Saturday needed to be somewhat of a rest day for my roomates and I. All of us having had a very busy week at work, we decided to do some 4wheeling around the valley.

Original plan was to head up and over Pearl pass to Crested Butte. We made it up all the way to the last talus field where snow lingers the longest. Here we met several feet of snow, and looking farther up the pass, there were several sections of snow that were going to be impassable.

Not wanting to spoil the day we drove down valley to the small town of Marble. Plan was to drive the Lead King loop to the Lead King Basin TH and then down through Crystal. After passing the TH we continued down the valley and came to the sign pointing to Crested Butte. After talking it over we opted to “Go Explore.” There is only one section of this pass that gave us particular concern and the views were breathtaking.

We were all somewhat nervous at what we might find as we came near to devil’s punchbowl. The road narrowed and the grade increased, but the truck kept doing what Landcruisers do best…crawling up hill. We crossed the bridge below and continued up the steep hill next to the waterfalls. The rock step section required some spotting from outside, but despite being a wider vehicle, there was still room for us to make it up. Though I wouldn’t call it ample.

Upon reaching the top the trail becomes VERY straightforward again.

We passed this sign on the way out, I don’t remember one on the Marble side. Oh well.

Sorry for the Photo Quality, it was a somewhat cloudy day.

Another adventure another day. See ya next time.

JW