Advice on Trip to CO

I’ve had Colorado on my bucket list for a long time and am finally planing a trip this summer. I’m looking for a little advice and this community has always been super helpful.

I want to focus on the Alpine Loop area but maybe that’s just because I don’t know any better. I want to experience beautiful scenery, do some of the famous passes and check out the historic mining towns. Open to suggestions on trails, camping, and motels.

I’ll have a week off and planning on coming in mid August. Is that a good time to come?

I will be driving my third gen 4runner with a mild lift, 32” tires, a rear locker, and no armor. I’ve been off roading for almost 30 years so I have good experience.

Any advice is very much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Seth

 

While not an expert on Colorado, I have it on good authority that fire bans may be in place in August. That's typically the dry season and campfires may be banned. Also, considered dispersed camping on BLM land.

 

I have enjoyed staying at Air BnB's in Ouray when I am in that area. Last Dollar Road between Ouray and Telluride is a great trail to get started on. When you do the Alpine Loop be ready for Mineral Creek Trail since it is rather difficult. Be sure to do Corkscrew/Hurricane/California Passes which are some of the most fun I had out there. If you cross Engineer or Cinnamon pass over to Lake City be careful about taking the paved road that goes from Lake City back to Ouray. Summer of 2023 the paved road was closing overnight for construction forcing me to take a 100+ mile detour around the Black Canyons of the Gunnisons to get back to Ouray. Grab a copy of "Guide to Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails" before you go. I got a copy of the book from a store in Ouray and it has been invaluable.

 

Mid August is perfectly fine and more than likely you won’t have issues with snowpack.

Obviously everything is dependent on snowpack/melt and weather.

If we have a rainy spring - the end of July is usually best for wildflowers.

 

That’s the Charles Wells book, right?

$28 Guide to Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails (FunTreks Guidebooks)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1934838268?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

I’ve had good luck with his books before.

 

Yes that book. I have a few other books about trails in that area but the Charles Wells book has been the most used.

 

What are the rules when fire bans are in place? Can you still have a fire in a developed campsite? Can you still use stoves while dispersed? Do you need any kind of permit for stoves (or fires if allowed)?

Thank you for all the help so far!

 

Depends on the area and level. You can find info at the time online and they are usually posted locally in various places as you enter the forests.

typically stoves for cooking are fine as long as they are off the ground. Sometimes propane fire pits. Fires in a fire pit may be restricted if it’s a higher level / red flag.

 

Keep in mind the Water erosion can make this book outdated.

Much more up to date https://traildamage.com/ small fee but I think it's worth it given all the activity/ trail reports.

 

We have levels, first to go is Wood, than Propane then no fire's at all.

 

If you don't mind some spoilers and have some time to read, my build thread has a multi-part trip report from my trip a few years ago. I ran the loop and damn near every pass between Ouray and Telluride.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...l-and-b-s-thread.356319/page-18#post-18214387

 

Great trip report! You hit many of the trails and spots I’m most interested in. Nice to know you can squeeze in a lot in a day, though I’ll probably take it slower. You have a sweet Taco too! Thank you for the help!

 

Southwestern CO is beautiful. I'd start at the 4 corners coming from CA. Just FYI, you'll pass a LOT of cool stuff in southern Utah. You may not make it to Colorado.

four corners monument - Search Images (bing.com)

Interesting spot that only takes a few minutes to visit. From there you might want to visit Mesa Verde NP. Lots of native American history and cliff houses. If you're not into that sort of thing it isn't the most scenic and you may want to skip it. My wife loved it. It was OK and I'm glad I went once but wouldn't go back.

mesa verde national park - Search Images (bing.com)

From there I'd head toward Durango then north toward Silverton and Ouray. You can spend a few days in this area. Lots of old mining sites and off-road trails. You can rent a Jeep and I'd suggest it. It cost me more to repair trail damage to my truck than the rental would have cost. I trashed one tire and pulled the trailer wiring receptacle off.

silverton - Search Images (bing.com)

ouray colorado - Search Images (bing.com)

Be sure to go to the hot springs in Ouray.

ouray colorado hot springs - Search Images (bing.com)

Or if you're adventurous there are some clothing optional springs in the area.

The million-dollar highway between Silverton and Ouray is a white-knuckle ride. Sheer drops, no guard rails. The driver can't enjoy the views.

million dollar highway colorado - Search Images (bing.com)

I've never made it to Telluride. It is pretty near Ouray as the crow flies, but with mountain roads is a bit of a drive and not on the way to anywhere else. We just never had the time to do the side trip.

Continue north to Montrose then east to Salida then south to Monte Vista. If you have time you can turn east on hwy 160 and to to the Great Sand Dunes NP. It is a little out of the way and not on MY must see list. But my wife and grandkids loved it. You can rent boards and sled on the dunes.

great sand dunes national park - Search Images (bing.com)

If you don't go to the Sand Dunes head west on 160 toward South Fork, or after the sand dunes if you go. From South Fork turn right and visit Creed. This is a must do for me.

creede colorado - Search Images (bing.com)

There is a mining museum and several old silver mines. Especially if you drive the Batchelor Loop road.

bachelor loop creede colorado - Search Images (bing.com)

Come back to South Fork and continue west over Wolf Creek Pass.

wolf creek pass - Search Images (bing.com)

Of course you have to play this song while coming down into Pagosa Springs.

Wolf Creek Pass (youtube.com)

From Pagosa Springs you're almost back to Durango and headed home.

You probably won't have time for all of that. But those are all places we've been and enjoyed.

 

Ophir pass is awesome! We did it in my stock 4Runner multiple times. Worth stopping at the top and hiking a bit up there. The views there like on the alpine loop are sweet!!

would also check out red mountain pass and hike Red Mountain No. 3 from the top of the pass. Views from there are 11/10!

 

Thank you for mentioning that book! I'm somewhat new to Ft. Collins, and I'm very new to wheelin'. Can't wait to explore!

As to current trail conditions, I wonder if the map layers on Gaia would have those?

The wifey and I are planning a road trip to the four corners area in February, but I'm sure the high-altitude stuff is out of the question. Nevertheless, this thread has already delivered!

 

@ME OFF Rd and I did a big road trip out there this past summer, Sept of 2023. Personally my biggest take away from the entire thing was there is a LOT to see out there! You could spend weeks in any one area of the state.

Being it was just the two of us and our trucks were packed reasonably light, we were very aggressive with our trip (too aggressive looking back). We started up in WY, west of Cheyenne (beautiful country all on its own). Then worked our way roughly south-southwest through the center of CO over the next 11 days. Ending at the four corners. From there we explored a little bit of northern NM and booked it home via TX and OK.

In terms of CO Ill summarize a few points related to your questions that stand out in my mind.
-We had good luck with Rjourney campgrounds. One in Cheyenne WY and one in Cortez CO, seemed to be a lot of them around
-We also found Elk Ridge Campground off of rt 550 in Ridgway to be nice, with laundry and showers
-Most of the remaining nights we dispersed camped which was arguably the most stressful part for us. Not being from the area (and having never camped out west) we weren't exactly sure what the etiquette was on dispersed. But overall it seemed pretty chill, no one gave us issues
-Dont even bother trying to camp near Aspen and dont fill up there (we should have known better..)

-Recommend looking into Pearl Pass, south of Aspen. It was recommended to us by a local. One tricky part with a wet, slick rock section that you might want some armor for (we were traveling N to S). We were able to make it over with some rock stacking, it took significantly more work to get the Jeep behind us through
-On that note be prepared to take your time if you need to do any physical work at altitude. Dont want to make a dumb mistake due to lack of oxygen
-Leadville was a cool little town with a great breakfast spot: Mineral 1886 if you make it to that area
-Silverton and Ouray were very cool in terms of tourist trap / old mining towns. Lots of small shops to check out
-Rt 550 between those two towns is an amazing drive if the weather is nice

Thats the big stuff right off the top of my head. If I think of anything else Ill add it. Just to reiterate my personal take away, take your time and enjoy the views!

 

https://bushducks.com/tripreps/passopen.htm

Check on here. August/Sept is the best time because the snow is gone then

 

make sure to acclimate to teh altitude.

august is a great time, but you can still run into snow storms in the mountains

 

Thank you so much for all the help and advice so far!

Is anyone willing to share some dispersed camping areas? Feel free to PM me if you don’t want to make it public and I promise to keep it under my hat.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/co-camping-gems.657215/