Molas Pass Or Silverton To Durango

cbrossman said:

SJ is correct, even by Durango standards, this is a very, very hard ride (and SJ is pretty damn fit by Durango standards).
For a fun, less painful day, with lots of time above 11K, conisider Molas to Cascade Creek. Still not an easy day, but just as great, all single track, and a shuttle between Cascade Creek and Molas parking lot.

Click to expand...

I road Molas to D-Town with a friend this past month. We did it on 9-15-07 and the conditions were absolutely mint! We needed lights coming out of Junction Creek, but it made it all worth it when we looked back from the La Platas towards Engeneer Mountian and could barely make out Molas Pass. What a cross crontry advenure! It was Mitch's first time on any of that section of the CT, can you believe that? What an introduction not to mention a good onsight! It us took about 12.5 hours in the saddle and 15 total. I think doing it first in two days makes it seem unreasonable in one and if your in shape for the link up you should just hop on it! I know that's crazzy lodgic but it makes sence to me after doing it both ways this year. September has less light but the trail is ususlly in better shape and the storms are less frequent. Its the Grand Tour, and a CT Classic!

me too

consumerbydesign said:

70 miles of of bliss or what? Need some held planning a day ride. Big ride but handy, what`s the deal? I would have used the search feature, but it`s.... like..., gone.

Click to expand...

actually, its 73.9 miles of bliss with 9,640 vertical feet of climbing. i just did the research, also planning a trip. a few friends are driving down this afternoon to set up shuttles and a high camp at hotel draw. they are doing it in two days, molas to hotel draw (31.8 miles) and then hotel draw to junction creek on friday (42.1 miles).

due to family obligations i can't leave for that long, hopefully (my hall passes are usually granted last minute) driving down tomorrow afternoon and camping at molas pass, blitzing the whole thing friday, catching up to my buddies and poaching a ride back to my car and driving back to cb friday night.

i've done kennebec to junction creek several times and have done molas to bolam once years ago, buffest sweetest track i've ever done. i've heard that several turns are unmarked with the colorado trail taking the less traveled turn so i bought the official colorado trail guidebook. it is an invaluable resource, all the turns are in there with exact mileages. i would also highly recommend lat40's second edition southwest colorado map, the entire molas to durango c-trail section is outlined in white.

maybe i'll see you out there.

that's great to hear you're going for that ride in one day! Totally doable in a day, if you limit your breaks. Riding it solo has always been a dream of mine. You may know the fella I road it with two weeks ago. He is form Gunni and puts on the 24 hours in the Sage. And you are right on the mileage. I put on a fundraiser every year called the CT Jamboree and we camp at Hotel Draw. This is a large area and the milage you are quoting ends the first day where the CT intersects FR 550. There are a slue of good camps to chose from and depending on where your friends choose to camp, will set the milage accordingly. So good luck on reelin' in your buddies, it can be done if you get an early start form Molas. We started at like 6am and got benighted in Junction Creek. So I recomend you bring a light this time of year! Otherwise you might end up having to finish on the Junction Creek road. This happened to me one other time. In July you can pull it off in one day without a light, but with about 12hours of ridable light you may run short this weekend. I hope that hall pass comes through for yah, and if not you should join us in the CT Jamboree next year. We have a web site at www.ctjamboree.com. I'm trying to get a permitt form the Forest Service to do a race or maybe I should call it a group ride for a one day push next year. I'll update the site with details once I have it all set up. Best of luck to you my friend, the trail is in great shape right now!

question for skion

i rode kennebec a couple weeks ago and the trail was in ridiculously fine shape, i swear they use combs, not rakes...

anyway, that section was signed really well, much better than just a couple years ago, is molas to kennebec decked out in new signage as well? the reason i ask is i don't have a computer but was thinking of getting a cheapo just for this trip because all the turns are marked in my guidebook with mileage.

thanks for the kind words

on another note, i too, have thought about how sick it would be to race from molas to durango...then i thought about potential trail impact. that piece of trail is arguably the finest on the planet and the thought of 100 quasi roadies skidding around all those switchbacks is nauseating to me. i've seen the impact on our crown jewels (403 & 401) after the cb classic. if you do it i suggest limiting it to 20 riders and have everyone sign something swearing not to skid or pass off-trail. just my 2 cents. having said all that, if you pull it off, sign me up!

i hear you on the impact, that's why its up to the Froest Service. I may make it an invite only and limit the riders. If you raed about the Jamboree, you'll get a better idea of our cause. We are heavily involved in maintaining the trail and I plan on keeping it that way!
So the trail is well marked and the main place you could get screwed up is when the CT intersects FR 550 at the quote unquote Hotel Draw. This is a nebulous area. It goes road to trail to road several times. That map you mentioned form lettatute is right on and if you have that you should be fine.There is also another confusing turn at the base of Rolling Pass. If you don't make a sharp right you end up heading towards Engeneer mountain on the white creek trail. There was a new sign posted there this year. A compouter will help too, but the addopter of the CT form Durnago are on it and do a good job at posting it when nesisary. Good luck my man and join us on the Jamboree this year. You can find my email there if you want to get more details. And you are going to love the section between Bolum Pass and Hotel Draw! Its my favorate, total butter!

3 days of bliss, need help with logistics

consumerbydesign said:

70 miles of of bliss or what? Need some held planning a day ride. Big ride but handy, what`s the deal? I would have used the search feature, but it`s.... like..., gone.

Click to expand...

73.9 mi and 9640 vertical sounds like about 3 days of bliss to me, given the elevation and all. Here's what I had in mind:

Day 1: Molas Pass to 26C in CT guidebook, 22.7 mi, 3570 ft, camp near FR179
Day 2: 26C to 27L, 24.3 mi, 3879 ft, camp near FR4360
Day 3: 27L to Durango, 26.9 mi, 2200 ft

Is this a decent plan, or is there a better way to do it? Would it take a beefy 4WD or would a crossover SUV make it up those forest roads? How close can you get to the CT from those roads? Is there decent camping?

And finally, when will all the snow melt?

Thanks for any help you can give me with this :thumbsup:
G