If coming from CO82 and Aspen: From the intersection of E. Main St. and S. Galena St. go west on E. Main which will become W. Main, to South 7th St. where you'll follow the usual heavy volume of traffic making a right turn. A few blocks later, turn left, continuing on what will now be CO82 again straight through a traffic circle and past the Aspen Airport Business Center. Continue NW on CO82 to the Town of Snowmass. Do not confuse this town with Snowmass Village. The old Town of Snowmass is past any turnoffs for Snowmass Village by several miles. Total distance is 14.5 miles. There's a traffic light there and a gas station on the south side of the road. Turn left (south) onto CR11, aka: the Snowmass Creek Road.
If coming from Glenwood Springs: Take the main exit 116 on the north side of I-70. At the traffic circle, almost immediately after the exit, head for Grand Avenue, the main street through downtown Glenwood. From the traffic circle, it's 26.8 miles to Snowmass. Grand Avenue becomes CO82 and passes by the turnoff for Carbondale and Basalt before coming to Snowmass. Turn right (south) onto CR11, aka: Snowmass Creek Road.
Once on Snowmass Creek Road, drive south. The road will cross Snowmass Creek, then shortly after will come to a "T" intersection. Turn right (west) onto the Capitol Creek Road, aka: CR9 on Trails Illustrated & Google Earth, or N791 on the White River NF map. The basic goal now is to just remain on that road to the trailhead. Shortly after the "T" intersection, continue straight where CR7, aka: E. Sopris Creek Rd. veers off to the right. About 6 miles in from CO82, the road turns to graded, gravel. As the road heads more to the south, avoid turning off onto Monastery Road. Continue past still on CR9 until you come to the road's end at the trailhead. There's a Capitol Creek Guard station about 8 miles in from CO82. The trailhead will be another mile and a half from there. This last section of road becomes quite rough. This is where a 4WD or better-than-average clearance vehicle is useful. For more precise directions, we refer you to Gerry Roach's book on the Colorado Fourteeners. Expect parking on weekends at this trailhead to be congested.
For most of the drive in on the Capitol Creek Road, you are passing by private property. Please show proper respect. You are not on White River NF land until you 're just about to the trailhead. There are no campgrounds on the drive in and suitable tent spots at the trailhead are few and likely taken by parked vehicles. We can only suggest a "car-camp" here.