Bolam Pass

 Rating: 2

We did the pass immediately after they had done maintenance on the road. At that time 4WD was not required.

Location: Between Rico, CO and Purgatory Ski Resort.

Trailhead: 

The western side of the road starts just north of Rico, CO. The GPS coordinates are 37°46'08.4"N 107°59'18.0"W (37.768994, -107.988321). The road is 6.6 miles north of the gas station in Rico on highway 145. It is located 5.9 miles south of Lizard Head Pass. The road is on the east side of the highway. 

The eastern side of the road is near the entrance to Purgatory Resort. You turn into the main entrance of Purgatory Resort and follow Purgatory Blvd for 0.4 miles. The road is on the right. GPS coordinates are 37°37'59.2"N 107°48'41.6"W (37.633121, -107.811557).

Description:

Watch a YouTube video of our trip!

Bolam Pass is a gem, and I hesitate sharing it because I don't want it to become popular like the Alpine Loop. Having said that, I suspect it won't be as crowded because you don't need 4-wheel drive and it is further away from other popular trails. However, if you are in the area, I highly recommend this trail. To be honest, it is currently my favorite road in the San Juan Mountains. The reason? There are less people and the scenery is spectacular. It is a relaxing road to get up into the mountains and enjoy the views.

The road is a simple, well maintained forest road. When we went on it they were grading the road. They didn't put down much road surface, so the road is still a typical dirt base and not a gravel road. This has the potential to get a little rough depending on when it was last maintained. 

I have heard reports that it was difficult trail, but then I saw reports that 4-wheel drive wasn't required. One example is when we stopped at the Cayton Campground when we started the trail. This is a great campground and I wanted to show my cousin the campground so we can stay there in the future. We stopped and talked with the camp host. When we told him we were doing Bolam pass, he looked at my cousin's Lexus GX470 and said his vehicle would not be able to make it. He commented that the road was too rough and he didn't have enough clearance. We thanked him for his advice, but knew my cousin has done much more technical trails in his GX470. We did shift into low range during the trip, but that was purely for gearing and to use less brakes on the way down the Purgatory side. We did not require 4 wheel drive and only mildly high clearance was needed that day. Honestly, a Subaru Outback would have been fine.

The scenery is spectacular and doesn't disappoint. There are expansive vistas and forests. The mountains are impressive. It is exactly what a high mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains should offer.

We didn't see many people, considering the area and the time of year. We probably saw only 10 vehicles all day until we got close to Purgatory. The last few miles as we approached Purgatory had plenty of vehicles, but up near the pass the number of vehicles were sparse. 

There are several roads in the area. Bolam Pass is county road 578.  Most of the turns are obvious as county road 578 is typically the main road. However, if you start from the Purgatory Side, there is a turn to the right at 37.656694, -107.932575 where the main road goes left and 578 goes right. This is an easy turn to miss if you start from Purgatory. 

Here is the KML and GPX files for the road.