Crystal Mill in
Carbondale (CO)

This place is absolutely beautiful! We did the Jeep Tour up here and glad we did. Our Rav4 wasn't going to get up there lol. The small jeep compass that was behind us on the way back down, rode high and center, scraping the front end and undercarriage to pieces and popped a tire. Good luck getting a tow truck to come get you and not pay under 1k for it. Be smarter when attempting the drive. Getting there is one thing, coming back down is another.

Very busy on the road with cars and four wheelers, but it is stunning!

Love the views nice hike amazing river . Get ready to walk 5 miles up and 5 miles down. But it’s worth it.

This is an epic adventure with a beautiful destination. 4x4 high clearance vehicles required. If you are going to do the entire loop do it clockwise, counter is more difficult. Lots of shelf road and very bumpy and rocky road.

Stunning views. Just make sure you have a decent 4X4 vehicle

The road to the mill is beautiful but a bit scary at times, definetly worth it though, be sure to check out the town of Crystal too ❤️

The drive up there is a little crazy. You need a 4x4 vehicle. The first hill is the hardest probably. Your are on cliff the all way. But it is worth the trip. The Mill is gorgeous. There is the middle on the forest.

What an incredible hike up to a beautiful area! Definitely don’t recommend driving anything but an off-road Jeep up the trails. We considered taking our pickup but went against it after we saw how steep the start of the trail was! Bring LOTS of water and wear comfy shoes. The end result is worth the struggle of the uphill climb!

What a gorgeous day, beautiful colors, and not a lot of traffic. Jeep trail road sign wasn't real visible and could use some refurbishing. Not too bad of a ride. If hiking, be prepared for rain at anytime.

It was a rough drive, even in a 4x4 truck. I recommend a smaller 4x4 like a jeep. We were disappointed that we couldn't get down to the base of the mill for pictures but completely understand why it's been closed off to the public. (Vandalism ?) There is a nice picnic table under a tree, and even a two holes outhouse for the brave visitors! ?

What a beautiful place. But if your vehicle is not necessarily jeep style, take a tour. My car is a Honda Pilot Elite, but when I came down, the tire flattened and all system warning lights came on, resulting in really expensive repairs. It is an off-road that is tougher than you can imagine. However, I have no regrets about the experience of visiting that beautiful place.

Mill was cold to see. But it was the drive there that was the amazing. You need to be in a keep and have to feel comfortable to very very rough ride for the entire off road trail. The short section is much better if you just want to get there and a small taste of the trail . Many will not like this rough and some say scary ride. I loved it but love off road trails like this!

Definitely a must see whether you hike to it or drive. The road there is rough and rocky but not impassable. Don't let the reviews fool you, i think some of them are locals who are getting tired of the traffic. Either that or they don't know how to overland. While I definitely recommend a vehicle with good ground clearance and at least all wheel drive, I've read several stories of 2x4 vehicles making it just fine. We did it in a 21 subaru crosstrek with nothing but falken wild peak tires and only bumped (not scraped) the bottom twice on the way in and once on the way out. It took me an hour each way because I took my time choosing a path that was easier on our crosstrek. Fortunately, it wasn't very busy that day and only had to stop for 2 vehicles to pass coming in and going out. The trail is very narrow in places and requires your full attention, but the payoff of the beauty of the mill and the drive in are worth it to me. I would definitely do it again.

Tuesday afternoon drive. Still a good amount of traffic. Narrow trails, someone will have to back up, and thats not fun here. There is a lot cliffs too. The scenery. Is amazing, never been anywhere like it. Try to stay quiet and you’ll possibly see a moose. The drive was long but well well worth it. Super rocky so air down.

It is absolutely breath-taking. If you have a 4 wheel drive with some clearance I highly recommend driving out to the mills it is definitely worth it, pictures do not do it justice. If you would like to hike the trail instead of driving it I recommend starting early in the morning, the trail is longer and rougher then you might think not to mention the traffic. My only complaint is the jeep rental place... if you can avoid taking the jeep rental tour I would highly recommend it, do it on your own if you can. One of the drivers (a middle aged female) is down right rude There are a few complaints about her on the review sites....I won't go into detail, but if I never see that lady again in my life it will be too soon. I waited several years to see the mills and it was almost tarnished by that woman

Beautiful scenery the entire way. If you are an experienced 4x4 driver you can loop around. Takes about 2-3 hours. We took our can am side by side up 3 times now. Great ride. 10 dollars to go to the bottom. You can swim but the waternis pretty cold even in August. Fall time is even better!!

Crystal Mill was Spectacular! The road to Get there was awful. We went in a wide truck and there were definitely areas where we got thrown around pretty good, and some narrow spots where I feared we could go over the edge. To give you an idea on how bad the road is, it is only ~4.5 miles long and I think we took about an hour and a half to two hours to get there. The scenery is great but pictures were difficult with all of the bouncing. The trip back down was only an hour or so. Several people walking despite how cold it was. The Mill and the little town a little further in are amazing, and the vibrant fall colors really emphasized everything.

Alright, the mill itself, FANTASTIC! The surrounding area and scenic views travelling to the mill, FANTASTIC! However: I drove the five miles in a Dodge Dakota 4x4, it did great, no problems whatsoever...except it's a bit wide for the trail, I slide on a rock and almost went over the edge...and I mean edge...a cliff really...at the bottom I saw a rusted out truck on it's roof. A jeep wrangler or Cherokee would be better suited because they're not as wide. What I'd really recommend, a four wheeler, it appeared to be the funner way to go and definitely safest. As far as mountain biking, anyone who tells you it's great there, LIARS. Sharp rocks, steep inclines, no fun. Best way, hiking or a Jeep wrangler...most line production 4wheel drive trucks will make it, but if you meet up with another motorist on the treacherous part, someone's going to have to back down to a safe spot and I'm not lying about the cliff...once I was done taking pictures I prayed I wouldn't meet anyone on the trail back, I did, but it was in places where it was easy to maneuver. Hike or 4wheeler, that's my recommendation, any other way just isn't worth it. I had a blast despite almost going over the edge. The trail picture, well, that's the easiest part of the trail you have to drive and that's in the beginning. Oh, there is someone there charging 10 bucks to go beyond the ropes. You can still take pictures without paying the ten bucks.

Do not drive anything but high clearance 4x4s or ATVs/side-by-sides to the mill. Larger trucks may have difficulty getting through some of the more narrow sections of road as traffic does go in both directions and there is only room for one car in many spots. Get used to driving alongside a cliff edge and try not to look at the mangled remains of vehicles at the bottom that have rolled down the cliff. The mill is badass though!

AMAZING HIKE! I would recommend going early, and either park your car at the beginning of the off-road and walk (takes like 2 hours to reach the cabin) or have a 4x4 car (takes 30 mins or so). Once you reach the cabin you can go down, but you have to pay 10$. There’s also a little store and restrooms if you keep walking 1000ft after the cabin.

An amazing experience. In all honesty, my friend and I did start the trek on foot , but the few vehicles and ATV's coming through picked up so much dust we decided to double back for our jeep after a mile or so. (Which you most definitely need a 4x4) The trail is a 4 mile one way and be prepared to back up on some pretty sketchy areas. The scenery is gorgeous and it'll take about an hour to get there. Crystal City is a secluded, darling little place and you'll love the peaceful surroundings. Bring $10 per person if you'd like to go down to the bottom and get the best pictures and have a picnic by the water! Crystal Mill has been on our bucket list for years and driving 5 hours one way was totally worth it!

Beautiful place!!! ? You can pay 10 to get down below and swim, there are also some cabins you can rent. Be advise that the road is really narrow and super rocky. Off road vehicles and experienced drivers highly recommended!!!

A family adventure getting to this place! We mountain biked down from the Townsite of Schofield; biking back up wasn't so fun. The mill was pretty, as was the very rough canyon trip to it. We didn't like that the town and mill were becoming touristy, owned by just a couple of private owners, and that the mill required $10/person payment for closer viewing down a steep dirt slope with no regard for safety (other than a signed waiver, of course). It was also easy to see the mill has been reinforced from deterioration with new material near the bottom and top; surely, to support the two land owners' monopoly on an otherwise historic treasure (hmm, seems reminiscent of the early commercialization of Yellowstone and Niagara). Pretty, yet sad, honestly. I really hope the money the collect will be used create safer road entry and a safer viewing area.

Beautiful!!! We rented an ATV from RPS Rentals and went all the way to the end of the trail. I highly recommend it. If you don't hike the 5.4 miles you can mountain bike or drive, but you should have an ATV or high-profile 4 wheel drive because the road is VERY rocky & in some areas there are very steep drop offs. There's the mill at the end of the trail and the small town of Crystal, where there's a rest area & a general store to buy drinks, snacks & souvenirs (credit cards accepted). Please be respectful when/if you go here, it is private property and they are trying to preserve it for future generations to enjoy and learn from.

It's a beautiful place but really hard to get there. The trail is all rock with ups and down. I used my bicycle but I barely rode it. There is no full access to the mill because is private property. By the way is a worthy hike with full exercise. Took 4 hours and half round trip.

This is the place to be during the fall. There are so many beautiful fall colors. If you like photography or not you still need to take a picture of this place. The road up here is very bumpy, so a high clearance vehicle is needed. Or if you have a dirt bike or an atv would be fun too. Or you can hike the whole way. Either way it’s worth the trip

We got there on Sunday 10/15/2017 9:30am, passed the mailboxes, our 4X4 SUV able to drove up to the trail head, 5MPH. There are about 6-8 parking spots up there. Hiking along crystal river, most the aspen leaves were gone but still very beautiful. Some ups and downs and rocky road. But not hard difficult at all. We were enjoying the views and stopped for pictures, took us 1 hr and 45 minutes to get there. Saw some 4X4s, ATV drove there. Crystal Mill, that old house was build in 1892, still looked amazing! We hiked down by the river, had some lunch, waited for the better lighting for pictures. Walked around until 1pm. Imaging with all the golden aspen around this place, it will be much more colorful! Hopefully will be back here in September next year!