The West Maroon Creek Trail joins the West Maroon Pass Trail to form a 10.45 mile thru-hike from Aspen to Crested Butte. This feature-filled route is highlighted by Maroon Lake, Crater Lake, West Maroon Pass and arguably one of the finest wildflower displays in Colorado. The east-west hike begins at Maroon Lake (9,580') outside Aspen and climbs 2,885' to West Maroon Pass (12,465'), then drops through high alpine meadows and moderates above East Fork Crystal River to East Fork of West Maroon Trailhead on the Crested Butte side.

View from West Maroon Pass (12,465') down the Crested Butte side, a moderate 4 mile descent through open alpine meadows

The West Maroon Creek Trail climbs 940' in the last mile on a ramp-like trail up the west valley wall to reach the pass

The Columbine's name is derived from the Latin word Columba, which means of or relating to doves

Looking down on Crater Lake, which formed as glaciers retreated and left flat, open spaces where water collected in a process called glacial benching

The Aspen-Crested Butte thru-hike begins at Maroon Lake with terrific views of the Maroon Bells (14,156' and 14,014')

Flax is an annual or short-lived, semi-evergreen perennial forb that has commercial value as a dietary supplement and oil

View from West Maroon Pass (12,465') down the West Maroon Creek valley framed by Belleview Mountain (13,233') and the Len Shoemaker Ridge (12,875')

Afternoon storms settle in over the East Fork valley; even though much of the trail runs below treeline, it's almost fully exposed

Sunflowers belong to the genus Helianthus annus; 'Helios' means sun in Greek and 'annus' means the flower is an annual

At 8.2 miles the trail bends W-SW and moderates through high open meadows down to the East Fork of West Maroon Trailhead outside Crested Butte

Haustorium on the roots of Paintbrush physically connect this parasitic plant to the host root

The East Fork joins the South Fork Crystal River in Schofield Park, just across the valley from the East Fork West Maroon Trailhead

The trail levels by Crater Lake with access to 11 designated campsites where bear activity is notoriously high

Steep switchbacks off West Maroon Pass quickly moderate to the Frigid Air Pass split in the upper valley (7.25 miles : 11,735')

The columbine's extended sepals contain the plant's nectar

The word Tundra is derived from the Finnish word meaning 'treeless land'

Yellow-bellied marmots live in colonies of 10-20 individuals, typically with a dominant male may protecting a harem of females in a colony

Some studies have shown that small, non predatory birds are more numerous in aspen-dominated habitats than coniferous ones in the Roaring Fork valley and Elk Mountains

Longer routes to Crested Butte and Gothic scale Triangle Pass and East Maroon Pass