Western Colorado Flying Sites

Access: Forest Service Road 317 (Gothic Road).

Best Season/Time: June or July until the snow falls.

Pros: Incredible views of Gothic Mountain and the Maroon Bells Wilderness Area.

Cons: The launch is right next to wilderness area boundary.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road) two miles to the LZ on the NW side of Nicholson Lake. The next hill 50’ higher and just north of Smith Hill.

LZ: Nicholson Lake N38º 54 W107º 00’

Best Season/Time: Year round. Mornings.

Pros: Nice training hill a little bit bigger than Smith Hill.

Cons: Always land on the north side of the fence that separates the Land Trust property from the Alpine Meadows subdivision. Don’t fly near the two houses just east of Nicholson Lake.

Access: County Road 740 (Cement Creek Road) 1.7 miles to the parking lot for trail 409: N38º 49’ W106º 52’. One to one and half hour hike. The trails fork after about 1.5 miles. The SW launch is above trail 409. The SE launch is above the Walrod Gulch trail.

LZ: Crested Butte South General Store N38º 48’ W106º 53’. There is an alternate LZ below the parking lot. Don’t land there if horses are grazing.

Best Season/Time: Year round. Mornings.

Pros: Fairly easy hike for the altitude gain. Good views of the old Pioneer Ski Area across the Cement Creek Valley. This was the very first lift served ski area in Colorado.

Cons: Beware of launching in the rotor from a north wind.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road).

Best Season/Time: June or July until the snow falls. Mornings. 

Pros: 360º degree launch. Easy hike from Paradise Divide. Deer, elk, bobcat, lynx, mountain lion, fox, coyotes and possibly wolverine live in the area.

Cons: ??!

Access: Some local pilots lose lots of sleep over this flying site. This 20’ x 30’ piece of dirt is the most important thing in their lives. So DON’T screw it up!! You’ll never, ever hear the end of it. You might even lose your flying privileges. All pilots, paraglider, hang glider, whatever glider, need to sign the CBMR waiver and the appropriate club site regulations. You need to be a USHPA member and do a few other things before flying. This is the only USHPA regulated site in the area. Please respect the hard work it’s taken to keep it a community asset and contact a local pilot. For paragliding: (970) 349-9327. For hang gliding 641-9315.

LZ: Riverbend: N38º 51’ W106º 57’, Town Ranch: N38º 51’ W106º 58’

Best Season/Time: June to September or maybe early October. Late November to early April for paraglider pilots riding the chairlift during the ski season.

Pros: Chairlift access for paraglider pilots. One of three drive up-sites for hang glider pilots. Stunning scenery. Non-commercial paraglider tandem flights are permitted in the winter on a case-by-case basis. The flight needs to be pre-approved by CBMR mountain operations, risk manager and the GVPA.

Cons: Way too much politics and whining. Small, narrow launch surrounded by rocks for use by only one glider at a time. Complicated crosswind component. Basically, it’s a crosswind cliff launch over a boulder field into the rotor while flying over incredibly rugged terrain that prevents any type of quick and/or sensible rescue. If you can’t handle all the issues, you shouldn’t be flying here. No unauthorized vehicles.

Access: County Road 811 (Washington Gulch Road).

Best Season/Time: Year round. Mornings.

Pros: Outstanding views to the north, west and south.

Cons: Steep, rocky hiking.

Access: County Road 740 (Cement Creek Road). 

Best Season/Time: June or July until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Rarely flown remote peak.

Cons: Rarely flown remote peak.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road) two miles to the LZ on the NW side of Nicholson Lake.

LZ: Nicholson Lake N38º 54’ W107º 00’ 

Best Season/Time: Year round. Mornings. 

Pros: Great views of the Slate River and lower East River Valleys. 

Cons: Always land on the north side of the fence that separates the Land Trust property from the Alpine Meadows subdivision. Don’t fly near the two houses just east of Nicholson Lake. Avoid the private property at the SE end of the lake. 

Access: County Road 710 (Ohio Creek Road) 2.5 miles to county Road 3715. Drive three miles to the top of the pass. Take the side road on the right 1+ miles to launch.

Best Season/Time: April or May until the snow falls.

Pros: Nice views overlooking the Antelope Creek Valley and the West Elk mountains. 

Cons: Rarely flown. 

Access: County Road 12 (Kebler Pass Road) six miles to Splains Gulch. Four to five miles to the summit.

LZ: Kebler Pass: N38º 52’ W107º 01’

Best Season/Time: June or July until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Nice views overlooking Crested Butte. 

Cons: Rarely flown.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road). Fifteen minute to one hour hike.

LZ: Paradise Divide Switchbacks N38º 58’ W107º 03’

Best Season/Time: June or July until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Area to layout 100 paragliders. Many possible launch sites. There are outstanding views across the valley of waterfalls and alpine lakes.

Cons: Some areas of the launch are steep and a bit rocky. The LZ is a decent size but in a hole. With a north wind, a strong rotor can affect the LZ.

Access: a) Hike 2-3 hours from Kebler Pass. Avoid the mine property at the bottom. b) Drive up Gunsight Pass and hike 1-2 hours. c) Start in town. d) Continue hiking up the east ridge past the Technical Ridge launch.

LZ: Gronk: N38º 52’ W106º 59’, Kebler Pass: N38º 52’ W107º 01’, Nicholson Lake: N38º 54’ W107º 00’

Best Season/Time: June or July until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Possible to launch to the north (Redwell Basin) or south (Red Lady). 3500+’ vertical.

 Cons: Very rough road. 

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road) to the Gunsight Pass Road. Launch is on the last switchback before entering Wolverine Basin.

LZ: BLM N38º 54’ W 107º 01’ Nicholson Lake N38º 54’ W107º 00’, Slate River Road N38º 54’ W107º 01’

Best Season/Time: May or June until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: A quick flight if the Wolverine launch is too windy.

Cons: Cliff launch. There is a possible rotor with a north wind.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road).

Best Season/Time: May or June until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Never flown, hard to access peak.

Cons: Never flown, hard to access peak.

Access: From the intersection of highway 50 & 135, drive east 6 miles. Turn right, south, on County Road 42. At each fork in the road, go left. 

Best Season/Time: Mid-May until it get’s too cold. This is a great evening glass-off site. 

Pros: Easy top and side-hill landing. It’s fun to traverse the ridge in the right conditions. 

Cons: The ridge is only four miles long despite the name. No real LZ below the launch. It is possible to land on the road.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road) two miles to the l.z on the NW side of Nicholson Lake.

LZ: Nicholson Lake N38º 54’ W107º 00’

Best Season/Time: Year round. Mornings. 

Pros: Outstanding training hill for new pilots.

Cons: Always land on the north side of the fence that separates the Land Trust property from the Alpine Meadows subdivision. Don’t fly near the two houses just east of Nicholson Lake. 

Access: Ask a local pilot.

LZ: Gronk: N38º 52’ W106º 59’, Nicholson Lake N38º 54’ W107º 00’

Best Season/Time: May or June until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Nice hike.

Cons: Radically steep launch with absolutely no chance to abort. Tricky access.

Access: Ask a local pilot. 2-4 hour hike.

LZ: Riverbend: N38º 51’ W106º 57’, Town Ranch: N38º 51’ W106º 58’  

Best Season/Time: Year round. Mornings. 

Pros: Incredible views to the East, North and West. 3600+’ vertical.

Cons: Tricky access.

Access: From the intersection of highway 50 & 135, drive west four miles. Turn left, south, on County Road 32. At 1.5 miles just after the gravel quarry, go right. Slow down and wave at mile three while driving through the front yard of the Moncrief Ranch. It is important to leave any gate the way you found it – especially if it was closed. Go right at mile four and again at mile six when the road forks. The launch is about 7.5 miles from the highway overlooking the west side of Big Mesa. The windsock should be visible after passing the VOR. Park on the right side of the road after reaching the launch. The top landing LZ is on the left side.

 LZ: Willow Creek N3º8 28’ 19” W107º 03’

Best Season/Time: Mid-May until it get’s too cold. Great evening glass-off site. 

Pros: Potentially easy top landing. Large LZ below launch next to lake. Good wind strength and direction indication on Blue Mesa reservoir. Drive-up access. There are also rarely used NW and NE launches.

Cons: Windy. Windy. Windy. Power lines behind and to the north of launch. Possible very strong mechanical turbulence with south wind. Very strong turbulence in south bowl regardless of wind direction.

Access: County Road 734 (Slate River Road) to the Gunsight Pass Road.

LZ: BLM N38º 54’ W 107º 01’ Nicholson Lake N38º 54’ W107º 00’, Slate River Road N38º 54’ W107º 01’

Best Season/Time: May or June until the snow falls. Mornings.

Pros: Mellow early morning flight.

Cons: Very rough road. Narrow steep launch ending in a small cliff. Weak thermals.

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