Pearl Pass Dispersed Camping

Stayed in one of the numbered sites overnight for Castle and Conundrum the following morning. Site was large and quiet.

Nice little site just off the road. Couldn’t get much higher in our Ford Econoline but it was fine for the night. Lots of cars driving past and a few hikers. Stream across the way and decent shade.

Pearl Pass is nested in a beautiful area between Aspen and Crested Butte.  The dirt road is often very rugged, requiring 4WD low and higher clearance even for my Toyota Tacoma TRD driving at a speed safe enough not to air-down or gouge my sidewalls from the sharp rocks. There are 9 well marked dispersed sites.  I arrived at dusk, stayed in site 8 (1.1 miles from the paved road), which was the last one at the time and requires a walk-in tent.  I would not advice a RV or pull-behind for the upper sites unless you're open to extra work.  People ended up camping everywhere (Labor Day), so if you're in a bind, its a good place to get lost, as most casual AWD's and tourists would not go too far up.

Great camping spots! Would highly suggest site 7, it was really large space and has a path to your own private creek area! Also you need to have 4wd & some clearance to get to any sites past site 3 The first two sites are pretty accessible, just rocky. Really pretty views out there, lots of hikers & bikers in the area.

About 45 minutes from downtown Aspen.

Just past the ghost town of Ashcroft you start your travels off road. A sign tells you only the numbered sights 1-9 are authorized for fires in metal pits. Before long you come across site 1 directly across from a stream, shortly followed by site 2. The road turns and steepens you drive for a while and come to site 3. This is where I camped. We had a stream across the road and one behind us. The noise from the water was tranquil. Mesquitos were present as well as ants. Did not view any wildlife. We camped in a tent and the site was mostly level with some rocks. I walked up to site 4 and it had many more rocks. I did not investigate further. We only stayed one night. It was beautiful though not much to see in nearby Aspen (very expensive for supplies).

Love this site. It is site #10 in the BC campground.

100% need 4x4 high clearance to get to this site.

Awesome area to escape the big crowds around the Maroon Bells. Lots of options of spots, some more secluded than others. Fresh water available from the creek, and there’s plentiful firewood due to lots of avalanches that hit the area in 2018/2019. Bear territory so plan accordingly