a ticket to ride the shuttle up from the Aspen Highlands Parking Garage. Because this shuttle services the extremely popular Maroon Bells, tickets can be challenging to find. Even if you can find tickets, you'll end up paying a premium to park your car in the garage for several nights while you're out adventuring. Since this is so complicated, we recommend starting from the Crested Butte side.
Crested Butte Start
Not many people realize that you can start from the Crested Butte side by driving up Gothic Road / 317 to the East Fork / East Maroon Portal Trailhead. Drive through Mount Crested Butte on Gothic Road and just continue up towards Schofield Pass. Just a couple of minutes after Schofield Pass, you'll see a dirt parking area on the right. There's even a bathroom at the trailhead! From Main Street, it takes about 40 minutes to get to the trailhead since it's a dirt road with a lower speed limit. 4WD/AWD isn't required, but it would definitely make the drive easier and faster. Parking is free, and you can access the trailhead directly from there. It adds a minimal amount of mileage to intersect the loop from here instead of Aspen (only 2 miles longer roundtrip), and proved to be much easier for us.
Alternatives
- We encountered only one group of hikers who started the trail in Crystal. We didn't know this was possible! But looking at the map, it does look like you can leave from Crystal or the nearby Lead King Basin Trailhead / Geneva Lake Trailhead. Crystal River Jeep Tours does drop-offs at this trailhead. You can take trail #1973 (Geneva Lake) up to Geneva Lake and past it to intersect the loop, or skip Geneva Lake and follow trail #1974 (North Fork Crystal River), which will also intersect the loop. If you are considering this option, you'll need to do research about leaving your car overnight in these areas, because we're not familiar with that process.
- And lastly, if you're looking to add some mileage, you can start from Snowmass Village. Use the Maroon Snowmass Trail to intersect the loop near Snowmass Lake. This trailhead offers free overnight parking and easy vehicle access.
Direction, Duration, & Side Trips
There's quite a debate about hiking this loop clockwise vs counterclockwise. Both directions are equally difficult in their own way, and it comes down to what works best for your personal experience and desires. We decided to hike counterclockwise, so this trail review will be based on a CCW route.
Most hikers complete this loop in 4 days and 3 nights, which is what we did - we chose this duration so we could summit one pass per day. Depending on your ability level, you may choose a different timeframe, but we think it's quite ambitious to complete this loop in less time. That being said, the most fit of hikers have completed it in one day, and I could never imagine being able to do that! On the other hand, there's multiple optional side trips that add more mileage if you want to increase your distance. There's Willow Lake, Geneva Lake, summiting Maroon Peak and/or North Maroon Peak, and summiting Snowmass Mountain (14,089 ft). We also encountered several people who enjoyed an extra day at Snowmass Lake. You could use this time to summit Snowmass Mountain or hike zero miles and enjoy the lake life for a day.
- The Four Pass Loop in Colorado is a challenging hike, offering stunning mountain views, alpine lakes, forests, and a connection with nature.
- This trail, known as the Four Pass Loop because of its four mountain passes over 12,400 feet in elevation, consists of a loop with optional side trips, covering a distance of 27-30+ miles.
- During the hike, backpackers will camp near tents, preparing for late starts and early finishes to make the most of the day.
- The loop features a campfire under the stars on some evenings, as hikers gather around to share stories of their adventure.
- Along the trail, backpackers will encounter various obstacles, such as steep climbs, rocky descents, and river crossings, which make the hike an exciting sports endeavor.
- Travelers seeking adventure travel will find this hike a perfect addition to their lifestyle, complete with unforgettable experiences in the heart of nature.
- The Four Pass Loop is an iconic hike, offering hikers an adventure they will never forget, with its breathtaking views, challenging obstacles, and immersion in beautiful, secluded nature.
