Grottos Trail

A lot of view for little effort. The ice cave was cool, but to me the cascades stole the show. Dipped my toes in on Sept 2 and the water was still cold enough to almost freeze them off.

Great hikes and views. Moderately difficult with leg and hip disability but does have a handicap accessible pathway.

The ice cave was beautiful, but be prepared to climb down and back up if you are interested in seeing this.

The Cascades were amazing from several different viewpoints unlike some other waterfalls which only have 1 good vantage point.

This is a great hike for beginners. Even though the trail is short, you can end up spending a couple hours taking in the beautiful sights. Don’t forget to take a look inside the cave, you won’t be disappointed.

Very cool trail right off the highway. Does require some rock scrambling, but overall, it's an easy trail. Parking in the very small parking lot can be a challenge.

The trail is a relatively easy trail. The scenery is incredible. Great place to stop when traveling to or from Independance Pass.
A couple spots to at along the trail are the Cascades and the Ice Caves

The Grottos Trail in Aspen is a hiking path that travels past waterfalls, rapids, and grottos. During the winter, the pools inside the caverns freeze, covering them in ice.

A short 30 min drive from Snowmass Village, the drive has a tight road condition when approaching the venue. A wonderful experience and views in the forest with rocks and caves created by glaciers, waterfalls, and rivers.

Be prepared with hiking shoes, mosquito spray, and water. There is a public restroom at the entrance. A very limited parking lots available.

Fantastic stop along the way to or from Independence Pass!! Only a 0.5 mile round-trip hike from the parking lot, yet one of the most gorgeous collections of waterfalls in Colorado! The ice cave is also a lot of fun to explore and easy to access with a little bit of scrambling!

Stunning and amazing spot between Aspen and Independence Pass. You have to park at trail head. Easily accessible by kids too. Easy hike to cascades through wooden bridges and trails. Flowing water makes it a perfect place for photos and spending time with family. Naturally beautiful.

This is a great hike. I loved coming here when it was so hot down in the Front Range so all the way up near Aspen the temperature was near perfect. And with gas prices so high it's like a pretend road trip. Unfortunately the Ice Caves were a little sketchy so we opted out. There was a big burly guy coming out and he was like I've done all the 14ers and that is pretty hairy in there! He said it's too difficult because you can't get a good grip on the ice. I guess he should have brought some ice climbing gear haha. I kid because I definitely wasn't prepared either. But it looked like a fun challenge for people more experienced than us. We did have fun climbing up to the Cascades though. The trail goes over a little bit of rock face that you have to climb but I would call it beginning level climbing for sure. However if you have disabilities you might not be able to get back there. My daughter thought the trail ended but I spied a little sign on a post continuing on so that's how I knew. Thankfully we found our way because the Cascades are so beautiful and so relaxing. I felt like I could sit there all day just listening to the sounds of the water rushing. And there were very few people it felt like we had the area to ourselves for a long time. I would recommend this hike to anyone who likes hiking and if you are really experienced you might want to go down into the ice caves and give yourself more of a challenge.

Beautiful little hike about. The grottos the cascades and the erratics are all worth seeing. The hike is easy enough to be done by all ages. Just be careful if the weather is cold because it may get icy or slippery

Absolutely beautiful and the perfect little stop on road trip. It really does only take like 20 minutes max to get through it, but definitely worth a stop

Beautiful little area. Ice and water carved beautiful formations in the rock. Obviously no ice now in the summer but the water in the Roaring Fork still felt ice cold when we dunked in for a cool down

Such a beautiful area, not a difficult hike (although would have appreciated more logs or some ropes down into the ice caves so short legged folks like me can get in and out. I could only see from the top and by pics that hubby took from down in the caves. The falls were spectacular and really enjoyed the walk along the river.

So cool. You have to go down into the ice cave. We went in July and the ice had t melted. Great short hike all The way around is like 3/4 mile. Beautiful scenery.

Definitely a great place to see the power of water.

Worth the stop, and truly a serene sight! Easy hiking trails with views throughout! Also a nice ice cave (depending on the time visited).

Fun hike for the family. There was a bit of a more difficult climb down into the grotto, but we helped our 4 year old down. Beautiful cascading waterfalls. We enjoyed the stop.

Interesting, easy hike—must do if vacationing in the Aspen area! We loved our visit to the Grotto’s area as a perfect stop along the way up to Independence Pass. We arrived in the parking lot at about 9am; by the time we left at 10:30am, the lot was full (TIP: plan to visit early!). The entry includes bathrooms and an information sign. You’ll find a short amount of hiking, some rock scrambling, a unique cave system, and a beautiful cascade of falling water. You can just walk the easy trail areas, and you also have access to scrambling/climbing if you want to go down into the cave and/or reach the edges of some of the falls (recommend sturdy shoes). This place is great for singles, couples, and families with plenty of photo opportunities. Highly recommended.

The Grottos in Aspen is one of the most beautiful places in the world… It’s breathtaking. Bring a camera & picnic to Maroon Bells and then spend the afternoon at the Grottos. The water is chilly but it’s okay to get wet in the little ponds. Watch your children very carefully. It’s not for toddlers. I’d recommend it for children 6 or 7 and older who are solid on their feet. Wear comfortable shoes with traction & sunscreen if you’re fair skinned. ❤Angela Corr