Imogene Pass is a high mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains in the southwest part of the US state of

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

. It crosses a ridge connecting

Ouray, Colorado Ouray () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat of Ouray County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 1,000 as of the 2010 census. The Ouray Post Office has the ZIP Code 81427. Located at an elevation of , Ouray's cl ...

with

Telluride, Colorado Telluride is the county seat and most populous town of San Miguel County in the southwestern portion of the U.S. state of Colorado. The town is a former silver mining camp on the San Miguel River in the western San Juan Mountains. The firs ...

, and is the highest mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains, and the second highest vehicular mountain crossing in

. The road is accessible by

four wheel drive Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...

vehicles, and is not for the novice driver. From Ouray, the road turns off the road to Yankee Boy Basin above the Camp Bird Mine near the

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

of Sneffels southwest of Ouray, and climbs through Imogene Basin to the summit. From Telluride, the road takes off north of downtown and climbs past the

Tomboy A tomboy is a term for a girl or a young woman with masculine qualities. It can include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and actively engage in physical sports or other activities and behaviors usually associated with boys or men ...

through Savage Basin to the summit. The first long distance

alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in which ...

power line An overhead power line is a structure used in electric power transmission and distribution to transmit electrical energy across large distances. It consists of one or more uninsulated electrical cables (commonly multiples of three for three-p ...

was constructed over Imogene Pass to carry power from the Telluride area to the Camp Bird Mine. " Fort Peabody" was constructed in 1904 by a local unit of the Colorado National Guard on top of the pass to prevent union miners from crossing during a labor strike. An annual foot race is held over the pass between Ouray and Telluride on the first Saturday following

Labor Day Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United ...

. The grueling race starts at around {{cvt, 7800, ft before cresting the pass at its peak, an elevation gain of just over a mile.

External links

Treknow.com: Map of the Imogene Pass area of the San Juan Mountains

USGS TopoZone.com listing for Imogene Pass
Mountain passes of Colorado San Juan Mountains (Colorado) Landforms of Ouray County, Colorado Landforms of San Miguel County, Colorado Roads in Ouray County, Colorado Transportation in San Juan County, Colorado Uncompahgre National Forest