The road most riders still call Mount Evans Road is now the Mount Blue Sky Scenic Byway, and it is the highest paved road in North America. From Idaho Springs it climbs more than 7,000 ft (2,130 m) in 28 miles (45 km) and ends at 14,130 ft (4,307 m), just below the 14,264 ft (4,348 m) summit. Two things decide whether your ride happens at all: the road is only open roughly Memorial Day to Labor Day, and since 2026 every motorcycle needs a timed reservation bought in advance on Recreation.gov. There is no cell service up there and no tickets sold at the gate, so this is a ride you book before you leave town.
What the ride is actually like
This is not a canyon road you attack. It is a slow, exposed climb on narrow pavement with no guardrails, and the Forest Service says as much on its own page: expect variable surface and slow going. The lower half, Colorado Highway 103 from Idaho Springs up to Echo Lake, is the fun part in a conventional sense — trees, sweepers, decent surface, a rhythm you can hold. Then Highway 5 turns off at Echo Lake and the character changes completely. Trees thin, then vanish. The road narrows onto a shelf. You spend the last several miles at walking-pace corner speeds with a lot of sky where the shoulder should be.
What you get for that is elevation almost nowhere else on the continent hands you on tarmac. Riders come for the number, stay for the tundra, and usually leave surprised by the wind. Bighorn sheep and mountain goats are common enough near the road that the Forest Service lists them as a headline attraction, and they do not check for traffic before crossing.
Route at a glance
| Byway length | 49 miles (79 km) total; the climb itself is 28 miles (45 km) |
| Highest paved point | 14,130 ft (4,307 m) at the summit parking area |
| Elevation gained | More than 7,000 ft (2,130 m) |
| Season | Summit road open Memorial Day through Labor Day only |
| Entry | Timed reservation required for motorcycles, Recreation.gov only |
| Access | I-70 exit 240 at Idaho Springs, or Highway 103 west from Bergen Park |
| Driving time | About 2 hours for the byway, longer with stops |
Open the Idaho Springs to summit route in Google Maps and send it to your navigation before you go — there is no signal past Echo Lake to load it later.
The name change, and why the signs disagree
In September 2023 the U.S. Board on Geographic Names voted to rename Mount Evans as Mount Blue Sky, after petitions supported by the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma. The name Evans belonged to the territorial governor who authorized the Sand Creek Massacre; Blue Sky refers to the Arapaho, known as the Blue Sky People, and to a Cheyenne renewal-of-life ceremony. The Colorado Department of Transportation followed by renaming the highway the Mount Blue Sky Scenic and Historic Byway.
The practical consequence for a rider is that maps, old signage, forum posts and your GPS may all use different names for the same asphalt. The surrounding wilderness area is still officially the Mount Evans Wilderness — legislation to change it has been introduced but the old name stands on Forest Service pages. Search either name and you will find the road.
Reservations, the part that catches people out
Since the 2026 season, Denver Mountain Parks runs the Mount Blue Sky Recreation Area under agreements with the Arapaho National Forest, and it collects the fees, sets the hours and manages the reservation system. Riders report being turned around at the welcome station for arriving without a ticket, and the published rules explain why that happens:
- Anyone arriving by vehicle or motorcycle needs a timed ticket. Hikers and cyclists entering at the welcome station do not.
- Tickets are sold only on Recreation.gov or its app, never at the gate.
- Your ticket is a two-hour entry window. You cannot enter early. Once in, you can stay all day.
- One reservation per person per day, one slot, and the holder must be present at entry with photo ID.
- Federal recreation passes, including America the Beautiful, are no longer accepted under the local management structure.
- There is no cell service in the recreation area. Download or print the ticket in Idaho Springs or Bergen Park.
Tickets are released 30 days ahead at 8:00 a.m. MDT on a rolling daily basis, with a second batch two days ahead at the same time. The two-day window is how most spontaneous riders get in when the weather forecast finally looks right. Check the calendar before committing to a date: in 2026 the road was scheduled to close for recreation events on June 28, July 11 and July 25, with only the 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. slots available on those days.
What to stop for on the way up
Mount Goliath Natural Area
A 160-acre research natural area partway up Highway 5, set aside for the protection and study of Rocky Mountain bristlecone pines. The Dos Chappell Nature Center sits here. Bristlecones are among the oldest living organisms on earth, and this is the easiest place on the continent to park a motorcycle next to one.
Summit Lake Park
Owned by Denver Mountain Parks and, at roughly 12,800 ft (3,900 m), the highest city park in North America. It is the natural place to stop, put a foot down, and find out how you are handling the altitude before the last exposed miles. The stone shelter house is the landmark.
The top
Three structures share the summit area. The ruins of the Crest House, a restaurant and souvenir shop first opened in 1942 and destroyed by a propane fire in 1979. The High Altitude Lab, a wooden double A-frame built by the University of Denver in 1935 for cosmic ray research and the oldest building up there. And the Meyer-Womble Observatory, which grew out of a telescope the university added in 1979 and became an observatory in 1997. On a clear day the view runs from Longs Peak in the north to Pikes Peak in the south, with Grays and Torreys — the only fourteeners on the Continental Divide — to the west.
Practical details that decide the day
Season. The summit road is open Memorial Day through Labor Day, and only that. Colorado DOT maintains Highway 5 including plowing, but nothing keeps it open in shoulder season. The road was closed entirely from Labor Day 2024 while crews rebuilt sections that had buckled and fixed drainage; that work finished in 2025 and the road reopened for the 2026 Memorial Day weekend. Verified against the Forest Service and CDOT byway pages in August 2026 — check both before you ride, because dates shift with snow.
Weather. Recreation.gov's own warning is blunt: conditions can change quickly and drastically, and the road can close any day through the summer for winter-like conditions. Plan for intense sun, cold, wind, and the real possibility of hail or snow in July. Whatever it looks like at the bottom of Highway 5 tells you very little about 14,000 ft.
Altitude. You will gain more than 7,000 ft (2,130 m) in under an hour of riding, which is a genuine physiological load and not just a nice number for the photo. We cover what that does to a rider, and how to pace it, in our guide to riding at high altitude.
Fuel and services. Fill up in Idaho Springs or Evergreen. There is no fuel on the byway, no potable water at the summit, and vault toilets only.
Traffic. Cyclists use this road heavily and the pavement is narrow with no shoulder. Vehicles over 30 ft are restricted on Highway 5, so you will not meet motorhomes, but you will meet rented SUVs stopping mid-lane for goats.
Gear notes for this specific climb
Three things about Mount Blue Sky punish a casual setup. The first is cold: you can leave Denver in mesh at 90°F and be riding through 40°F wind at the top, so layers you can add on the bike beat layers in a bag at home. The second is tyre pressure. A cold morning start followed by a 7,000 ft climb moves pressure noticeably, and if you have never thought about why, our explainer on how cold weather drops tyre pressure covers the mechanism — a Bluetooth TPMS sensor just shows you the number instead of leaving it to feel. The third is navigation. With no cell service past Echo Lake, anything that streams maps live is dead weight; download the route before you leave, and a riding system with offline maps and dual cameras keeps both the route and the goat that walks into your lane on record without you fishing a phone out at 14,000 ft. If you want the wider planning picture, see our Denver and Salt Lake City day rides overview, and for a pass that needs no reservation at all, Guanella Pass is 20 minutes away.
FAQ
Is Mount Evans Road the same as Mount Blue Sky?
Yes. The mountain was renamed Mount Blue Sky by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names in September 2023, and CDOT renamed the road the Mount Blue Sky Scenic and Historic Byway. Colorado Highway 5 is the same pavement it always was.
Do motorcycles need a reservation?
Yes. Recreation.gov states that visitors arriving by vehicle or motorcycle must hold a timed ticket for the day and time slot they enter. Buy it before you leave an area with cell service.
When is the road open?
The summit road is open Memorial Day through Labor Day, weather permitting, and can close on any given day for winter-like conditions. Check the CDOT byway page and the Forest Service byway page before you commit.
Is it a difficult road to ride?
Technically it is low-speed, but it is unforgiving. Narrow lanes, no guardrails, variable surface, wind and wandering wildlife mean it demands full attention rather than skill at speed. Nervous riders often turn around at Summit Lake, which is a perfectly good day out.
How long should I allow?
CDOT gives about two hours of driving for the byway. With stops at Mount Goliath, Summit Lake and the top, plus photographs, most riders spend three to four hours from Idaho Springs and back.
