Old Monarch Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass on the border of Gunnison and Chaffee counties of west-central

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the 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 western edge of t ...

. It is located on the

Continental Divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...

northwest of the current

Monarch Pass Monarch Pass (elevation ) is a high mountain pass in central Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as th ...

where

U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlanti ...

crosses the divide. Old Monarch Pass divides the watersheds of Porphyry Creek, a tributary of

Tomichi Creek Tomichi Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 18, 2011 tributary of the Gunnison River in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States. Description Tomichi Cree ...

and the

Gunnison River The Gunnison River is located in western Colorado, United States and is one of the largest tributaries of the Colorado River. Description The river flows east to west and has a drainage area of according to the USGS. The drainage basin of ...

, to the west and the

South Arkansas River South Arkansas River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 31, 2011 tributary of the Arkansas River that flows from a source near Monarch Pass in the Sawatch Range of ...

to the east. The name ‘‘Monarch’’ comes from nearby Monarch Ridge and the community of

Monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...

History

A road crossing the

Original Monarch Pass Original Monarch Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass on the border of Gunnison and Chaffee counties of west-central Colorado. It is located on the Continental Divide on the western boundary of Monarch Ski Area, west of U.S. Route 50. Original ...

was constructed 1880 and served as an important wagon and stage road connecting the town of South Arkansas (later named Salida) on the east side to mining camps and the city of Gunnison on the west side. In 1922, the road was improved and rerouted to better accommodate motor vehicles. The new road crossed the divide at a lower saddle to the southeast. This second Monarch Pass is what is now known as Old Monarch Pass. It remained an important unpaved crossing of the divide until 1939 when another highway realignment moved the crossing yet further southeast to the third and current Monarch Pass where

U. S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlantic O ...

crosses today. Today Old Monarch Pass is traversed by Forest Road 237, a gravel road open to vehicular traffic during the summer months. During the winter, the road is not plowed but the pass can be reached by skiers and snowmobilers.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Monarch Pass - Old
passbagger.org Mountain passes of Colorado Landforms of Gunnison County, Colorado Landforms of Chaffee County, Colorado Great Divide of North America Transportation in Chaffee County, Colorado Transportation in Gunnison County, Colorado