UN 13,015 (formerly UN 13,020 interpolated) near Maroon Lake and Willow Pass has been determined to be no longer a ranked summit per Lidar evaluation, which gives it 292 ft. of prominence. This has reduced the total number of ranked 13ers from 584 to 583. We will be adjusting our list in the near future.
From the main intersection of US 285, US 160 and CO 15 (South Broadway) in Monte Vista, CO, drive south on CO 15 for 2.3 miles and turn right (west) onto a road with three possible designations. Locally, this is "County Road 2S," aka: County Road "R," or "The Rock Creek Road." Drive 2.5 miles west on paved road which will then make a sharp left turn back to the south. At this point, you are now on CR 28. Continue 4 more miles with the road veering SW for a distance before heading back south. It will cross the non-designated Rock Creek at a local ranch where it turns to gravel, continues another half mile or so, then turn right (west - after a kiosk) to roughly follow on the south side of Rock Creek. County Road 28 eventually becomes a Forest Road of the same designation. You will be following this road to its end. After a few more miles crossing open prairie and ranch land, the road enters forest & canyon, climbs briefly over a low pass of sorts, then drops back down to pick up and follow the South Fork of Rock Creek. The road will pass two campgrounds as it continues up stream. The first will be the Rock Creek Recreation Area followed by the Comstock. These two campgrounds are just under three miles apart. Both are first-come, first-served. Neither has water but both have vault toilets. They can be open much of the year depending on snow conditions. At our visit in 2023, the Comstock campground, with 7 sites, required no fee, but a posting indicated a suggested fee of $10 to be instituted in the future. The vault toilet here was padlocked but portable units were in place. At both camp locations, there are warped tables and fire rings.
From the Comstock CG, continue along the South Fork of Rock Creek. The road will cross from the north to the south side of the creek and go up a switchback. It then will gain quite a bit of elevation as it winds around and makes another switchback, then heads NW to the trailhead, which is basically an enlarged, flattened area for parking. Not a good campsite here but you'll pass at least two primitive site camp locations on the drive up from the Comstock CG. From the trailhead, the "trail" drops down to cross over the South Fork again. There is no bridge or logs for crossing. At the same TH, a blocked track continues NW above the creek. We do not recommend taking this route because of the severe beetle-kill damage that will make bushwhacking very difficult. After crossing the creek, the designated trail is easy to follow into the upper basin. It is used by cattle and there are usually quite a few grazing in the area. We would recommend not relying on the current water source of the creek or any of the springs. This information updated 2023.
There are two National Forest campgrounds on the drive to the end of CR/Fr 28 as mentioned above. While several other roads that turn off from FR 28 could take you to a possible primitive camp location, we recommend using either of the two NF campsites because there is a lot of cattle grazing in this area and private land. Please respect private property. Above the Comstock CG, we did spot at least two primitive sites that were easily seen from the road. Be aware that there is severe beetle-kill damage as you get to the higher elevation forest.