Thank you so much, Ed! I'm pumped for you! It's an amazing hike! SAFE TRAVELS!

You are going to have an amazing time. Perfect trip! Best travels!

Tyson! I can't thank you enough for the kind words! I'm so happy I could help make your trip to the Bells that much more special! And to come out of state to hike at elevation is a big deal. Congrats on crushing the 4 Pass Loop and I hope you come back for more adventures to come! Happy Trails!

Hey John! Thanks for watching. I made a pack list for this hike I believe a video or 2 before this one. I also used a 40l gregory backpack but since then I bought a hyperlite 2400 southwest. As long as you can fit a bear box inside of one you should be good.

Anytime John! Wish you the best!

I believe we did this in early September. It was good because it was cooler in the mornings and we had good weather in the afternoon. Heading back out there this year to trail run this in one day with my wife.

I'm sorry, but I'm not aware of any. If you contacted the Towns of Aspen or Crested Butte you may find some trails that they are allowed on.

That is so kind of you to say! Im happy this video helped! Best wishes!

Hey Dan! Thank you for thr question. So when you park at the buttermilk parking lot pay for overnight parking. You'll put a little slip from a kiosk on your car dash. Then walk towards to main road and there is a bus stop. Wait there and ask for the bus for snowmass. Once you get to snowmass you'll take another shuttle that you have to pre plan and buy a time slot to get you to the main parking lot of the start to maroon bells.

Andrew thank you so much for the comment! So last year at while we were hiking along the trail we were stopped by a ranger who made sure we had a bear canister. The ranger also made sure it was hard lid because for some reason they didnt allow the fabric bags in the Maroon Bells Wilderness. That could have obviously changed but I would just be safe and bring a hard lid. Hope this helps!

When we were stopped by a ranger last year he made sure we had one on us if we were staying overnight. Maybe the rules changed. In that case that's awesome!

@@CoryGrasser the website is confusing. one spot it says canisters. Another days either or. Be bear aware. You are in bear country. Leave food, trash, and all items with fragrance (e.g., toothpaste, deodorant) in vehicle, bear-proof canisters, or suspended in bear bags. Do not eat in your tent.

@@ThaneR0248 I agree! It makes for a better backpacking experience!

Bernice, I truly cant thank you enough for the kind words. I am happy to help out and I hear ya! A lot of videos can be clickbait just to get you to watch the whole thing. I just wanted to make a video that would help people out. So glad it helped you!

You can purchase an Aspen trail map on amazon for around 11 dollars I believe. That is the one I took with us just to have a hard copy in case our downloaded maps weren't working for some reason. There are a few free maps up the Bells when you get off the bus at the small visitor center. Have a blast!

Alec, thank you so much for commenting! So I had to reserve our bus shuttle that takes you from Snowmass Resort to Maroon Lake. For sure do this as soon as you can because they only take half the amount of people now. You can register for those online through Aspens local website. Those were really cheap. I cant remember how much they were off the top of my head. But that was the only reserving we did. Otherwise, when you start the trail you'll notice a sign for the maroon bells wilderness that has a box in front of it. There you just fill out a slip of paper stating how many days you are going to be in the backcountry. Hope this helped and if you have any other questions let me know.

@@CoryGrasser Fantastic, thank you. Interesting though. So I suppose the only way they “limit” the number of people on the trail at one time is just by limiting how many people they take out? I was just afraid to try and arrive in mid-summer to find that every spot was already taken. I suppose it’s just first come, first serve for spots?

@@alecmcclure8916 It pretty much is first come first serve for tent spots. There is a map online also that shows the designated spots but at Snowmass Lake there were alot of people just putting tents where they could. That spot gets crowded but if you can camp there I'd highly recommend it. Such a nice place to camp.

@@CoryGrasser Got it. So if there’s no reserving, is there potential to begin on the trail and there not be spots at all?

@@alecmcclure8916 Not really. Because people usually dont stay overnight 2 nights in the same spot. So there is a good flow of people camping and then getting back on the trail the next day. Also, the hardest place to camp is at maroon lake or crater lake itself. People usually finish or like to start there so they'll camp overnight. If you can arrive at maroon lake and plan to hike to a camping spot the first day then that would be best unless you got one of the few parking spots to take your car to maroon bells.

You just have to secure a shuttle pass ticket to the maroon bells. You can leave your car there at the shuttle station for a fee.

@@CoryGrasser thanks for answering. Very good video.

@@Mimun2Artístico Absolutely! And thank you for subscribing and enjoying the videos! Hope to get some more content coming!

Appreciate the comment! I would say that May would be too early. Just today I got done skiing at Winter Park and there is a ton of snow. Thinking that will melt in 2 months makes me think it wont happen. However, late June may be doable. You may get lucky now having to walk over a bunch of snow early in the season, but that snow run off also makes the river crossings really difficult. Hope this helped and cant wait for you to do this trip! So worth it!

@@CoryGrasser thanks Cory for responding and the information... I may have to take post pone or just hit up some ski resorts that seems like it would be fun.

@@ridgeline6330 That is always a great Plan B! I am looking forward to the snow melting soon so we can get up to the mountains backpacking again.

I'm excited for you! Yes, we had to shuttle to crater lake. From there we got right on the trail where the bus drops you off at. So we parked at the buttermilk parking lot. From there we walked toward the highway and took a LYFT about 3 miles to the Snowmass and Maroon Bell Shuttle Location. The shuttle will then take you up to the top. Hope this was enough to answer your question. Best wishes!

Thank you for asking! And I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I think it is very doable to hike this trail in two days like we did. We went counter clockwise and went over buckskin pass to get that climb out of the way and to camp at snowmass lake. I would also go that way for your best views on a day hike. You get a great side of the bells and amazing views in every direction from buckskin pass.

Hi John! Thanks for reaching out! I'd love to help. So, to answer your first question there was ZERO snow except for a small amount that you would see on a few peaks along the way. Otherwise, nothing to worry about as far as sketchy ice or snow patches. There is plenty of mud if there is a recent rain storm or even earlier season when the snow is still melting. And for the campsites, we didn't have to reserve anything. Just make sure when you first go on the trail that you leave your at the trailhead marker. You'll see it as you walk past Maroon Lake and start into the woods towards Crater Lake. We camped at Snowmass Lake and there are a number of spots but we saw people just kind of camping wherever they could find space. Crater Lake camping is a little harder to find since people are more than likely camping there the first day before starting off or just about to leave. But you really shouldn't have a problem with finding a spot. If you can, try to make a priority to camp out at Snowmass Lake though if you can. Very worth it with the views and it's a common place for people to camp over if they are trying to tackle Capitol Peak or Snowmass Peak. Hope this helped and I can't wait for you to enjoy this amazing backpacking trip. One of the most rated ones around! Best Wishes!

@@CoryGrasser I appreciate the information. This one has been on my list for a few years. Im pretty stoked for it.

Hi Jonathon. I think its doable as long as you are smart about a few things in particular. Make sure to acclimate if you aren't used to altitude. Drink plenty of water and take your time over the mountain passes. I thought going counter clockwise made it easier also. You go up buckskin pass right away and it's tough but after that the passes get easier.

@@CoryGrasser When do you think is the best time to go? We were thinking either the last two weeks of july or first two of august depending when my brother can get off.

@@MtnDewWarrior You will be fine doing either time. Both are perfect. Even later into August is fine since it allows for most of the snow to melt and the night temps to be better. I had friends do it last late september that still said they had good weather. Both of your times are around the best you can go.

@@CoryGrasser thanks for taking the time to reply. Just one more question, what would you recommend for shoes?

@@MtnDewWarrior ABSOLUTELY JON! Anything to help. I wore a pair of Hoka Speedgoats, but I love my trial running shoes for backpacking over other boots like Keen or Salomon. If you prefer boots then that's fine, but I just love how trail running shoes are so much lighter and can dry out easier if you have to do a river crossing or two. There are two river crossings that you can hop over if the water is low enough but in the earlier season from the run-off you may have to walk across with your shoes off or go right through. Something like Hoka Speedgoats, Salomon, or even my favorite trail runner right now which is the Nike Wildhorse 6. Nothing against hiking boots. They will still get the job done and most likely run a longer life, but probably cost a bit more. Again, if you want some more recommendations or advice I'm all ears.

I think you would be just fine. We didn't start until later as well because we couldn't get a shuttle ride up until the late afternoon. You'll definitely have some beautiful fall colors. Heading back to Aspen next weekend. Thanks again for watching! And I'm excited for you!