East Fork Trail-Lizard Head Pass

The East Fork Trail climbs up toward Bolam Pass along the East Fork of the Dolores River just to the east of the Lizard Head Wilderness in southwest Colorado. The trailhead is along Highway 145 about two miles south of Lizard Head Pass.


At the start of the hike there are good views to the west to the Lizard Head and Cross Mountain and to the south down the Dolores Valley.

The trail is well above the stream and passes through islands of mostly Engelmann Spruce and open meadows. The trail is used quite a bit by horse riders and some mountain bikers. It seems to part of the hut to hut Durango to Moab bike route.

I spent a few minutes telling a struggling rider what I knew about the route from the Bolam Hut west past Lizard Head to the next hut. The first four miles of the trail has a mild grade, with some mild rolling up and down.
About 2.5 miles along the route there are two creek crossings back to back, deep enough to get your feet wet. These are the North Twin Creek and the South Twin Creek, flowing down from the Sheep Mountain group of peaks that form the east side of the valley, but are hidden from view by the forest.

There aren't many long views along this trail. There are views down to the East Fork River below and across the meadows and many sections pass through the islands of tall spruce. The meadow areas along the trail are thick with wildflowers. After four miles the grade gets a little steeper.

I was looking for a marker that said Bolam Pass but didn't see one. At the end of my route I was on a rough road that had a small sign indicating it was part of the Colorado Trail.

I turned around after 3:20 hours at a point where I could see mountains both to the east and the west and the road seemed to be leading back down hill. Going back was a little quicker than going up and my total hike was 6:00 hours and about 12 miles.