Pitkin County

The county in brief

A traveler's read on Pitkin County

Independence Pass at 12,095 ft holds a permanent ban on any vehicle over 35 ft length — a CDOT geometry restriction on the switchback descent from Twin Lakes that has remained in place since the 1970s pavement upgrade, and one of only three 12,000-ft+ paved passes in Colorado with a hard rig-length cap.

Pitkin County wraps Aspen, Snowmass, and the western half of Independence Pass inside 970 sq mi (one of Colorado's smaller counties). Aspen's metro population balloons from 7,401 winter residents to ~30,000 during peak ski + summer-festival windows. The Maroon Bells Scenic Area runs a paid shuttle and a vehicle reservation system between 8am and 5pm during summer; RVs over 25 ft are banned outright above T-Lazy-7 Ranch.