Molas Pass is a high mountain pass

Mountain pass

A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...

 in the San Juan Mountains

San Juan Mountains

The San Juan Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Colorado. The area is highly mineralized and figured in the gold and silver mining industry of early Colorado. Major towns, all old mining camps, include Creede, Lake City, Silverton, Ouray, and...

 of western Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

The pass is in the San Juan National Forest

San Juan National Forest

The San Juan National Forest is a U.S. National Forest covering over 1,878,846 acres in Archuleta, Conjeos, Dolores, Hinsdale, La Plata, Mineral, Montezuma, Rio Grande, San Miguel and San Juan Counties in western Colorado. It borders the Uncompahgre National Forest to the north and the Rio Grande...

. The pass is traversed by the Million Dollar Highway, U.S. Highway 550 south of Silverton

Silverton, Colorado

The town of Silverton is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, San Juan County, Colorado, United States. Silverton is a former silver mining camp, most or all of which is now included in a federally designated National Historic Landmark District,...

, which is part of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway

San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway

The San Juan Skyway is one of an All-American Road and a component in the Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway System. It forms a loop in the southwest part of the U.S. state of Colorado traversing the heart of the San Juan Mountains.- U.S. Highway 160 :...

. Though it is one of the higher passes in Colorado, it has only a few switchbacks on the north approach, is considerably less intimidating than Red Mountain Pass

Red Mountain Pass

Red Mountain Pass elevation is a mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains of western Coloradoin the United States.The pass straddles a divide that separates Ouray and San Juan counties. The pass is named for the nearby Red Mountain 1, 2 and, 3 on the northeast side of the pass...

on the same highway, and is generally kept open in the winter months.

Molas Pass is also the last mountain pass of the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic race, where riders race the train from Durango to Silverton.