{"id":2638,"date":"2017-12-14T21:32:35","date_gmt":"2017-12-15T03:32:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mountainouswords.com\/mountain-air\/?p=2638"},"modified":"2025-04-14T16:18:41","modified_gmt":"2025-04-14T22:18:41","slug":"mount-epworth-via-jenny-lake-needle-eye-tunnel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mountainouswords.com\/mountain-air\/mount-epworth-via-jenny-lake-needle-eye-tunnel\/","title":{"rendered":"Mount Epworth via Jenny Lake \/ Needle Eye Tunnel – Trip Report"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Directions<\/b><\/h2>\n
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Google Earth view of the route from Jenny Lake to Mount Epworth.<\/p><\/div>\n

From the east, go the the small town of Rollinsville off Highway 119. Turn west into the East Portal Road (CO 16) and follow the well-maintained dirt road 7.4 miles to the sharp right turn up Moffat Road. Follow this bumpy, rutted road 9 miles (it takes about an hour of driving) to the first parking area at Yankee Doodle Lake, or carry on 0.7 miles farther to parking at Jenny Lake.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stock SUVS and most sport-utility cars (CRVs, Rav4s) can make it to Yankee Doodle Lake. The only rugged part of the road is the entrance to the Jenny Lake parking area, which requires high clearance (most stock SUVs should be fine). The road is usually unpassable by mid-November due to snow, opening up again mid-June.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mount Epworth – The Sturdy Mountain with the Nerdy Name<\/h2>\n
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The adventure starts from the sparkling shores of Jenny Lake.<\/p><\/div>\n

Let\u2019s start with the name\u2014Mount Epworth. You can\u2019t help but pronounce it with a nasally, whiny, inflection that makes it seem like the kind of mountain that gets stuffed into a locker by bigger, tougher peaks with names like Mount Massive and Shark\u2019s Tooth. At 11,843 ft. it lacks the glamor associated with being 14,000 feet\u2014and \u201celevener\u201d doesn\u2019t roll off the tongue. Perhaps the worst insult is the fact that the current #1 search result for Mount Epworth in Google comes from Summitpost.com and shows a bunch of little kids crawling on the mountain. \u201cFamily friendly\u201d is the antithesis of \u201cdaring-do\u201d and implies that most people will be doing the hike with a diaper bag and at least one Teletubby. I should say a plush Teletubby. I think the actual Teletubbies retired a few years ago. <\/span><\/p>\n

With a little creative planning, however, a day trip to Mount Epworth can be a fantastic day hike. For most Front Range hikers, it makes sense to start from the shores of Jenny Lake via the\u00a0Moffat Tunnel Road. Climb past the ominous Needle Eye Tunnel over the Continental Divide, past the ruined ghost town of Corona, through decomposing timbers and mining debris, and finally up the peak itself. The best time of the year to undertake this adventure is mid-to-late autumn when the summer crowds have retreated but Moffat Road is still passable.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The ascent up to the Needle Eye Tunnel.<\/p><\/div>\n

Getting to the start of the hike is a bit of an adventure in itself. You\u2019ll need a fairly rugged vehicle with decent clearance to reach Yankee Doodle Lake (the first possible starting point) or a true 4×4 SUV to get to Jenny Lake\u2019s parking area. If you don\u2019t mind a longer walk, you can park at the Forest Lakes parking lot and avoid the brief but burly entrance road to Jenny Lake.<\/span><\/p>\n

Starting the Hike to Mount Epworth<\/h2>\n

I\u2019ve seen Subaru Outbacks \/ Honda CRVs at Yankee Doodle Lake and Forest Lakes parking areas. My Toyota 4Runner had no problem getting up to Jenny Lake and most stock SUVs should be fine. The 10-mile Rollins Pass Road to Jenny Lake is a bit rocky but never too steep or technical. See directions below for details. Note that Jenny Lake is a fantastic, free place to car camp. There are no restrooms, but there are plenty of established backcountry sites and lots of room to pitch a tent. <\/span><\/p>\n

So there are essentially three starting points:<\/span><\/p>\n