Bunce School Road

Total Miles
5.2

Elevation

2,718.56 ft

Duration

3 Hours

Technical Rating

5

Moderate

Best Time

Summer, Fall

Trail Overview

Bunce School Road is a moderate trail that can run with high clearance 4x4 vehicles. Most of the trail is mild and can be done in 2wd with 32" tires. There are some sections, especially on the lollipop loop section, where both front and rear lockers were used and I scraped skid plates with 35" tires on a 6 gen Bronco. The lollipop loop is definitely the most exciting portion of the trail and a spotter is handy, especially on a couple of the steep ledge declines heading downhill. It's a good place to practice driving with 3 wheels on the ground. There is a lot of water runoff this year in early June and there were a few water crossings that came up to the bottom of the doors. There are several off-shoot trails that can add some additional mileage, as well as some off-map trails that lead into different sections of the mountain. The T-33 plane crash site is on this trail, but the snow prevented us from climbing up to see it. There are several off-shoot trails that have some fun rock obstacles to play on. You could spend hours exploring the additional off-shoots and scrambling over rock outcroppings. In addition, there are several places with excellent natural backstops if you want to bring out the firearms and have some fun with target practice. There are several excellent areas for dispersed camping along this route.

Photos of Bunce School Road

Bunce School Road
Bunce School Road
Bunce School Road

Difficulty

The main trail is relative mild with a few loose rock ledges. Most of the difficult lines have a bypass that can be handled by 2wd vehicles. The most difficult portion of this trail is the lollipop loop section that some people call the flat irons. This section requires a lifted vehicle with 35" tires. I used both lockers on this section as the ledges had a lot of loose rocks.

Technical Rating

5

Status Reports

Brysen Montgomery
Apr 17, 2024
4x4
Open
Muddy/Wet
Snow/Ice
Trail has a lot of run off so lots of puddles, about 3 miles in there is more snow on the trail, it’s doable if you have high clearance and just roll up. Overall a fun trail right now.
Cannon L
Apr 05, 2024
4x4
Open
Muddy/Wet
Snow/Ice
Solid trail right now! Patchy snow and mud towards the fire house and continues to become snowier as you continue. Fairly deep puddle towards the beginning. Did not get to the T-33 trail head but made it fairly close. Overall, a fun early season trail that can be done in most 4x4s.
Shane Saunders
Feb 25, 2024
4x4
Open
Muddy/Wet
Snow/Ice
There is deep-ish snow on the ground in spots, if your vehicle falls thru you may turtle. Make sure to air down and bring traction boards if you’re unsure. I got stuck in my unmodified 4x4 f150 crew cab and had to dig myself out at one point, no boards. Otherwise had a great time wheeling here.
Riley Rivera
Feb 25, 2024
4x4
Open
Muddy/Wet
Snow/Ice
Small bits of mud here and there from past snow. Trail was open from peak to peak high way entrance and the one by the northern fire house. I only saw one person on the trail other than me. Conditions were great for camping and wheeling. I’m in a 3 inch lifted 4runner and had no problem at all with traction or clearance. Stay safe out there.

Access Description

This is an easy drive coming out of Lyons, CO. There is parking right at the trail head if you want to ditch a trailer or car pool through the trails.

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