Bierstadt Trailhead

The Bierstadt Trailhead, on the Forest Service’s Clear Creek Ranger District, is reached from I-70 exit 228 by taking County Road 381, the Guanella Pass Scenic Byway, nine miles south from Georgetown; from the south, take Highway 285 to Grant and turn north onto the pass road. It serves the Mount Bierstadt Trail (#711), 3.6 miles one way, and the Rosalie Trail, between 11,471 and 14,063 feet. There are vault toilets. The area is generally not snow-free until late June or early July; in winter the Forest Service lists cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

Wilderness rules apply: a free self-issued permit, dogs on a hand-held leash at all times, no motorized or mechanized travel, groups of no more than 15 people or 10 stock animals, and camps, fires and stock at least 100 feet from water and trails where camping is allowed. The Forest Service’s Guanella Pass alert (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/alerts/guanella-pass) explains the order covering the quarter mile either side of the pass road: camping only at the Clear Lake and Guanella Pass campgrounds, no fires, parking only in designated sites or at the summit, and no one in the strip between 10 pm and 6 am other than Bierstadt Trail users and campground campers. The Forest Service’s Guanella Pass Scenic Byway page (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/recreation/guanella-pass-scenic-byway) describes the paved road from Georgetown over the 11,700-foot pass to Grant, with parking in signed pullouts and designated trailhead lots only. Facts from the Forest Service’s Bierstadt Trailhead page (updated 19 February 2026), the Guanella Pass alert and the byway page, read 10 October 2026.