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Aspen to Crested Butte - end of September?
- Thread starter Janice
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Fall would be gorgeous. Spending a day in Crested Butte is a good idea. Parking was a pain in the ass at Maroon Lake. I don't know the rules now, but we got there very early and got one of the last parking spaces. It was a great hike.
It took us about 5.5 hours, we took our time.
It took us about 5.5 hours, we took our time.
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I don't like it, but I think the best option is just to park in Aspen and take the bus - that was by far the easiest when I last did an overnight there. On previous trips I found a spot, but only just barely and it was a pain.
Great time for a trip out there though - strongly recommend. Just keep an eye on the weather and stay warm!
RyanP
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If you're willing to backpack, I would recommend doing a different route in the area instead. That stretch from Maroon Lake up and over West Maroon Pass is my least favorite stretch of the four-pass loop (although it is spectacular, I think it's slightly less spectacular, and more crowded, than the rest). The four-pass loop is only a little more effort than your proposed trip, and you'll see much more variety of scenery. Some of the other trails in the area are great as well, and less crowded.
RyanP
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That makes sense. If it were me, I'd make a loop of it and go back over East Maroon Pass for sure to get more variety (I've never done that trail). If you do the loop, you probably want to do West Maroon Pass on the less crowded day (ie. furthest from the weekend). If you have a day in between, maybe you could do a dayhike loop of Hasley Basin and Fravert Basin or something of the sort (I haven't been to Hasley Basin yet; Fravert Basin is awesome). That specific area is probably better earlier in the summer though (more fields of wildflowers than groves of Aspens).
Also, I second the comment that that I would plan on the parking always being crowded and that you will need a reservation
Also, I second the comment that that I would plan on the parking always being crowded and that you will need a reservation
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Thanks for all your help. I'm checking out the situation with parking reservations. Given your recommendation, I think we'll start at W Maroon and then return E Maroon. I'm excited to check them out! I looked up the basins, and the pictures I'm seeing are beautiful. I'm realizing, though, that without a car in Crested Butte it will take some effort to get 5 of us (and a dog) from one spot to the next. I've never been to CB and had incorrectly assumed that the town was close to the THs. (I don't know why I assumed that...) Spending more time with the map is making me think if might not make sense to do the extra day at CB. Instead, maybe we should do the E Maroon return and then do an Aspen dayhike the next day. I see plenty of beautiful ones to choose among there...
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A few years ago, you had to park in town and take a bus to Maroon Lake after like 8 AM. I'm not sure what time the buses started - if they start earlier than that. I got there at 5:30 or 6 AM and the parking lot was packed. That time of year, the whole place is a you know what show.
I'm not sure if they've changed the rules now. Since Covid, a lot of places are requiring reservations, parking and taking a bus, etc.
I'm not sure if they've changed the rules now. Since Covid, a lot of places are requiring reservations, parking and taking a bus, etc.
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Thanks for all of your help, @gnwatts, @TheMountainRabbit, @ImNotDedYet, and @RyanP. We had a GREAT trip. The logistics were a bit challenging and annoying, but it all worked out. This is what we ended up doing and I'm really glad we did it in this direction.
1) Drove 2 cars to Crested Butte. Stayed in hotel.
2) 1st Day - Left one car at Judd Falls parking along Gothic Rd, then drove all of us up to Emerald Lake in other car and parked there. Walked from there ~1 mile to W Maroon TH. (We were told by Forest Service that our car would have trouble on the part between Emerald Lake and the TH. Now that I've been there, I don't think that would have been the case, but Emerald Lake was beautiful with the early morning reflection, so it was fine with me to add that on.)
3) Hiked gorgeous W Maroon trail making sure we got to the end in time for the last shuttle to Aspen Highlands at 5:00. (This was a little stressful but ended up ok.) We made the 4:40 one. Took free Aspen city bus to our hotel.
4) 2nd Day - took the 7:00 AM free bus from Aspen to Aspen Highlands and picked up boarding passes for 8:00 AM shuttle. It was annoying that they emphasize you must be there at least 45 minutes early. It took no time to get the boarding pass and then we sat around twiddling our thumbs until 7:50 when they require you to be in line and listen to the speech about safety etc. We got let out at the E Maroon TH rather than going to the main stop.
5) Hiked gorgeous E Maroon trail. It's longer than W Maroon (16 miles) but stunning with aspens for many miles, almost to the pass at mile 10. Then more aspens lower down closer to the end. Different from W Maroon and definitely worth doing as a loop rather than there and back. Got back to our Judd Falls car at 7:15 PM. (We were slow with the dog and 5 people!) Drove up in the dark to get other car from Emerald Lake. Headed back to same hotel in Crested Butte from the earlier night.
If we had done it from Aspen to Crested Butte, we would have paid a huge amount for shuttling to and from the THs in Crested Butte ($50 per person each way including our son's dog which made 6 of us - would have been $600 total - OUCH - on top of hotel costs). It worked so well to start in CB and we loved that area anyway.
The trip was FANTASTIC. Thanks again for all your help when I was planning!
1) Drove 2 cars to Crested Butte. Stayed in hotel.
2) 1st Day - Left one car at Judd Falls parking along Gothic Rd, then drove all of us up to Emerald Lake in other car and parked there. Walked from there ~1 mile to W Maroon TH. (We were told by Forest Service that our car would have trouble on the part between Emerald Lake and the TH. Now that I've been there, I don't think that would have been the case, but Emerald Lake was beautiful with the early morning reflection, so it was fine with me to add that on.)
3) Hiked gorgeous W Maroon trail making sure we got to the end in time for the last shuttle to Aspen Highlands at 5:00. (This was a little stressful but ended up ok.) We made the 4:40 one. Took free Aspen city bus to our hotel.
4) 2nd Day - took the 7:00 AM free bus from Aspen to Aspen Highlands and picked up boarding passes for 8:00 AM shuttle. It was annoying that they emphasize you must be there at least 45 minutes early. It took no time to get the boarding pass and then we sat around twiddling our thumbs until 7:50 when they require you to be in line and listen to the speech about safety etc. We got let out at the E Maroon TH rather than going to the main stop.
5) Hiked gorgeous E Maroon trail. It's longer than W Maroon (16 miles) but stunning with aspens for many miles, almost to the pass at mile 10. Then more aspens lower down closer to the end. Different from W Maroon and definitely worth doing as a loop rather than there and back. Got back to our Judd Falls car at 7:15 PM. (We were slow with the dog and 5 people!) Drove up in the dark to get other car from Emerald Lake. Headed back to same hotel in Crested Butte from the earlier night.
If we had done it from Aspen to Crested Butte, we would have paid a huge amount for shuttling to and from the THs in Crested Butte ($50 per person each way including our son's dog which made 6 of us - would have been $600 total - OUCH - on top of hotel costs). It worked so well to start in CB and we loved that area anyway.
The trip was FANTASTIC. Thanks again for all your help when I was planning!