Mosquito Pass

From Harrison Avenue head east on 7th Street, about 1.25 miles up the road will change from paved to dirt becoming County Road 3. Continue 3 more miles until the intersection at the Diamond Mine with a locked gate entrance. Stay to the north (left) going off the graded two way onto the 4×4 road towards Birds Eye Gulch Road.

Leadville, Colorado, is known for extremes, and the four-wheel-drive (4WD) road over Mosquito Pass is no exception. With a high point of 13,185’, it’s the fourth-highest road in Colorado—with mountain weather to boot. Known as “The Highway of Frozen Death,” it is typically open from July through September each year, depending on snowfall. The route requires a high-clearance 4WD vehicle, good off-road driving skills, and steely nerves for those narrow ledges and airy drop-offs. At the summit a monument to Father Dyer can be found. Mosquito Pass is also a popular trail running area and part of Leadville’s Boom Days Burro Race and Fairplay’s Burro Days Burro Race, so you may even see some donkeys with runners along the way.

This two-way road connects Leadville to Alma, another former mining town. The route is Park County Road 12 and Lake County Road 3.

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