Berthoud Pass is a high mountain pass in the Colorado Rockies along the Continental Divide. Berthoud Summit is located on U.S. Highway 40, near Winter Park, Colorado. U.S. Highway 40 is the northern route across the state of Colorado, and connects Interstate 70 to Salt Lake City, Utah. The summit of Berthoud Pass is over 11,000 feet in elevation. It receives a large amount of snow in the winter, and often either has chain restrictions for commercial trucks or is closed for avalanche control.
Highway 40 on both sides of Berthoud Summit is a classic steep, winding, mountain shelf road with an average grade of about 4.5%. Although Berthoud Pass is not as steep as some of the other Colorado Passes, it is most notable for having a lot of low speed switchbacks. The combination of the 4.5% grade and many 15 to 20 mph switchbacks makes it a dangerous traverse. Berthoud Pass is commonly used for back-country car-shuttle skiing, so skiers are commonly encountered on the pass road, hitchhiking or waiting for a ride back to the summit.
Westbound U.S. 40 from the Berthoud Summit has a vertical descent of 1652 feet over a distance of 7 miles. The westbound descent has numerous marked advisory curves. The lowest advisory speed curves are 20 mph and there are four of these on the westbound side. The highway straightens out around the 236 milepost or about 7 miles from the summit, but there is a continued rolling descent for about another 6 miles. Winter Park/Mary Jane Ski Area is located approximately 8 to 11 miles west of the summit. The ski area has numerous parking areas on both sides of the road and there are stoplights at 10.0 and 10.7 miles from the summit. Traffic should be expected at these locations, particularly in the morning and afternoon during the ski season.
Eastbound U.S. 40 from the Berthoud Summit has a vertical descent of 1664 feet over a distance of 7 miles. There are numerous curves signed with advisory speeds. The lowest advisory speed curve is 15 mph at 3.6 miles east of the summit. Another curve signed for 20 mph at 1.5 miles east of the summit has both the sign and curve hidden behind a rock wall. Additionally, the 20-mph signed advisory curve at 5.6 miles has two additional advanced warning signs. These signs are at 4.4 and 5.2 miles east of the summit and warn of the 20-mph curve in one mile and one half mile, respectively. The presence of these signs is indicative of the curve at 5.6 miles being problematic, so be careful. A highway department maintenance facility is located about 6.1 miles from the summit, where highway maintenance trucks entering and leaving the driveway should be expected. The highway straightens out near the town of Berthoud Falls at about the 249 milepost but has a continued rolling descent for about 7 miles to the town of Empire. Between Berthoud Falls and Empire, there is a 5% to 5.5%, 2.5-mile grade section starting around the 252 milepost.
SUMMIT
Pass Name:
Berthoud Pass
Traversed by Highway:
US-40
Summit Elevation:
11,307 ft.
Summit Conditions:
Large parking area at summit
Summit Milepost:
243
WEST DESCENT
Base Elevation:
9,655 ft
Vertical Distance:
1,625 ft
Base Milepost:
236
Driving Distance:
7 miles
Posted Speed Limit:
45 mph / 35 mph for trucks
Calculated Average Grade:
4.4%
Lowest Advisory Speed:
20 mph
Number of Lanes:
1 down, 2 up
Number of Switchbacks:
5
Number of Advisory Speed Curves:
7
Number of Brake Check Stations:
1 at Summit
ADVISORY SPEED CURVES
Advisory Speed
Location from Summit
Sign
20 mph
0.5 miles
Right Hairpin
25 mph
0.6 miles
Left Reverse Curve
30 mph
1.3 miles
Left Windy Road
20 mph
2.8 miles
Right Hairpin
30 mph
3.0 miles
Right Windy Road
20 mph
4.8 miles
Right Hairpin
20 mph
6.0 miles
Left Hairpin
ELEVATIONS
Mile Marker
Elevation
Change in Elevation
Percent Grade
243
11,307 ft.
242
11,057 ft.
250 ft.
4.7%
241
10,813 ft.
245 ft.
4.6%
240
10,616 ft.
197 ft.
3.7%
239
10,346 ft.
270 ft.
5.1%
238
10,129 ft.
217 ft.
4.1%
237
9,850 ft.
279 ft.
5.2%
236
9,655 ft.
195 ft.
3.6%
235
9,522 ft.
133 ft.
2.5%
234
9,478 ft.
44 ft.
0.8%
233
9,301 ft.
177 ft.
3.3%
232
9,102 ft.
199 ft.
3.7%
231
8,941 ft.
161 ft.
3.0%
230
8,848 ft.
93 ft.
1.7%
RECOMMENDED SPEEDS FROM THE GRADE SEVERITY RATING SYSTEM
MAXIMUM TRUCK WEIGHT (POUNDS)
MAXIMUM SAFE SPEED (MPH)
BRAKE TEMP FROM DECLINE (°F)
BRAKE TEMP FROM EMERGENCY STOP (°F)
TOTAL BRAKE TEMP. (°F)
TOTAL TRAVEL TIME (MIN.)
80,000
30
430
22
452
14.0
75,000
35
452
28
480
12.0
*These speeds are based on an average grade from the summit to the base. Some grade segments may be steeper than the average and require a slower speed.
Berthoud Pass Westbound
EAST DESCENT
Base Elevation:
9.643 ft
Vertical Distance:
1,664 ft
Base Milepost:
250
Driving Distance:
7 miles
Posted Speed Limit:
45 mph / 35 mph trucks
Calculated Average Grade:
4.5%
Lowest Advisory Speed:
15 mph at 3.6 miles
Number of Lanes:
1 down, 2 up
Number of Switchbacks:
5
Number of Advisory Curves:
8
Brake Check Stations:
1 at Summit
ADVISORY SPEED CURVES
Advisory Speed
Location from Summit
Sign
30 mph
0.3 miles
Left Curve
20 mph
1.5 miles
Left Hairpin
None
2.3 miles
Right Windy Road
25 mph
2.4 miles
Right Hairpin
20 mph
3.3 miles
Left Hairpin
15 mph
3.6 miles
Right Hairpin
None
3.8 miles
Left Windy Road
20 mph
5.6 miles
Left Hairpin
ELEVATIONS
Mile Marker
Elevation
Change in Elevation
Percent Grade
243
11,307 ft.
244
11,080 ft.
227 ft.
4.2%
245
10,810 ft.
270 ft.
5.1%
246
10,595 ft.
215 ft.
4.0%
247
10,304 ft.
291 ft.
5.5%
248
10,037 ft.
267 ft.
5.0%
249
9,804 ft.
233 ft.
4.4%
250
9,643 ft.
161 ft.
3.0%
251
9,503 ft.
140 ft.
2.6%
252
9,356 ft.
147 ft.
2.7%
253
9,085 ft.
271 ft.
5.1%
254
8,790 ft.
295 ft.
5.5%
255
8,610 ft.
180 ft.
3.4%
256
8,548 ft.
62 ft.
1.1%
RECOMMENDED SPEEDS FROM THE GRADE SEVERITY RATING SYSTEM
MAXIMUM TRUCK WEIGHT (POUNDS)
MAXIMUM SAFE SPEED (MPH)
BRAKE TEMP FROM DECLINE (°F)
BRAKE TEMP FROM EMERGENCY STOP (°F)
TOTAL BRAKE TEMP. (°F)
TOTAL TRAVEL TIME (MIN.)
80,000
30
430
22
452
14.0
75,000
35
453
28
481
12.0
*These speeds are based on an average grade from the summit to the base. Some grade segments may be steeper than the average and require a slower speed.
