Colorado (Northern) Overland Trip Report

I just returned from this years off-road trip. This years was a bit different than previous trips (COLORADO, MOAB, BIG BEND) because my buddy finally got his Bronco and we were able to wheel two rigs instead of one. This added a different layer of fun knowing that you had SOME level of coverage in case one of us found ourselves in a difficult situation. No such situation occurred and fun was had by all. Below is my itinerary and supporting pictures. Enjoy.

The Rigs:
2018 Tacoma TRD OR, King 2.5's all around with 33" tires. Full skids, winch, and RTT. (Mine)
2022 Ford Bronco, Sasquatch M/T. 100% Stock (35's) (my buddy's)

Day 1 (Friday 7/28)
I left Seabrook, Texas mid day heading for Amarillo. Stayed in a hotel, figuring it best to savor the last opportunity to use a toilet and a shower. My buddy left Burlington, Iowa early that morning and ended up staying somewhere along the way. Not sure where.

Day 2 (Saturday 7/29)
We both finished up the drive and met in Denver. Got provisions at Target and headed for Red Elephant Hill Trail. While most of this trail is rated as a blue, there were a few sections of red that proved quite difficult. This made it a tough trail for me on 33's, but with some careful planning and strategic throttling (read "sending it") I was able to make my way up without too much trouble. We found a ridgeline with good views to set up camp. Plenty of dry firewood around. Enjoyed a fire and went to bed. This day and the last day were the only two days of the trip that we didn't get significant rain at night.

Day 3 (Sunday 7/30)
Packed up camp early and headed for Empire Loop. Took the North side of loop heading for Bill Moore Lake. Came across a pretty neat cabin. Finished up this trail but decided to head back towards one of the earlier creek crossing to camp by. This would give us a place to get a bath. The water was ice cold. It rained most of the night be we were able to get a fire going regardless.

Day 4 (Monday 7/31)
Came off the mountain and into Empire, CO. Got gas, refilled our water jugs and bough ice. Headed up the Red and White mountain trail. Hiked at Piney Lake Lodge to a cool waterfall. Very scenic and pretty long (3.5 mi one way IIRC). The area was fairly developed with a lodge and canoe rentals. We didn't stay there but just came for the hike. There was dispersed camping along the road to the lodge. We stayed at site 7 because of it's proximity to the river. Bathed in the river and was able to find a fair amount of dry-ish firewood. Rained all night.

Day 5 (Tuesday 8/1)
Took Southern loop around red and white mountain. Came across a really cool cabin that is maintained "by the people, for the people". Finished up the day by taking June Creek Canyon Trail into Avon, CO. I hit a smallish boulder on the way down and ended up dislodging my Transfer case skid plate (RCI) from the transmission skid plate where they overlap. I'm not too keen on the design from RCI. The bolt holes are slots and not enclosed. As this is the lowest hanging skid plate it makes it so that anytime this plate is hit, the same result is likely. I stopped at a Pizza joint in Avon and made the quick repair. Headed for Dotsero and continued to White River National Forest via Coffee Pot Trail. The first section of this was fairly boring fire roads, but the scenery improved greatly after passing the Deep Creek Overlook. Probably the most scenic drive of the week. Took the Grizzly Jeep Trail and came up on Grizzly Cow Camp and explored the areas cabins and streams. Beautiful area. Continued to White Owl Lake and camped there for the night. Saw an axolotl and several leaches in the water and decided not to bathe here. Storm rolled in and dumped a bunch of rain. Was able to keep the fire going though and strung up our clothes on a clothesline by the fire and dry them out.

Day 6 (Wednesday 8/2)
Broke camp and headed for Adams Lake via Adams Lake trail. VERY muddy due to the rain, but we pressed on. The mud/rain made the rocky portions of the trail more difficult than it should have been, but we made it through nonetheless. Made it to Adams Lake. This was my favorite of the Alpine Lakes. Being so isolated meant that we had the lake to ourselves. We took a bath in the lake. Frigid doesn't quite describe it but it was such a beautiful lake that we took some time to swim around a bit. Crystal clear water, with snow covered banks. Very scenic. Made lunch while we dried the clothes out and headed back out the way we came in. Took Transfer Trail down into Glenwood Springs. Boring trail. Do not recommend, but it was a means to an end. Took the highway back towards Denver and fueled up. Took Chinns Lake Trail to Chinns lake. Found a great campsite at the top of the lake by the dam. Was able to find some firewood, but most of it had been picked clean as this area looks like it's frequented by the locals. Rained at night.

Day 7 (Thursday 8/3)
Woke up and decided that we'd stay at Chinn's Lake a second night. Therefore, we did some exploring around the lake for the early part of the day. Left my truck at Chinns Lake and we headed over to nearby Kingston Peak Trail. Came across a broke down 4Runner that was well equipped, but had run through a small puddle and lost all electronics. We helped pull him (along with another Jeep) to the top of the trail so that he could use gravity to get him to the bottom for a tow. Found a fair amount of dry firewood here and hauled it back to Chinn's Lake. Made a fire and enjoyed the setting sun on the lake(s).

Day 8 (Friday 8/4)
Broke camp and headed for hotel in Wichita Falls, TX.

Day 9 (Saturday 8/5)
Left Wichita Falls for Seabrook, TX. End Trip.

Pictures were all taken using a Google Pixel 6.

 

Thanks. It was good one.

The Bronco performed flawlessly. It's a base model Sasquatch, but has all of the goodies needed for wheeling. Front and rear lockers, 35's, and a crawler gear that is incredibly low. I'm honestly a bit jealous, but there were a few times when the Bronco struggled in areas that the Tacoma walked and vice-a-versa. I attribute this to the wheelbase differences benefitting from different situations.

 

Also of note, I saw what looked to be an axolotl in Owl Lake. I keep reading that this might have been a juvenile Tiger Salamander. I could be wrong, but I'm fairly certain what I saw was an axolotl. Any body have any information on this?