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Kenosha Pass to Georgia Pass and West Jefferson

RECOMMENDED ROUTE
Difficult Difficult
 4.4 (149)
  1. Areas
  2. CO
  3. …Central Rockies
  4. Park County
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“One of the best rides in the mountains within one hour of the Front Range! ”

Brandon Eifrid
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Map Key

22.9

Miles

36.9

KM

95%

Singletrack

11,639' 3,548 m

High

9,876' 3,010 m

Low

3,076' 938 m

Up

3,074' 937 m

Down

5%

Avg Grade (3°)

19%

Max Grade (11°)

Dogs Unknown

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Usually snow melt allows for riding to the top (Georgia Pass) roughly 2 weeks before the beginning of July. It's possible to do the entire ride as late as mid November but this always depends on mother nature.

Overview

Kenosha is a favorite of many Front Range riders. It's a great way to get up to some primo singletrack high country riding in the early summer. The Kenosha to Breckenridge shuttle ride is one of the most epic rides you can do but its typically a logistical nightmare especially when you have quite a few 'epic ride' hungry chums with you. It's much simpler to meet up and drive up to Kenosha Pass off of 285 south, about 15 minutes south of Bailey, and do this incredible out and back on the Colorado Trail.

What makes this ride so special? Everything! First of all most of everything you'll ride is very nice singletrack and the trail is rarely in poor shape. It has beautiful overlooks down onto the Como & Fairplay area valley, multiple patches of aspens, fun flowy trails with some challenging but very doable rocky and rooty sections and tons of beautiful high country mountain and pine forest views. There are quite a few picturesque and comfortable places to chill and eat a bar or pb&j.

This ride is definitely tough so I would say it's for intermediate to advanced mountain bikers.

Be sure you have preserved some energy and some fuel as there are a couple sustained climbs back out and up to the parking lot. You can always explore the east side of the CT before or after this big ride but you can only ride a bike about 7 miles east of 285 due to the Lost Creek Wilderness boundary.

Need to Know

It can be tough to gauge when this ride is fully rideable in the early summer, anywhere from mid May to the weekend before July 4th. Fall can be a tough time to ride here as there are always crowds of hikers on the weekends out to see the fall aspens so be courteous of them for the first couple miles, after that the traffic dies down significantly.

There's also a campground right at the trailhead if you prefer to sleep under the stars after your ride.

This trail is jointly managed by the South Park Ranger District and Dillon Ranger District.

Description

There's a large parking lot right at the top of Kenosha Pass on 285. You'll ride the Colorado Trail west or on the right side if you're headed south on 285. It starts off with a tough climb that makes almost everyone gasp for air while mumbling 'Wow, I'm feeling the altitude!' because you are above 10,000'.

Stay on the Colorado Trail and you'll come to the backside of that pass. You'll see where 285 drops back down to the huge Como valley. You'll pass through sections of aspens, some more descents and rolling terrain, then you'll finally dump down to a dirt road.

Cross the road, head over a big bridge, ride up about 200 yards and you'll see a sign that says Colorado Trail up and to the left. That begins a climb up to Georgia Pass that is typically about 45 mins. - 1 hr. This section is challenging as the first 3-4 miles are rocky and somewhat technical.

About 2.5 miles up you can take a break at what we is called 'Lunch Rocks' where there is a big rock outcropping that gives you some nice views. After lunch, keep heading up and you'll soon be above treeline. Once you get up about 1/2 mile from Georgia Pass, you'll see a sign, a couple tree stump chairs, and a right turn onto W. Jefferson Trail.

Some people like to ride to the top of Georgia Pass and bomb back down on the Colorado Trail the way they came up. Another option is to take W. Jefferson trail down as it's more fun, has much less uphill traffic, and it's a chance to ride a different trail on the way down.

EIther way, you'll be all grins coming down and finally at the end of that descent. If you've followed the Jefferson trail down, you'll pop into a campground. Ride to the right and head towards the far end campsite - ride peacefully and easy through that site until you see a trail that continues as a faint doubletrack. In about 500 yards you'll see the fork for the Colorado Trail - you've just completed the lolli-pop. Continue straight and then back up towards Kenosha Pass parking lots.

Contacts

Local Club: Colorado Mountain Bike Association

Land Manager: USFS - South Park Ranger District

Shared By:

Brandon Eifrid with improvements by Wendy Sweet and 4 others
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.4 from 149 votes

#1

in Park County

#94

Overall
  4.4 from 149 votes
5 Star
56%
4 Star
33%
3 Star
10%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
1%
Recommended Route Rankings

#1

in Park County

#29

in Colorado

#94

Overall
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52,802 Since Dec 6, 2012
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Photos

Chilly October ride with awesome views and one last hurrah before snow covers all of this!
Mar 18, 2016 near Brecken…, CO
Descending the Colorado Trail near South Park Valley
Sep 11, 2013 near Brecken…, CO
Just before you top out at Georgia Pass, stop, regroup, refuel, laugh with friends and enjoy the scenery. For a better way back down go right on W. Jefferson trail instead of going back down the way you came.
Dec 6, 2012 near Brecken…, CO
Enjoy the initial downhill before the grunt to Georgia Pass.
Sep 7, 2017 near Jefferson, CO
Kenosha looking toward Breckenridge.
Sep 8, 2021 near Jefferson, CO
A well earned breather to gaze upon Mt. Guyot.
Sep 7, 2017 near Jefferson, CO

24 Comments

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Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 76 days ago
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Check-Ins

Oct 4, 2024
C MAC
All clear. W Jefferson trail is in great shape and they have done a lot of trail work on the upper switchbacks. 23.3mi — 3h 40m
Jun 30, 2024
Jim Chott
CT had a couple tiny snow drifts you can ride thru, Jefferson has a couple larger ones. Quite a few down trees on Jefferson and deep creek crossings. 23mi — 4h 16m
Aug 20, 2023
Maureen Petterson
Sep 25, 2022
Amanda Farth
Sep 24, 2022
Ryan MD
Leaves are turning and it's glorious. Lots of hikers. The final several miles uphill are tough just because of how long this loop is. 23mi — 4h 30m
Sep 4, 2022
Andrew Sullivan
Jul 18, 2022
Sarah Emilie Boivin
Jul 17, 2022
Jessica Laskowitz
Amazing ride! 22.8mi — 5h 40m

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