Ute Trail is a 5.3 mile moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Aspen, Colorado that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as difficult. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from May until October. Dogs are also able to use this trail.
dog friendly
birding
hiking
nature trips
trail running
walking
forest
views
wild flowers
wildlife
rocky
snow
Rocky, steep switchbacks and incline the whole way. Worth the effort bc the views are beautiful! Swing on the swing!
23rd May - quite busy at the bottom half of the trail, no one to be seen after Ute Rock Overlook. There is still a fair amount of ice at the top of the mountain but I managed with hiking boots. Check to see if the Gondolas are running if that’s how you plan to get back down, they weren’t today ;)
Favorite of all time!!
Great views on way up. . Option of riding tram down!
Trail closed on 12/27/17 due to conditions.
Closed 12/17
Amazing views from the top! Not for a beginner as the incline is fairly relentless but worth it. My advice would be to grab a beer at the top to reward yourself and ride the gondola down!
This was harder than I anticipated, but worth it. Gondola down made it rewarding!
It took two hours for me to get to the top.
Great views!
Unbelievable hike up to the top of Aspen Mountain! The 19 switchbacks aren't difficult, but once you pass the swing and lookout point it gets super steep and much harder. It took me about 2 hours in total to get to the top, about 40 minutes for the switchbacks, and it felt SO good to take the gondola down. Definitely bring a lot of water and snacks because the whole thing kicks your butt and you'll need a lot of fuel.
Great hike. Nice elevation gain with the reward of a great view of Aspen!
Love it!!!!
The views during sunset were amazingly breathtaking.
I went and hiked this trail at the beginning of April right after a few days of snowfall. About 80 percent of the trail was covered in snow so often times during the hike, we weren't even on the trail because we couldn't see it. The view at the top was spectacular and definitely worth hiking to. We couldn't find the trail from the Ute rock overlook to the top of Ajax so we opted to run down the opposite side of the mountain in the back country and ended up sliding into a ski run on our butts. Although not recommended, it was an awesome time!
Difficult, beautiful, worth it. Great first hike of our trip. Definitely hop in the swing and enjoy the view when you get to the top of the switchback section.
How can a 5 mile hike be so hard? When you climb straight up the double black diamonds of Aspen. After a 1.5 section of switchbacks, the trail straightens out and that's when it gets hard. Near the top people were literally stopping every 20 feet for a breather.
The reward? A party scene at the summit, and a gondola ride to the base.
Good tough hike but well worth the view about half way up.
The trail was hard but was beautiful and you can ride the gondola down!
Great
Much more challenging than expected, but great. A beer at the top and Gondola down makes it all worth it.
Would not rate this hike as moderate. Great hike, beautiful views, and close to town. Take the free gondola down to save save your knees. Took 2hours with breaks and some strawberry picking along the way :). First part of the trail up to the big lookout rock is fairly busy, but after that we only came across a couple people on the trail. It was a week day so the weekend might be different.
Great hike, shady half way up then turns steep with very little shade. Definitely hard if your not use to the elevation but you get to ride the gondola down for free if you hike to the top of Aspen mountain.
Great trail!
Definitely not moderate if Sunnyside is rated hard, 2.5 miles of constant uphill. It's beautiful and a wonderful reward at the two points to look out.
Difficult climb at points. Narrow pathways. A great workout. Beautiful views. Awesome!
Well traveled trail just outside of Aspen. Gorgeous views from the top. Not for those who are squeamish about heights. Steep areas and winding trails. I went alone (female) and felt comfortable. (was early morning right after Labor Day and all tourists were gone) yay!
Was a fun hike. Steep and fairly shaded for a hot day
Awesome!
Michael D.
Very nice trail. A little crowded even for a Tuesday morning hike so I wouldn't rate it a five star but it is a very nice hike with a nice view at the top. I would also rate this a moderate hike not easy. If you are used to the altitude it will be an easy moderate but many going up were breathing pretty hard and stopping often. Either way. Well worth the walk.
Amazing views and always a great way to recharge system when visiting Aspen!
Love hiking this trail! One of my all time favorites!!