Willow Creek Pass

Willow Creek Pass is located to the north of Granby, CO, in Grand County and Jackson County. This pass runs north-south through the Rabbit Ears Range, over a section of the Continental Divide where the divide run east-west towards Steamboat Springs.

The summit of Willow Creek Pass is located below 10,000 feet, and the road is considered an easy drive compared to roads like Loveland Pass or Independence Pass. This results in a more dependable travel route that doesn’t have a lot of closures during the winter.

The closest nearby paved mountain passes over the divide are Muddy Pass and Rabbit Ears Pass to the west, and Milner Pass to the east.

The photo to the right shows Parkview Mountain, located to the west of Highway 125, right along the divide near Willow Creek Pass.

Colorado Highway 125 on Willow Creek Pass with Parkview Mountain in winter

Seasonal Info

Willow Creek Pass is open year-round with very few closures, if any.

Willow Creek Pass Stats

  • Max Road Elevation: 9,683'
  • Surface: Paved
  • Mtn Range: Rabbit Ears
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Map of a section of the Continental Divide in Colorado that shows Willow Creek Pass, Milner Pass, Rabbit Ears Pass, Muddy Pass

The drone image below was taken from just above the summit of Willow Creek Pass. This is a 360° image that you can click on to move the point of view.

Parkview Mountain is the large snowcapped mountain to the west. Radial Mountain is on the opposite side of this pass to the east. Far off to the north/northeast, you can see the Medicine Bow Mountains. To the north/northwest, the Park Range can be seen far in the distance. These are all subranges of the Rocky Mountains.

Alternate Routes – A combo of HWY 14 and HWY 40 will take you over the divide to the west of Willow Creek Pass, going over Muddy Pass instead. This route can act as an alternative route between Granby and the northern side of the Continental Divide. That combo of paved highways is open year-round.

Continental Divide sign located on Willow Creek Pass
Continental Divide sign at the top of Willow Creek Pass

Recreation on Willow Creek Pass

Continental Divide Trail marker on a wooden sign post

This pass is not as popular as Loveland Pass or Berthoud Pass when it comes to recreation, but there are still two hiking trails that can be accessed from here. The Willow Creek Trailhead and Parkview Trailhead are both located near the top of this pass. The Continental Divide Trail crosses the pass here and runs congruent with these trails.

Willow Creek Pass FAQ

A good measurement is 26.4 miles. The steepest gradient portion of HWY 125 where the road goes over the divide is much shorter than this distance.

Colorado State Highway 125 runs north-south over Willow Creek Pass in Colorado.

This is a winding mountain road, but there are no hairpin turns or switchbacks. This is a scenic and relatively easy drive, but be careful in snowy conditions.

Directions from Denver

  • I-70 Westbound
  • Highway 40 North over Berthoud Pass
  • Through Granby to HWY 125 North

Willow Creek Pass History

Willow Creek Pass historical photo from 1920-1930
Willow Creek Pass circa 1910-1930

The first mention of Willow Creek Pass that has been found in Colorado’s newspapers is from The Colorado Miner in 1876. At this time, the pass was still merely a hiking trail that was used by hunters, trappers, and recreational users.

There was a petition for a wagon road over the pass in the year 1900, and construction of the first roadway over Willow Creek Pass began in November 1904. The construction was first led by H.C. Riddle and F.E. Holdredge, and the road was opened for the first time in July 1905.1, 2

This was considered a county road at the time. A contract to build a state road over the pass was awarded to R.W McQueary of Granby in October of 1909.3 The state road (likely just an improved version of the existing road in this case) was completed by July 1910, and an automobile could be driven over Willow Creek Pass from Rand to Granby in 2 hours and 30 minutes.4 This drive can be done in about 45 minutes now.

The roadway was officially designated as Colorado State Highway 125 in 1923, when the CO state highway numbering system was created.

The road was not able to stay opened year-round during the first half of the 20th century. There were steady improvements throughout the 1920s and 30s, but this was still a dirt road at the time.5, 6, 7

1928 – The Bureau of Public Roads awarded a contract to complete $60k of grading and drainage work on the pass.8

1930 – It was reported that the US Forest Service was working on the highway in 1930, and in 1931 the work was completed on what was referred to as the Willow Creek Pass forest highway. It was designated as Highway 24 of the Colorado Highway System. This was essentially just a series of improvements and a new name to go along with the existing names.9, 10

1946 – A project to modernize the highway began in 1946 when a contract was awarded to improve and oil a 13-mile section of the road. This section extended from Rand to approx. 1 mile south of Willow Creek Pass. Work on this section was completed by 1950. Next, a base layer and bituminous surface (paving) was applied to the remaining 20.8-mile section of highway to the south. This section was located between US HWY 40 near Granby, and the point where the existing oil surface began near the southern side of Willow Creek Pass.11

If you would like to help to improve the information in this section, you are welcome to contact us.

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References & Credits

1. The Weekly Courier, November 2, 1904, p. 8. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

2. The Weekly Courier, July 19, 1905, p. 8. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

3. The Middle Park Times, October 22, 1909, p. 1. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

4. The Middle Park Times, July 8, 1910, p. 1. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

5. Jackson County Star, Volume 10, Number 13, March 27, 1924, p. 5. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

6. Jackson County Star, Volume 15, Number 6, January 26, 1928, p. 1. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

7. The Steamboat Pilot, July 10, 1936, p. 3. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

8. The Rocky Mountain News (Daily), Volume 69, Number 175, June 23, 1928, p. 4. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

9. The Steamboat Pilot, May 23, 1930, p. 5. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

10. The Steamboat Pilot, July 17, 1931, p. 5. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

11. The Steamboat Pilot, March 11, 1954, p. 8. Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection. Colorado State Library.

Images Credits: Coloradotopia.com, Denver Public Library Special Collections [Z-7167], Center for Land Use Interpretation, Matthew Trump, | More info