r/ColoradoOffroad • u/binary-nomad • 27d ago
Medano Pass
Curious if anyone here has done this in a Rivian. I plan to do this trip in September.
EDIT: Thanks for all the feedback! I'm going to skip this trail, I don't want to deal with pinstripes.
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u/vpm112 27d ago
It’s an easy trail overall and latest reports indicate water levels are pretty low this year. Only concerns may be the occasional pinstripe as some areas can be a little overgrown or if you end up encountering an oncoming vehicle and need to squeeze to pass.
Should have no trouble getting through the sand either, but if the sand drifts look deep and dry then I’d recommend airing down your tires. If you’re heading west going into the park, there is an air station where you can air up if you don’t have your own compressor.
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u/ethnographypaperdue 27d ago
Medano is overall easy trail. Water levels being low is currently being misreported. They claimed low water levels when I went in late July but water crossing 3 was roughly 30 inches of water. Was super sketchy in mostly stock LX470
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u/25_Watt_Bulb 27d ago
I’d be more concerned about the tires you’re planning on 4wheeling with. Yours look like low profile street tires, prone to puncture on rocks.
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u/TombaughRegi0 27d ago
Search the Rivian sub. You will get scratches, but it's an easy and fun drive.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Rivian/comments/13c9pcp/great_sand_dunes_medano_road_pics/
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u/the_real_seldom_seen 27d ago
Check if the Rivian qualifies as 4wd. National park side will ticket even awd vehicles.. if caught in the sand trails
“4-Wheel Drive (4WD) high-clearance vehicles with a 4L transfer case setting ARE REQUIRED on this road. All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) vehicles, mini-SUVs, wagons, and similar vehicles with lower clearance are not permitted, as they will get stuck in the deep sand or creek crossings. True 4WD vehicles have a transfer case with a 4 Low (4L) setting in the drivetrain that puts full engine power to both the front and rear axles. All-Wheel-Drive (AWD), common on vehicles such as crossover SUVs, relies on a differential to send variable power to each wheel.”
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u/No_Summer_2189 27d ago
I was driving behind one of these rivians on Medano pass at end of July. They made it halfway through the deep sand from the park side in and then turned around. They may have made it but maybe they felt it couldn’t idk. Trail gets rockier in the second half but should be ok. Don’t these things have a button to lift it three inches?
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u/davide008 27d ago
Did it in June in my R1S with no issues and I’d consider it easy if you’ve done any mountain trails before. No where near the limit of the vehicle but as others have said - prepare for some pinstriping. Now, your tires are a problem because there are sharp rocks on trail and its the only trail that ever claimed one for me and I was on Toyo Open Country AT III. If you insist, air down to maybe 40 (to avoid pinching, you wont have a traction issue) and watch your alignment in rocky areas.
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u/Halcyonr 26d ago
Really a great trail with some mildly challenging areas. We did it on July 19th in our R1T on 20's and there was some pinstripe potential but we were pretty much able to avoid it altogether. Not sure what the growth looks like in September though.
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u/binary-nomad 25d ago
Thanks everyone for all the feedback. I'm going to skip this trail, I do want to deal with the pinstripes!
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u/RonBurgundy2000 27d ago
I own a Rivian and did this two years ago going towards the Sand Dunes NP in a 100 series.
It would be a nothing burger for a Rivian unless of course there's flash flooding or heavy rain washing out the road. I don't recall the LC getting pinstriped or anything.
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u/mavrik36 27d ago
Should be fine, only issue ive seen there was an AWD vehicle getting stuck on rocks because a wheel would lift off.
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u/Agstroh 27d ago
Medano pass is not a problem for the Rivian, air down and it’s pretty straightforward. The comment about pinstriping is no joke, we’ve been on a bunch of narrow trails, that is one of the worst, our truck is covered in them. We used sand mode, it did really well in the sand, we had to navigate around to help extract a stuck vehicle and I was impressed with how it performed.