What are must stops from here to Aspen, CO

EdJonesJeeper

The Stig's NC cousin
Joined
Apr 24, 2010
Location
Pisgah Forest, NC
Thinking about taking a trip out west and want to here y'all's input on must sees/must wheel from here to the Rockies.

Also with these trails in Colorado which are the most "bucket list" approved?

1. Montrose
2. Carnage BV
3. Mt. Blanca
4. Holy Cross
5. 21 Road
6. Patriot

If there are others please let me know.

The trip will take place sometime in August.
 
Silverton and Engineer Pass is a beautiful area. I drove through it a few years ago in a rented stock Grand Cherokee.
 
In addition to Josh's questions....What is the most cost effective way to get your junk out there? It seems like there is only two options. Haul it yourself and drive 25hrs (one way) or have it hauled? Anyone have an idea on what the cost would be for shipping a jeep out there and back. Do you think discounts would apply for more than 1 jeep?
 
So I lived in Colorado for 6 years and I would move Holy Cross up to number 1 on your list. It's the only trail in CO that is consistently named a top 5 trail in the US to run and it is only open for like 8 weeks a year because of snow and ice. Carnage BV will destroy your jeep, if you are cool with that, by all means run it. The trail is super short but can take all day to run because of its difficulty. But yeah, it is a true can opener trail.

The Ouray area per JC is probably the most scenic, but any stock SUV can run it, so do it for the breath taking views, but if you are looking to engage your lockers, may want to bypass it. You list trails that are all over the state (like 7 hours apart), so I would start to look at trails by location and narrow down from there. I ran around 60 or so trails out there and every one has something cool about that you can't get anywhere else in the country. One of my favorites was Spring Creek, we always stopped at the Tommy Knocker brewery on the way home and had some of the best brewed beer in the US (in my opinion anyway). Nothing like 7+% alcohol beer at 12,000ft :).


Shipping is probably going to be $600 to $800 each way, plus you need someone to accept it and also be responsible for shipping it back. Shipping companies are totally unpredictable on pick up and drop off. Lastly, I would drive the Southern route through GA, AL, TX, OK instead of the Kansas route. It's only like an hour longer and the scenery is WAY better.
 
Take I40 to ABQ and then turn northwest and head through the reservation up into the Durango area. Desolate and oddly beautiful... The trip from LA to Johnson Valley kind of reminded me of our trips to CO and UT.

We attended a wedding at 12000 feet outside of Silverton several years ago... reception was in town and a keg of Pinstripe (followed by Miller Lites at the American Legion) will do you in at 9000'. ;)
 
If you go the southern route, you can also throw in Chokecherry Canyon in Farmington, NM. One of the coolest places I have been. Rocks like Moab but white instead of red!
 
GRACELAND!!!!:rockon:
 
@REDLYNER if you had a room in Snowmass for 7 nights, would you do Holy Cross one day, Spring Creek trail one day and then do Moab?

It's about 3 1/2 hours from Snowmass to Moab, but it would be hard for me to pass up Moab. That place is a must do if you are a passionate offroader.

Holy Cross obviously, Blanca is a cool one, but it's hours away from anything else, Carnage BV is nationally known, but again, it eats jeeps alive. Chinamans Gulch is right beside it and is a lot of fun. Red Cone pass hits 14,000 ft, as does a few others. There is just something cool about rock crawling all day and ending up on top of the world.
 
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