14ers.com • Trailhead Info and Status (West Winfield Trailhead)

West Winfield Trailhead

Location

Sawatch Range
38.99366° N, -106.47108° W
14ers: La Plata Peak

Road Difficulty

4 (0=Paved, 6=Very Difficult 4WD)
2WD dirt to Winfield. 4WD to 10,700'.

Driving Directions

From Leadville: Drive 20 miles south on U.S. 24 and turn right on the Chaffee County 390 road. From Buena Vista: Drive 14.5 miles north on U.S. 24 and turn left on the Chaffee County 390 road. On the 390 road (dirt), drive 11.3 miles to Winfield. There are a bunch of log buildings here. Continue to a fork. The main road goes left but turn right onto the 4WD road for West Winfield. Parallel a fence for a bit before turning left. After about 0.4 miles, pass the Winfield Cemetery, which is marked by an explanatory sign. Shortly thereafter, pass a loop to your right, that provides some parking places. Continue a bit farther and you'll find a turn-off on the left that provides more parking. After driving approximately 1.7 miles up this 4WD road, a rough but obvious road rises to the right. Park near this junction or turn right up and drive the last few hundred yards and park below a gate where you'll find the start of the trail.

Winter Access

Closed near 9,200 feet - many miles below the TH.

<1, 2, 3

Status Updates
2008-11-02 Posted By: emcee smith Info: The road between Winfield and the trailhead (junction) is a bit rough, but not any worse than the bulk of the Gray‘s Peak road. There was some ice on the road in sloped spots that made 4wd handy, but probably not necessary. I wouldn‘t recommend driving very much past the turnoff to the actual trailhead, the road gets quite a bit rougher, and there are spots with tall rocks in tight corners, may be difficult to navigate without a spotter. Parking just up the road from the junction only adds about the 200 yards to the hike.
2008-06-22 Posted By: KeithK Info: Road is clear all the way to the trailhead; it is very rough and rocky beyond the cemetery, and there are 2 stream crossings.
2008-06-22 Posted By: Hardboater Info: At Winfield spoke with local summer residents who advised that remains of a winter snow avalanche still blocked access to the trail head at 10,700 ft. BTW another avalanche from the north side of the valley at Winfield hit a cabin knocking it off it‘s foundation.
2008-03-07 Posted By: BillMiddlebrook Info: Rode a snowmobile to 10,700‘ in the meadow where the smaller road turns uphill. Deep snow in the area, but sleds have packed down the trail to this area.
2007-07-09 Posted By: ccunnin Info: 07-08-07 The trail leading west of Winfield is pretty much clear all the way to the open field just shy of the trailhead. There is posted for high clearance 4x4 only. A smart driver can make it with AWD.
2007-05-26 Posted By: Chris P. Info: The road to Winfield is clear and the 4x4 road is clear for at least a mile. I didn’t drive any further, but I didn’t encounter any snow. There is quite a bit of runoff water running down the 4x4 road though.
2006-11-13 Posted By: SarahT Info: Road is clear to Winfield, could make it at least partways to the 4WD trailhead if willing to drive over boulders with several inches of snow
2005-06-30 Posted By: Fluffy Info: Drove the 4Runner to the 4x4 parking area without any problems on 18Jun2005. Some big rocks make a high clearance vehicle necessary.
2005-05-22 Posted By: Chicago Transplant Info: I drove the Clear Creek road today, and the road is clear and passable for all vehicles to the Winfield townsite. I did not continue beyond the town.