Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

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nunns
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by nunns »

CheapCigarMan wrote: Wed Jun 07, 2023 3:44 pm Also, there are two different zones for camping near the Maroon Bells, under the MAROON BELLS-SNOWMASS WILDERNESS area, on the recreation site.
Crater Zone - covers the 11 different campsites near Crater Lake. Crater Lake sites 1 - 11.
Maroon Zone - covers dispersed camping in that area. Maroon Zone small group (1-4 people) and Maroon Zone large group (5-10 people).

Refer to the map for these zones. However, by looking at the map it's not clear where the exact boundary lines are for these two zones. I am assuming that the Crater Zone is for camping in the reserved campsite spots. And the Maroon Zone is anywhere outside those sites.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO ... 083862.pdf
OK, so if I am reading ALL of this right, and I want to attempt the Elks next summer, I either need to:

Spend a ton of time, energy, and money attempting to acquire the necessary permits, or:

Have someone drop me off on day 1 at a trailhead, hike into the area, and set up camp somewhere in the blue zone on the above referenced map.
Is that correct, or did I miss something?

Sean Nunn
Raytown MO
"Thy righteousness is like the great mountains." --Psalms 36:6
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dwoodward13
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by dwoodward13 »

nunns wrote: Thu Jun 08, 2023 8:31 am
CheapCigarMan wrote: Wed Jun 07, 2023 3:44 pm Also, there are two different zones for camping near the Maroon Bells, under the MAROON BELLS-SNOWMASS WILDERNESS area, on the recreation site.
Crater Zone - covers the 11 different campsites near Crater Lake. Crater Lake sites 1 - 11.
Maroon Zone - covers dispersed camping in that area. Maroon Zone small group (1-4 people) and Maroon Zone large group (5-10 people).

Refer to the map for these zones. However, by looking at the map it's not clear where the exact boundary lines are for these two zones. I am assuming that the Crater Zone is for camping in the reserved campsite spots. And the Maroon Zone is anywhere outside those sites.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO ... 083862.pdf
OK, so if I am reading ALL of this right, and I want to attempt the Elks next summer, I either need to:

Spend a ton of time, energy, and money attempting to acquire the necessary permits, or:

Have someone drop me off on day 1 at a trailhead, hike into the area, and set up camp somewhere in the blue zone on the above referenced map.
Is that correct, or did I miss something?

Sean Nunn
Raytown MO
Depending on which Elk peak you are talking about you wouldn't need someone to drop you off. The only one with parking restrictions is Maroon Lake (Bells/Pyramid). For those 3 it doesn't make any sense to camp if you aren't gonna go for camping permits anyways. For Capitol and Snowmass, you can park (no permit) and camp in the blue zones a few miles below their respective zones (in the blue area like you said). Everyone day hikes Castle/Conundrum, no parking permits there.
Last edited by dwoodward13 on Thu Jun 08, 2023 8:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
nunns
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by nunns »

dwoodward13 wrote: Thu Jun 08, 2023 8:40 am
nunns wrote: Thu Jun 08, 2023 8:31 am
CheapCigarMan wrote: Wed Jun 07, 2023 3:44 pm Also, there are two different zones for camping near the Maroon Bells, under the MAROON BELLS-SNOWMASS WILDERNESS area, on the recreation site.
Crater Zone - covers the 11 different campsites near Crater Lake. Crater Lake sites 1 - 11.
Maroon Zone - covers dispersed camping in that area. Maroon Zone small group (1-4 people) and Maroon Zone large group (5-10 people).

Refer to the map for these zones. However, by looking at the map it's not clear where the exact boundary lines are for these two zones. I am assuming that the Crater Zone is for camping in the reserved campsite spots. And the Maroon Zone is anywhere outside those sites.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO ... 083862.pdf
OK, so if I am reading ALL of this right, and I want to attempt the Elks next summer, I either need to:

Spend a ton of time, energy, and money attempting to acquire the necessary permits, or:

Have someone drop me off on day 1 at a trailhead, hike into the area, and set up camp somewhere in the blue zone on the above referenced map.
Is that correct, or did I miss something?

Sean Nunn
Raytown MO
Depending on which Elk peak you are talking about you wouldn't need someone to drop you off. The only one with parking restrictions is Maroon Lake (Bells/Pyramid). For those 3 it doesn't make any sense to camp if you aren't gonna go for camping permits anyways. For Capitol and Snowmass, you can park (no permit) and camp in the blue zones a few miles below their respective zones (in the blue area like you said). Everyone day hikes Castle/Conundrum, no parking permits there.
Good to know; thank you.

Sean Nunn
Raytown MO
"Thy righteousness is like the great mountains." --Psalms 36:6
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CheapCigarMan
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by CheapCigarMan »

nunns wrote: Thu Jun 08, 2023 8:31 am
CheapCigarMan wrote: Wed Jun 07, 2023 3:44 pm Also, there are two different zones for camping near the Maroon Bells, under the MAROON BELLS-SNOWMASS WILDERNESS area, on the recreation site.
Crater Zone - covers the 11 different campsites near Crater Lake. Crater Lake sites 1 - 11.
Maroon Zone - covers dispersed camping in that area. Maroon Zone small group (1-4 people) and Maroon Zone large group (5-10 people).

Refer to the map for these zones. However, by looking at the map it's not clear where the exact boundary lines are for these two zones. I am assuming that the Crater Zone is for camping in the reserved campsite spots. And the Maroon Zone is anywhere outside those sites.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO ... 083862.pdf
OK, so if I am reading ALL of this right, and I want to attempt the Elks next summer, I either need to:

Spend a ton of time, energy, and money attempting to acquire the necessary permits, or:

Have someone drop me off on day 1 at a trailhead, hike into the area, and set up camp somewhere in the blue zone on the above referenced map.
Is that correct, or did I miss something?

Sean Nunn
Raytown MO
Crater Zone and Maroon Zone are referring to camping permits. These give access to Maroon Peak, North Maroon, Thunder, Lightning (Unnamed 13,722 now LiDAR unranked), and Len Shoemaker (Unnamed 13,631). Perhaps others but these are the Cents & Bi-Cents in that area.

The camping permits are $10 a night per person plus $6 fee. Once you reserve a camping spot you will get a confirmation email from them and in that email there will be a link to reserve parking. Which you will need to purchase for $10 (unless you have a parks pass, then it's $0, not free because you've already paid for the pass).

In "off-season" after the road opens and before the shuttle busses begin. You may enter and park any time, you still need to purchase a parking pass during this time.
However, when the season opens, when the road is open and the shuttles begin, you are not allowed to park between 8am and 5pm. During this season you will need to arrive before 8am or after 5pm to park, and of course will need to purchase a parking pass.

The camping reservation system is separate from the Maroon Bells Parking reservation system. I think camping is federal and parking is local.
Camping reservations open up differently then parking. I'm not sure when they open etc. but you could book camping spots months before in advance and you could book well into the future. However, the Bells parking opens up on a rolling wave schedule. So be mindful of that.
And yes, both camping and parking book out very quickly.
For camping reservations you can only book two reservations at a time. Some people will book several different dates to anticipate weather windows. But you can only have two open reservations at a time with camping.

Yes, it's complicated. Yes, you need to be a lawyer to understand it. Yes, you should have a dedicated paid sys admin to book your Bells reservations. And when you talk to the folks there, these systems are in place because we are loving the area too much.

It's taken many many hours of reading, phone calls, and emails to decipher the process and to be able to put it into a concise format.
I hope it is helpful for you and others as you plan.
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by nunns »

CheapCigarMan,

It sounds like with your expertise, you could make a living setting up all the reservations for dumb saps like me.

Sean Nunn
"Thy righteousness is like the great mountains." --Psalms 36:6
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by Bill G »

I guess I should be glad my days of climbing and backpacking are over. Reading this makes my head hurt. I read a couple of replies for day-tripping the 4-passes loop. You guys must be hard core. ( It's about the same distance as Rim to Rim to Rim).The first 3 times into the area I was working w VOC-RFOV and was mildly aware that 14ers were in the area. Did not know there was a trail that connected them. Did not know the difficulty level. The first time I back-packed most of the 4-pass loop, I didn't even know there was such a thing. Just looked at a map and planned a hike. The last time I actually hiked 4-pass loop, with an extra day at Willow Lake. So, it took me 5 trips to even understand the hoopla. I knew I had to be at Maroon Lake by a certain time and had to pay an entrance fee. Now I learn you need a PhD in Pass Management to even consider what I once took for granted. Good luck! Glad I lived in a simpler time.
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by SkaredShtles »

OK, Gramps.

:roll: :mrgreen:
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by two lunches »

morning! madmattd and i have a camping permit for snowmass lake 6/18-20 (sunday-tuesday). permits are valid for up to 4 people, so if two more folks want to piggyback on this reservation, please reach out. it's my understanding from recent TRs/CRs that most of the sites are still snow-covered, so this might not mean much, but figured i'd toss it out there anyway.

happy trails y'all
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by CheapCigarMan »

two lunches wrote: Tue Jun 13, 2023 8:55 am morning! madmattd and i have a camping permit for snowmass lake 6/18-20 (sunday-tuesday). permits are valid for up to 4 people, so if two more folks want to piggyback on this reservation, please reach out. it's my understanding from recent TRs/CRs that most of the sites are still snow-covered, so this might not mean much, but figured i'd toss it out there anyway.

happy trails y'all
This is a good idea. Perhaps another thread should be started and dedicated to offer such openings and invites for parking and camping.
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by vertical_volume »

two lunches wrote: Tue Jun 13, 2023 8:55 am morning! madmattd and i have a camping permit for snowmass lake 6/18-20 (sunday-tuesday). permits are valid for up to 4 people, so if two more folks want to piggyback on this reservation, please reach out. it's my understanding from recent TRs/CRs that most of the sites are still snow-covered, so this might not mean much, but figured i'd toss it out there anyway.

happy trails y'all
I'll be seeing you out there! I have a permit for June 18-19.
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by sfreytag »

Just a reminder permits went on sale this morning for Aug 1 - Nov 30. Go get them while they are still available. https://www.recreation.gov/permits/4675333
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Re: Permits Required for Maroon-Snowmass Camping in 2023

Post by terribletigzy »

Snowmass Lake permits are going fast. All Saturdays in September pretty much sold out instantly, I don't imagine other dates will last long either.
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