The Scariest 4x4 Trail in the US! - Black Bear Pass Colorado
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
- Black Bear Road or Black Bear Pass, and officially Forest Service Road 648, is a dirt road that starts from the 11,018-foot summit of Red Mountain Pass on U.S. Highway 550 (between Ouray and Silverton) to Telluride, Colorado. The road crests at Black Bear Pass, elevation 12,840 feet, and descends over a set of switchbacks as it navigates the heights above Telluride. The road passes Bridal Veil Falls, the tallest waterfall in Colorado.
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#colorado #overlanding #4x4 #4x4offroad #jeep #jeepwrangler #camping #telluride #blackbear #jeepbadgeofhonor
There are thousands of Black Bear Pass videos on TH-cam, and this is one of the best.
Thank you
I never saw those falls before at the power house. Nice.
No worries about taking 5-point, 3-point, or 0-point turns on the switchbacks. No judge is handing out style points here. The point is you SAFELY negotiate each turn. Nicely done!
There's a guy with a snorkel Rubicon that does a 5 point turn to get into his preferred parking spot at the corporate office building I work at. Always gives me a good laugh as I wait for my computer start up.
Like you said, not hard but dangerous. I have run this trail 8 times over the years and every time it got my pulse rate up. I'm 69 now and ran this last year and it was probably my last time. Glad Y'all enjoyed it.
We were over that road 3 times in the sixties, once in a 1962 four-cylinder Scout and twice in a 1968 eight-cylinder Scout, my dad, my mom, my brother, me and two dogs along with two weeks' worth of grub, sleeping bags and tent and whatever else we needed for two weeks of roughing it in the San Juans.
"It's narrow, it's steep, it's tippy, ... it's Black Bear Pass." Nailed it. Both in words and in tone of voice. =)
This is defiantly one of the best videos covering Black Bear Pass!! Awesome!!
One of the best Black Bear Pass videos I’ve seen!
@@txroamer thank you so much!
That was just great ! Thx much…. Re: switchbacks….. better safe than sorry my friend. ❤️ and ☮️. Pt, Chicago
Just sitting here on my couch watching this video and listening to GMRS chatter about someone leaving a radio keyed up on channel 20 when I hear your voice come across my radio. Lol small world.
Best video on this route that i’ve seen. Great job!
Thank you for showing so much from the trailhead to the steps! Most videos of this trail only show the steps and switchbacks. While those are the main attraction for this trail, it is extremely helpful (and spectacular) seeing the rest of the trail! I also appreciated the views of the steps from a spotter POV, which really showcases the obstacles and width (more like narrowness) of the trail so much more effectively than dash cam perspective. "GoPro effect" really downplays the severity of the obstacles when used as a dash cam - even more so with your high vantage point with camera several inches above the windshield. Your video added to my confidence of traversing this trail in my stock 200 series Land Cruiser on 33" tires.
I drove Imogene Pass from Telluride to the summit last fall (mid-October 2023), but the trail was impassable (snow) on the way down from Imogene Pass to Ouray. So, I had to turnaround and drive back down to Telluride. Of course, the switchbacks are visible from Tomboy Road on the way up to Imogene Pass.
Ya I can't wait for our video to get published. This was my favorite trail I've ever done
Thank you for showing this part of the trail. Planning to run it in July.
Great video. I'm going there in a couple months and now seeing the view I'm super excited!
I love how you’re always sporting the collared shirt
So when I make an official Trail Traveler shirt, it should be collared?
@@TrailTraveler I would. Maybe make a couple versions.
What a great day! The San Juans are amazing.
You should always stop before the steps and walk down to the stream and splash some water in your face and head. It's a tradition and brings good luck. I ran it solo last year after the slides shut it down in a full-size it works. After the pass we ran into fog so bad you could not see 20 feet ahead and the steps were wet.
Oh my, that turn at 27min! Yikes. Not a trail for me but I love your videos. I found your channel looking for Moab stuff and now I enjoy all your travels!
Exceptional video! Really enjoyed the narration throughout!
outstanding video , magnificent cinematography.
As a retired driving instructed my advice is when you reverse on the hairpins (swithchbacks) juat as you finish your revers get other lock on that will save you a lot of turns in the manover. Good luck great vids.
It’s 5 o’clock in the morning here in Massachusetts and I am binging your videos, out here we mostly just go through the woods or a few sandpits. I think I am moving out west. Seriously.
Wow! Awesome trail with beautiful scenery, this one is on my bucket list!
Really enjoyed the ride! Thanks for sharing it with us.
Awesome footage. We did it with Gladiators the first of August. As you said the views are spectacular. Slow with eyes on the trail you will have a great time and test your nerves
Nice job on the stairs. Beautifully executed.
Black Bear is my favorite!
Nice video and good driving demonstration. thanks for sharing your experience, I hope someday to be able to do this tour.
Your drone footage in the early part is absolutely awsome. And I don't think there exists a better choice of music to go with them. You're right, so many people doing BBP videos concentrate on the trail and the switchbacks, not on the scenery. A loss for everyone. Your video is a win all around. =)
Thank you, we put a lot of effort into the videos and we try to highlight what WE enjoyed, not just highlights for clickbait.
I remember that view at 9:39 very well.
Outstanding, thank you for posting.
Great job. Thanks for sharing your adventures.
I been watching your channel, as I love Colorado and came across your channel cause i am planning another trip and want to bring my 96 Grand Cherokee and do the offroad trails but I live in Indiana, we have nothing in my area for offroading except in the winter plus I'll do off road recoveries if my buddies call. Anyway this is one of my favorite episodes I have watched, but I can say all of your videos are great I really enjoy watching and learning from your videos. Thank you.
I’m going to attempt this in my stock trailhawk towards the end of July.
Check your plastic oil filter/cooling housing before you go.
@@AStanton1966 it’s fine
This gives the difficulty of the pass its due credit I think because of your GoPro positioning. Very well made video.
Great video. Planning on doing BBP again at the end of September. I missed Stoney last trip. On the list this time.
Thank you for your advice. Make’s prefect sense. Just interested in doing basic roads. Thank you mike
Awesome footage !!!
That whole area around Telluride is amazing. Even just on I70 to or from Denver is really something.
Know it’s a 2yr old vid but couldn’t you have done a front dig on the tight switchbacks?
At the time, my Jeep didn’t have a dig//cutting brake option. Either the Tazer JL I can do that now
Excellent video of the Black Pass and specially the switch backs, this is without a doubt the best one I've seen of the switchback part. I do have a question is all of Black Pass one way travel ?
You can go almost all the way to top of the switchbacks and turn around and go out. It is one way down the switchbacks.
Great video! I have a stock 2023 JL 2dr Rubicon. Do you think I would have a problem with it on this trail?
Stock Rubicon will not have any problems at all
Still waiting for them to allow black bear to open again to do it.hopefully this year but highly doubtful they will open it for off roading.
What upgrades and tires have you done to your Jeep?
Our complete build list is here: revkit.com/trailtraveler/
I'll admit, I'm one of the "scaredy cats" when it comes to Black Bear Pass (due to Acrophobia). I'll do the first half, take some pics at the summit/sign, but then go back to Ouray -- I won't be doing the second half down into Telluride.
At least re: Black Bear, the Good News is "trail-damage" is highly unlikely -- it just has a high "scary factor" -- so that sure beats trying something like the Rubicon Trail or the other "Difficult" or "Extreme" rated trails in Utah. Plus, I'd be driving alone, no spotter available.
So definitely a "no thanks" on those. ;-)
For some strange reason, I don't find scratching, gouging, bending or breaking things (or doing roll-overs) on my vehicle "off road fun" -- or "entertaining." Not to mention the time in the shop (and big-bucks!) afterwards for repairs.
Just a leisurely-going and not-too-demanding off-road/in-the-wild outing is fine with me...but it's nice to know my vehicle (Daily Driver as well) can do WAY more if I ever want (or need) it to. :-)
-- BR
37 degrees holy crap
When did you do this drive? I see the video was posted on 9/9/21 but assume you probably waited until you were home and had time process the video before you posted it. I am going to be in the San Juans for the last 8 or 9 days in August through Labor Day but was thinking most of the wildflowers would be gone by then even at the highest elevations. Also, some of the road in the 2 way section looked awfully narrow for long stretches. I'm assuming there must be a good number of wider stretches where vehicles can pass if it's 2 way. I'm sure I could go to Telluride one way safely, but would like to leave the option to do it as an out and back to Black Bear Pass in case the switchbacks are beyond my comfort level when I see them in person. Great video, thanks for posting it.
The video was shot on August 9, 2021, so it took a month for us to get it posted online. The thing about Black Bear Pass is not that it is a hard trail, in fact, we say it is a beginner trail, with expert consequences. From the top of the switchbacks, it is one-way traffic down. It is pretty easy to navigate, it can just be hard on the nerves because of the height.
@@TrailTraveler My issue is that I have no off road experience at this point, though I've been driving for close to 50 years and have driven plenty of unpaved forest service roads in the last ten years or so doing hiking and photography. I have just recently bought a used 4Runner Limited 4WD after realizing how many places I couldn't go without a legitimate high clearance 4WD vehicle on a 2 month trip to the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, southern Utah and northern Arizona in late summer and early fall of this year. The 4Runner is strictly a stock vehicle and will remain one. I have off road driving instruction set up with a guy in my area (the Smokies) set up in the next few weeks. He has an extensive off road trails network on his property that people pay to access, and I'll drive trails of varying difficulty with instruction. I'll have several months to work on my off roading skills, but we don't have any trails that I am currently aware of to rival the ones in Colorado or the Moab area.
I have the guides on 4 WD roads in southern Colorado, Utah and Arizona by Wells and Peterson. They cover 100 trails in each book and rate them in terms of difficulty. They rate Black Bear all the way through to Telluride as difficult, but the 2 way section to the pass and back as moderate. It's clear from their commentary that despite the difficult rating, they don't see the Black Bear Pass one way drive to be nearly as difficult as some of the others in the category, and it's largely driven by the pucker factor and risk of catastrophe in the switchback section. Their message on the trail is a lot like yours, you should take this trail very seriously and be extremely careful, but if your nerves can handle it you should be able to handle it. It seems like the Zion Landing hike, it's terrifying to look at on video, but thousands of people do it and only a tiny number die or have a catastrophe.
I was initially ruling out any trail Wells and Peterson rate as difficult in their books and was going to stick to easy and moderate, but I'll see how my off road skill and confidence develops over the next few months to make final decisions on what trails to do. I feel reasonably confident that I will be able to at least go to Black Bear Pass out and back with confidence. I'm not interested in becoming a hard core off roader. The 4Runner is going to be my every day vehicle so I don't want to bang it up too much and I certainly don't want to put myself or others at risk. I only want to use the 4Runner to get to scenic places for photography and hiking that I otherwise couldn't access.
Any thoughts you have on what constitutes an experienced and competent off roader and how long it takes to become one would be appreciated. I plan on making multiple trips to the 4 corners states over the next few years so I don't have to bite everything off at once. And when I get there on this trip, I'll start with trails rated easy and work my way up depending on how I'm doing. These videos you and others post are a tremendous resource for people like me, as reading about a drive is one thing but looking at the actual terrain and technical issues is another.
@@Don-md6wn The best thing I could suggest is to join the San Juan Mountain Trails Group on Facebook and try to find someone to lead you on the trails. I also suggest using TrailsOffroad.com (and their app). Getting experience is tricky, some people "just get it" and some people never do. The fact that you are taking a class will put you ahead of 70% of the people on the trails. Then it is just a matter of building confidence.
been waiting for this one .... another great job -- Wish i had known you guys were doing this one as i was a few hours northeast of here for about 10 days. What suction cup camera mount are you using on the front windshield ?
You made it down without hurting your jeep so a good day
Hello question for you a stock Toyota Tacoma. What level of off roading can this truck handle 4 by 4.
Like to do some camping and little back roads at west. Any recommendations I got 18 years experience riding 4- wheelers. That it. Thanks
If you use TrailsOffroad.com or their app, look for anything rated up to a 4. However, you would need some good all-terrain tires. Street tires can get torn up very quickly off-road.
SO CREEPY! I would never do this!!!
So, what is the wheelbase on your Jeep JL? :) I "Googled" it but the term JL came up with "Jeep Liberty" = "Jeep Patriot" & something else but your not in those I know. Thanks
Jeep says 118.4 inches
The trail is NOT intense as you mention. If you think switchbacks are difficult, thankfully you will stay off the truly hard trails and leave it to those of us who aren’t scared.
I have said it’s an easy trail with expert consequences. I have also seen seasoned wheelers have complete panic attacks there. I have never said it is a difficult trail but it most certainly is intense for some people.
@@TrailTraveler
congratulations for dealing with some of these commenters, it ain’t easy as they say.
@@TrailTravelerGreat video. Some of these insane comments about how easy it is to navigate Black Bear or Imogene is what gets people into trouble. While not an extremely difficult trail by “technical” standards, driving on shelf roads with steep drop offs and finding ways to pass when there’s traffic coming from the other side is not easy.
By far Blackbear is NO WAY near the scariest trail in the US. Unless you have no balls.
Take it slow and easy (which is normal since it can be a traffic jam), have a good spotter and someone you trust to guide you around the end switches and it is a breeze. I did it a few times in a Hummer H3; wider than a Jeep.
If you fear heights, or don't trust people, not the trail for you.
Moab Rim is worse; off canter, big crack (and Hummer H3s do not articulate) and Kane Creek a few hundred feet to the rear...my opinion!
How long did it take for you to do this trail?
I'm probably not the best to ask. I think it took us close to 5 hours or so. Keep in mind we are stopping and setting up drones, we stopped for lunch, we stopped several times for photos, we ran into some friends and hung out for a bit, we stopped on the way down to get closer to the waterfall. We are some of the slowest people on the trails due to all the filming and droning we need to do to create these videos.
Is Black Bear a one-way trail?
Only from the summit down into Telluride. All the way to that point is two-way.
I’ve seen people do this in JTs
Difficulty: Difficult
May it be driven with a regular car?
No. You need high ground clearance, 4WD, and a transfer case for low range gears.
A GT3 RS or Z06 will be perfect.
@@TrailTraveleryep, a 4:1 transfer case works great, as I have.
By the way, Great video!
Sadly this pass is now closed
For the season. We t was open this year until a mudslide occurred
Black Bear isnt a hard trail but what it is though is consequential. The views will distract you and that's what will getcha
I like to say that "it is a beginner trail with expert consequences", so I think we are on the same page here.
Really!
Your drone footage really adds to how scary this pass is. First time I watched a Bear Pass vid was seeing a 4x4 just like yours (only red) come flying down the hillside. The second one I watched showed the driver flipping his vehicle over.
th-cam.com/video/2R5cLghSWGQ/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=SuzieRhodes
😊😅😅😅😅😅😅😅
The pass where the local law enforcement tell people not to use.
Content creators use it... encourage others, disaster.
Give your head a shake.
This guy will never post the videos where he gets stuck and has to have someone rescue him lol
😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅
Okay boomer.
The trail is opened every year except last year by local law enforcement so your comment makes no sense. If I got stuck somewhere and needed to call for help I would most certainly post that, in fact, out next video shows a major breakdown that happened
Just wondering, has anybody actually flipped and rolled? 🤣🏔
Oh yeah, every few years there is a bad one. th-cam.com/video/2R5cLghSWGQ/w-d-xo.htmlsi=TrPPLmUWNU6ehQ-j
th-cam.com/video/DrN1PWfojVo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ApregLYj4Ty9rjyV
th-cam.com/video/G4aDdjleUMc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=BbMH17vrDT9LYQPH
th-cam.com/video/cj5dhViq3ws/w-d-xo.htmlsi=MaPyucPJxVtyTIJv