Rollins Pass & Needle Eye Bypass Trail via Rollins Pass Trail is a 6.7-mile out-and-back in James Peak Wilderness near East Portal, CO. The route reaches Rollins Pass at the turnaround, 3.3 miles in. It climbs 856 ft, with sections as steep as 16% grade, and is mostly dirt. It scores 93/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.
Elevation
0 mi11,041 – 11,772 ft · steepest grade: 16%6.9 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Rollins Pass Road 39.92374, -105.66853
Nearest town East Portal, CO
Directions
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Rollins Pass & Needle Eye Bypass Trail via Rollins Pass Trail
6.7 mi · ▲ 856 ft · 2 hr 40 min
Elevation 11,042–11,771 ft
Out & Back · James Peak Wilderness
Trailhead: Rollins Pass Road · 39.92374, -105.66853
Weather Sep 4: Rain, high 63°F / low 42° · precip 28% · wind 8 mph · sunrise 6:34 AM · sunset 7:31 PM
Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start on Rollins Pass Road, heading N.
- 1.6 miContinue straight onto Needle Eye Bypass Trail, heading N.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto Rollins Pass Road, heading N.
- 400 ftTurn left onto Boulder Wagon Road, heading N.
- 1.4 miTurn right onto Rollins Pass Trail, heading SW.
- 0.1 miReach Rollins Pass, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 0.1 miTurn left onto Boulder Wagon Road, heading N.
- 1.4 miTurn right onto Rollins Pass Road, heading E.
- 450 ftContinue straight onto Needle Eye Bypass Trail, heading E.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto Rollins Pass Road, heading S.
- 1.5 miArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
74% dirt26% unspecified
Weather
RainTemperature 63°F42°
Precip28%Wind8 mphUV8Humidity53%
Rained 0.1″ 2 days ago (0.2″ over the last week)
Hourly temperatureRain chance
65°40°
Sunrise 6:34 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PMSunset 7:31 PM
Sat
61°44°
17%
Sun
71°47°
55%
Mon
61°44°
42%
Tue
67°41°
32%
Wed
68°43°
40%
Thu
66°44°
44%
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 2.9 mi in (~93 min). Leave by 5:38 PM for the 7:31 PM sunset. Back at your car by 8:58 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.
Good to know
- Parking lot at the trailhead
More from Rollins Pass Road Trailhead
- Rollins Pass Road 3 mi · ▲ 276 ft
- Rollins Pass Road 3.1 mi · ▲ 305 ft
- Forest Lakes (Lower) & Forest Lakes Trail 3.9 mi · ▲ 1,012 ft
- Guinn Mountain–Jenny Lake Loop, 6 sights 4.8 mi · ▲ 809 ft
- Beacon Peak & Needle Eye Bypass Trail via Rollins Pass Trail 8.7 mi · ▲ 1,164 ft
- Clayton Lake–Forest Lakes (Lower), 4 sights 9 mi · ▲ 2,907 ft
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Hikes near East Portal, Colorado