Backpacking the Four Pass Loop has been on my bucket list for almost two years. It’s been on Michael’s too. We finally made our bucket list dreams a reality and decided to hike it!
The Four Pass Loop Route
The Four Pass Loop is a 26.6-mile trail just outside of Aspen, Colorado in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness. On this loop you hike over four passes (hence the name) over 12,000 feet – West Maroon Pass (12,590 ft), Frigid Air Pass (12,415 ft), Trail Rider Pass (12,420 ft), and Buckskin Pass (12,500).
You can hike the loop counterclockwise or clockwise. It seems that hiking the Four Pass Loop clockwise, starting with West Maroon Pass, is more popular since it’s not as steep.
Most people backpack the loop in 3-4 days. Some people trail run it in a day! We decided to try it in 2 days. Our original plan was two get through 2 of the passes, camp, and then finish the remaining two passes the next day. However, when we took a look at the map and the mileage in between the passes we decided it made more sense to try to get through West Maroon Pass, Frigid Air Pass, and Trail Rider Pass all in the first day and camp at Snowmass Lake. Then save Buckskin Pass for the last day. It was an aggressive plan, but we were ready for the challenge!
Getting To The Four Pass Loop
The Four Pass Loop starts at the Maroon-Snowmass Trailhead just outside Aspen. You can drive your car all the way down Maroon Creek Road and park at the trailhead, but you can only drive to the trailhead before 8:00 am or after 5:00 pm. You also need to be lucky enough to get a spot at the overnight parking lot. It fills up quick. If the lot is full or you arrive sometime 8:00 am – 5:00 pm you need to park at Aspen Highlands. You’ll have to pay for parking and for a bus pass (more info here). Then take the shuttle up to the trailhead. It’s slightly inconvenient and is obviously more expensive, but Maroon Bells is such a popular destination (it’s the most photographed spot in Colorado), so I understand why they try to regulate the traffic.
Once you’re at the trailhead make sure to self-register and fill out a backpacking permit.
Also, make sure to have a bear can! It’s required.
The Four Pass Loop Day 1
Michael and I got up to the ranger booth at 7:30 am and found out that the overnight parking lot was already full, so we had to take the shuttle up to the trailhead. After filling out our permits we started hiking around 8:30 am.
The Four Pass Loop starts right at the iconic Maroon Bells, one of the most photographed places in Colorado.
The first 1.5 miles up to Crater Lake has a slight incline. At 9,500 feet this felt tougher than it should have! But after the lake the trail smoothed out and was pretty flat for the next 2.5 miles. I was actually starting to get worried that we were on the wrong trail, despite following all the signs for West Maroon Pass. I just figured we’d be climbing a lot more.
We took our first break at mile 4 and then the trail started to incline a bit. Gradual at first, then a little steeper, and then we gained 800 feet in .7-miles to the top of West Maroon Pass at mile 6.5. It was something! I haven’t hiked in this high of altitude since last July. It makes a difference. I felt like I was moving in slow motion, but I did it nonetheless!
By this time it was 12:15 pm and we took our lunch break at the top of the pass.
1 pass down, 3 to go!
The hike to Frigid Air Pass was short and quick, just 2.1 miles. The initial descent from West Maroon Pass was quite steep. Then it leveled out and we were walking through meadows of wildflowers. There was also a stream where we could filter water (we use the Sawyer Squeeze).
All of a sudden it was a quick, straight up hike up to Frigid Pass.
There were some lovely views.
2 passes down, 2 to go!
It was a 7-mile hike from Frigid Air Pass to Trail Rider Pass. The switchbacks down Frigid Air Pass were steep and then we landed in a meadow surrounded by beautiful mountains. The trail continued down gradually switching between meadows and forests.
We took a break near a stream at about mile 12 to fill up on calories and water. There were a lot of nice campsites in this stretch of the trail!
We continued onwards further down into a meadow. Then it was time to climb up to Trail Rider Pass. This one was a doozy!
The incline started with steep switchbacks up a ridge. Steep as in climb-1100-feet-in-mile steep and at 10,000 feet no less. The mile was BRUTAL. We hiked slow and steady with very little conversation (because let’s save the oxygen for breathing). From there the trail softened slightly. It was still going up, but not at quite the same intensity. The worst part about it was that we were coming up to a false pass. It looked like it could be the pass, but we knew it wasn’t.
One we passed the false summit we could finally see the real pass. It was about a mile away. Hurray! We even got to walk on a flat/slightly down trail for a bit. It was so luxurious. It actually rejuvenated and motivated me a bit. The quick snack break helped too.
We had a little less than a mile to hike up to Trail Rider Pass. It was slow going, but I put one foot in front of the other and continued to carry myself up the trail.
During these difficult passes I’ve been trying to fill my head with words of encouragement rather than doubt. Instead of worrying about if my heart would suddenly go into ventricular tachycardia (VT) I thought about how happy I was to be out backpacking. I thought about all those times I had yearned for it throughout my surgeries, hospital stays, and recovery periods. I thought about how grateful I was that my body could do this type of stuff again. I thought about how blessed I was to be surrounded by beautiful scenery and spending time with the one I love, despite my legs and lungs being on fire. The power of positive thinking is strong! It really helped push me up those passes.
Finally, we made it to the top of Trail Rider Pass!!
3 passes down, 1 to go!
The views from both sides of the pass were spectacular. On one side we saw gray skies and mountains and on the other side we saw blue skies, mountains, and Snowmass Lake.
Snowmass Lake was extra pretty since that was our camping destination for the night.
From Trail Rider Pass it was 2.2 miles down to Snowmass Lake. By this point Michael and I were both ready to be done, so it seemed to take a little longer than it should have, but we finally made it.
The campsite was pretty full. Most people probably got there early to mid-afternoon. We arrived shortly after 7:00 pm. However, we were able to find a lovely campsite near the water. Michael set up the tent, while I filtered water. The thing about backpacking is that you can’t just get to your campsite and relax. There are chores to be done first! Those things went fairly quickly.
Since we needed to bring a bear can, which are heavy and bulky, we decided to pack light, even lighter than normal. Michael carried the bear can (because he’s the best) along with our extra food for the next day. This meant that all I had in my pack were my sleeping quilt, sleeping pad, toiletries, some extra clothes, a water filter, and electronics. It was so light! Michael’s bag really didn’t look much heavier. Everyone thought we were day hikers with our tiny packs. I have never seen heavier packs than I have on the Four Pass Loop! The hike was difficult enough with my small pack. I can’t imagine what it would have been like with a full 60-liter pack!
Anyways, since we were packing light we didn’t pack a camp stove. This meant dinner was cold-soaked ramen. It honestly wasn’t bad! Nice and salty. But after hiking 18 miles I think anything would’ve tasted good.
We then brushed our teeth, took some Tylenol (preventative measure), and headed into the tent.
We hiked 18.2 miles in 10.5 hours.
The Four Pass Loop Day 2
After a long day of hiking the previous day we decided to not set an alarm and just wake up whenever we woke up, which happened to be around 8:00 am.
We gathered up our stuff, ate a quick breakfast (a bar and cold coffee), and got on our way around 9:15 am.
My body was moving a little slow in the morning. I wasn’t sore yet, but my legs felt a little heavy and my cardio seemed a bit worn out. Fortunately the first 1.5 miles of hiking was a fairly flat path. This helped me warm up a bit. Then there was a mile of steep switchbacks followed by another mile of a more gentle grade and then we were on the top of Buckskin Pass!
4 passes down, 0 to go!
I loved looking back on the views of Snowmass and Capitol 14ers and forward to Pyramid.
I also loved that we finished our final pass and all we had to do was hike down a few miles to the trailhead.
We took a snack break. We also saw this mountain goat!
The switchbacks on the back side of Buckskin Pass were a little steep for the first mile and the leveled out to a more gradual descent.
It was starting to get pretty hot, so I’m glad we were done with our uphill hiking! Our last few miles were through Aspen trees.
About 4.5 miles after leaving Buckskin Pass we were back at Maroon Lake. I had to take some extra time to drink these views in. It was just so pretty!
We had just enough time to use the bathroom before jumping on the shuttle to bring us back down to Aspen Highlands.
We hiked 8.4 miles in 4 hours.
We did it!
Four Pass Loop Thoughts
Overall, I really enjoyed backpacking the Four Pass Loop. It is such an iconic Colorado hike. I’m glad I can finally check it off my list.
The scenery is gorgeous. Is it the most beautiful hike in Colorado as it is often claimed to be? That I don’t know, but I don’t think you’d be disappointed.
The one unfortunate thing is that so many people hike this loop. Michael and I saw more people in the first four hours of Four Pass Loop than we saw doing the Northern Circle and the Devil’s Dome Loops combined. Typically this isn’t a bad thing. I love talking to people on the trail! The thing that makes this unfortunate is I saw so much toilet paper and garbage. People, please pick up after yourself!
Aside from that point, it’s amazing and I highly recommend it.
I am so proud of myself for finishing this, much less being able to do it in only 2 days. This is the hardest thing I’ve done since recovering from heart surgery. Fortunately the Four Pass Loop was much more enjoyable than that!
To celebrate Michael and I went to Dairy Queen and ate Blizzards for lunch.
I’ll be dreaming about backpacking the Four Pass Loop for a while!
Thank you for sharing! My husband, a friend and I are headed from New Hampshire to the 4-pass Loop the last week of September this year. I’m getting pretty nervous about the altitude. I know the cure all for altitude sickness is acclimate but the reality for us is we only have about 12 hours to acclimate. How did you guys fair with the altitude? Do you think it would be worth it to bring along a GPS messenger in case we get into trouble? Was there cell service at all along the route? Did you see any other people?
Hi Brittney! I’m so excited for you to do the 4 Pass Loop! You’ll love it. I live in Denver and was traveling out of state for about 3 weeks before starting the loop. I was a little nervous about the altitude. I didn’t feel any altitude sickness and think that you’ll be totally fine. If you’re really worried about it you can get altitude meds (I used them when I did the Inca Trail), but there’s also side affects that come with taking those. Drinking lots of water will help! We didn’t have any phone signal and did use a Garmin inreach. It’s not a terrible thing to have. Hopefully you won’t need it, but you can also look into renting if you don’t own one. I believe Feral Mountain Co in Denver rents them out. There are so many people to that hike this trail! I think there were about 20 other people at our campsite at Snowmass Lake. You will definitely not be alone. Since you’re going at the end of September it could be pretty chilly, so bring layers! You’ll also get amazing fall colors. I’ll be jealous 🙂 Hope this helps! If you have any other questions feel free to email me – Jenna.duesterhoeft@gmail.com