Trail Overview
The North Bald Pitkin Cut-Off Trail is a 1.2-mile-long, steep and rocky ATV trail through the Gunnison National Forest south of Pitkin, Colorado. The north end starts at an intersection with ATV Trail 647, and it enters a scenic aspen grove on a wide two-track full of rocks and roots. It is a very steep climb from north to south, gaining almost 900 feet in elevation in just over a mile. The climb is made more difficult by constantly being covered in big, loose, round rolling rocks and bigger embedded boulders that are a test of traction and make it a slower ride. The rocks aren’t tall ledges – they are just big and chunky and loose. The path is pretty wide throughout the route, so ATVs can pick a good line around the biggest boulders. Some sections are more rutted and off-camber, and it’s troughed in a few spots, dug out a foot below the forest floor. There are a few unmarked intersections with primitive and unmapped forest roads, so an offline map is helpful here to stay on the route. The south end ends on North Bald Mountain Road, which connects to Old Monarch Pass.
Difficulty
This is an intermediate route due to very steep and rocky terrain full of boulders and loose, round, rolling rocks. The trail is a constant climb from north to south. Expect ruts, roots, and unmarked intersections.
