Maroon Bells Four Passes Loop, Colorado

Anton Krupicka holds the fastest time, 4h46m55s, set July 17, 2009.

The Maroon Bells Four Passes Loop is a 28-mile route in the Elk Mountains near Aspen, Colorado. It circumnavigates the Maroon Bells, through some of the most spectacular scenery in the state. I think it just might be the best run in the entire state! It is a challenging route, with 7,500 feet of climbing and descending, numerous creek crossings, and altitudes up to 12,460 feet. It is normally done as a 3-4 day backpack, but is an outstanding 1-day run for those fit enough. The best time to do the run is probably mid-to-late July, when the snow has melted, wildflowers are going crazy, and there is still plenty of water around.

I have done this route several times, with total time ranging from 6h45m to 7h15m. I have run both directions, but prefer counter-clockwise mainly because in that direction the last pass is a piece of cake, and running back to the Maroon Lake TH from West Maroon Pass is more gradual and fun that running down Buckskin Pass.

Anton Krupicka did the loop as a training run on July 17, 2009. He reports as follows:

I went counter-clockwise at a pretty standard training pace for most of the day and didn't inject any significant pace until the last 20 minutes or so, so it's definitely something that can be lowered. Especially since I had to take a few obligatory gawk-and-stare stops...such an epic run.

Splits: Crater split, 19:30; Buckskin pass, 1:02:30; Snowmass Lake, 1:35:45; Trailrider pass, 2:04:25; North Fork river crossing, 2:37:05; Frigid Air pass, 3:26; West Maroon Pass, 3:53; Crater split, 4:34 (making 4:14:30 for the "true" loop) and then another 12:55 back to the parking lot.

Also, I'd be interested in a GPS distance on this run. I wasn't running that slow today, but if it's 28 miles I was still doing over 10min miles? Damn. Also, I was cranking the downhill from Crater back to the parking lot, so I feel like it has to be more than 1.25 miles (of course, there were plenty of tourists/hikers clogging things up).

INCREDIBLE flowers today! -- Anton Krupicka

Prior to Krupicka's run, I had asked local expert Neal Beidleman about the FKT for this run, but he was not able to point to a faster time. Beidleman reported running the loop portion (not including the Crater to Maroon Lake segment) in "just under 5 hours".