Annual Colorado backyard trip (with near-death bonus)

[joetiger]

As is now tradition, I went on a little solo trip around Colorado over the past few days. I was excited to get out of town and hoped to get a site at North Crestone, a little slice of heaven in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

I took 285 out of town a stopped to stretch my legs at the usual spot outside Buena Vista.

The approach to Crestone...One way in, one way out. I love how ominous these peaks look when the sun hits them right.

I drove through town and up to the North Crestone campground/trailhead. I had a bad feeling like it was going to be full, and I was right. But the trail itself is one of my favorites...I don't know if it's all that different from other Colorado alpine trails that follow rivers high up into the mountains, but I love this one. And, it offers an incredible view of the San Luis Valley with the San Juan Mountains in the distance.

Much to my surprise after a four mile hike, a site was open! I quickly snagged it and set up shop.

..then the rains came. Stormy at first, then drizzle, I sat back for a nap and woke up three hours later. I think I needed the sleep.

I set up my mobile office and got to work on the ongoing, endless edits of my Louisiana by Vanagon book.

Quick product interlude...As I've mentioned in the Reviving a Syncro thread, these lightweight, magnet window curtains are fantastic. They stow in a quart zip-lock and are very, very easy to set up.

...also, since I'm traveling solo a lot more now, I've downsized from the Coleman stove to this little butane single burner. I dig it (as well as the collapsible kettle from Van Cafe.) No longer a beer drinker, tea seems to have taken over, especially appropriate for rainy mountain afternoons.

What made this tree decide to fork? Once I noticed this one, I started seeing them everywhere.

Snug in my spot, there is one major problem with the North Crestone campground: people bothered me constantly to ask when I was leaving. They're like vultures, driving up and down the road and parking at the top and bottom just waiting. I still don't know how I got a site.

After a couple of days' work and the constant annoyance from a dude in a brand-new Jeep who lusted after my campsite, I decided to take off. I had never been to Lake City, CO, but wanted to tick the box. I went west/south to South Fork, then up through Creede and on to this incredible pass before dropping down into Lake City.

The town is beautiful, one of the most beautiful I've visited, an old mining town in the tight canyon. (It's no coincidence that to me, all of the most beautiful towns in Colorado are in the San Juans.)

It was raining steadily and the restaurants were all full for lunch, so I looked for something to do.

I decided to check out the Hard Tack mine, just a mile or so up a dirt road along Henson Creek.

I didn't feel like a tour, didn't feel like paying for parking. So, I decided to keep going up the dirt road. As I went along, the road got rougher and rougher, but still passable. I stopped to air down the tires a bit.

The road got even rougher. Shit, this is Engineer Pass (a sign said so.) Well, I'll go until the road gets too rough, then I'll turn around.

By the time I hit the NASTY, wet, extremely steep switchbacks, I could almost see the summit. No use in turning back now.

There was one other vehicle at the top, a tricked-out Toyota with giant tires and a camper shell.

"Pretty cool to see that machine up here," he said.

It felt like the roof of the world. And I didn't like it. In these conditions, alone, in my antique, this is wrong, wrong, wrong.

But hey, I'm halfway to Ouray. And I didn't want to hit those switchbacks going down. I decided to keep going.

It was here that I ran into a line of Jeeps.

"You got some nasty switchbacks on the descent here," the leader told me, looking derisively at Pigpen. I peered down and could see what he was talking about--the switchbacks were muddy, rocky, rutted, with severe ledges and 1000 foot cliffs.

I headed down. But I found Syncro Jael's words to be true: Jeeps have no turning radius. Switchbacks are a nightmare for them. And I saw it firsthand.

Once traffic cleared, I found that I could pick a good line and whip the Syncro through the switches with no problem. But I was, admittedly, shitting my pants.

The rest of the tundra was rocky but not terrible. I thought if I could get to the tree line below, things would smooth out.

I was WRONG.

Sharp rock. Nasty ledges. Severe drops. I scraped bottom, banged the nose, and hit the exhaust so many times I lost count. I came upon three Land Rover Discoveries.

"Respect for bringing that thing up here, man," the leader said. "You have at least nine more rock gardens to go and two- and three-foot ledges. We barely made it up to this point. Oh, and there's a dude in a Silverado half hanging off a cliff down there so there's a traffic jam. But hey, you're going down, right? Good luck."

Two little four-wheeler things approached.

"Are you sure you can make it? You have some really rough stuff coming up. Have you done this before?"

"Yes." (I lied.)

One concerned wife/co-pilot said "Please be careful. And good luck."

Soon I saw what they were talking about. Shelfs, on switchbacks, two to three feet, no lines, and a cliff straight down.

I recall rocking forward, sliding towards the cliff, hoping my left front tire would grab something, anything. To my relief, it did. That happened on at least two different switchbacks.

Soon I was in a grove with a bunch of Jeeps. One had a broken driveshaft, one "Trail Hawk" couldn't get the computer to disengage four wheel low.

I had a few conversations about the van and more warnings about what was to come. Once the Silverado was pulled from the precipice, we all went down together. I had a new 4Runner behind me.

More technical rock gardens and switchbacks, worse than anything I've done in Moab.

(Not really a pic of anything but it was the only spot where I stopped and removed my death grip from the wheel and shifter.)

The lady in the Jeep in front of me filmed me most of the way down. I think she was hoping for disaster.

Finally at the bottom, the 4Runner guy walked up.

"Dude you know how to drive that thing. I followed your lines all the way down. Incredible."

I guess a quarter-century of Vanagon driving paid off.

I left quickly and head for Grand Mesa, where I found a quiet, safe, expensive campsite. I was still shaking three hours later.

I had a visitor. "you did the Ouray side of Engineer Pass in that thing?"

...and back at home.

I cut the trip a day short out of concern for the van, although it did get me home without issue. The front bumper took a beating, the steering is making a horrible noise, the muffler is a good two inches back from where it was, and I've got several dents along the bottom pinch welds, as well as one bent driveshaft protector. That's what I've found so far.

Most guys would say "nothin' to it" and brush it off. I am not one of those guys. In a lifetime of stupid decisions, this probably ranks near the top.

But anybody who says my van isn't capable because it ain't got no knobs can kiss my ass.
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'91 Wolfsburg Carat "Barchetta"
'02 Baja-ish Beetle "Bubbles"

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Justice for Megan: https://linktr.ee/justiceformegantrussell

[Sodo]

Awesome.
Foolish (as you know) but awesome.
Glad it worked out !! (whew!)
_________________


'90 Westy EJ25, NEW oil rings (!) 2Peloquins, 3knobs, SyncroShop pressure-oiled pinion-bearing & GT mainshaft, filtered, cooled gearbox.
'87 Tintop w 47k 53k, '12 SmallCar EJ25, cooled filtered original gearbox
....KTMs, GasGas, SPOT mtb

[GreggK]

Great adventure Joe. Thanks for the pictures, I used to frequent the entire route when I traveled to Summit when I lived Telluride.
_________________
'86 2wd Poptop transplant
FAS TDi engine swap. Peloquin LSD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=692188&highlight=slow+but+steady

[djkeev]

I used to like that unknown venture into less than hospitable terrain.

But I was but a young foolish pup back then.

Today?
I worry too much, I am too aware of my mortality and I realize that my short comings show up much sooner than my stubborn mind would like to admit to.

No...... these type of adventures are now for the young.
Glad you had a memorable trip. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Dave
_________________
Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos

Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[MsTaboo]

Syncro - not just a sticker!

[dobryan]

Nice ride…..

Glad you made it in mostly one piece.

Are you sure Tom Ice was not somehow involved?
_________________
Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2010 Subaru EJ25 (Vanaru) and Peloquin TBD

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson

MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646

Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371

The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794

[kamzcab86]

Ironically, I watched a video recently of a Wrangler with a busted front-end get rescued off Engineer Pass. Guy doing the rescue is out of Moab and has a doorless tow truck ("Trailmater")... those drop-offs are butt-clenchers for sure! Beautiful area though.
_________________
~Kamz
1986 Cabriolet: www.Cabby-Info.com
1990 Vanagon Westfalia: Old Blue's Blog
2016 Golf GTI S
"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." - 孔子

[dabaron]

"Dude you know how to drive that thing. I followed your lines all the way down. Incredible."

oh yeah! good stuff, love it.

Engineer Pass is part of the Alpine Loop, that's a legit hard route.
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic

[brickster]

Looks gnarly! I also own a 2004 Wrangler and it sounds like you know how to pick good lines.

I searched your revival thread for the magnet curtains but couldn’t find a reference. Are they DIY?

[CessnaJon]

“But anybody who says my van isn't capable because it ain't got no knobs can kiss my ass. “

Love it!!!
_________________
1973 Westy (shared birthday)
1990 Westy Multivan
2015 Passat TDI 6sp
2015 Sportwagon TDI 6sp
LR-JET, Gulfstream 159

[DanHoug]

i can relate to the feeling of getting further in, deeper, and wondering which is the best worst choice. the wetness/grease terrifies me. and the cliff edges. at least there were others that could help, eh? or watch.

i was a pretty rammy driver as a kid, seeing how far our 1974 Scout could go in before getting stuck. was the last one to park on the ice in front of Bemidji State University, having to take a flying leap off the ice and onto the bank. got pulled out of gravel pits, lakes (well, just one), and broke the front differential in our driveway trying to get out of a snowbank. no more. i found the limits of man and machine and stay well within the safe envelope now. big chicken. except with a rental car in the desert.
_________________
-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[steve244]

Love a happy ending.

Thanks for posting this!
_________________
82 AC vanagon approx 200K miles (3K are mine).
DD is a 2015 Leaf
Road Trip to Hell (FL 2023)
The Vanagon's drivetrain and chassis restomod thread. Best sung to the tune of I Did It My Way...

[bobhill8]

Amazing trip - thanks!
_________________
1986 Westy
1971 Squareback

[TomInAlaska]

Awesome trip report! Looks like some amazing country and, *ahem*, exciting driving. Thanks for posting this and providing a healthy dose of inspiration!
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (formerly resto-mod/rally look with a healthy 1776, currently in another round of resto with a 1641)

'84 GL adventure van project [sold] (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight=

'86 Syncro tintop (2.0L Eurospec/ABA engine swap) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=800194&highlight=

[calsurf]

I'm very impressed with your Syncro. It'd still be a challenge, but a fun challenge in my old 69 Bronco (35" BFG's Detroit Locker). Scenery looked amazing, cheers well done.

[Alaskaberrys]

Thanks for the story (and pictures!)

And glad it had a happy ending. That’s the problems with open ended adventures - sometimes finding ourselves in the middle of future “holy crap” story.

Totally curious about the switchbacks but can get an idea if snapping pics was not a priority
_________________
'91 Westfalia, Bordeaux Red Pearl 2.1L 2wd Auto
'91 T3 Syncro Doka, Escorial Green 1.9L TD AAZ “Gremian” (to provoke, irritate, exasperate, vex...)

[Silverghost500]

There would be permanent grip marks on the steering wheel, and a permanent pucker in the bottom driver's seat cushion after that experience.

Quite the adventure!

You've got Twin Peaks bumpers, so they can handle it as long as you didn't crash directly into a Syncro sized boulder at speed.
_________________
1986 Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia "Von Westy"
Honda K24A conversion
3-Speed Automatic

Von Westy YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbhyZYxJEQrUuLnMbLleeIA

[DuncanS]

Back in the Cretaceous, I drove some super gnarly mountain roads in Vermont in a splitty with a washing machine in the back!! Have no idea why, but I guess it was in there when we decided to go. Nothing at all like your trip, but there were times when only two wheels were on the shoulder of the road as the rest was either washed out or had medicine ball rocks all over the place.


Yes, it was fun, but as Dave said: "I used to like that unknown venture into less than hospitable terrain. But I was but a young foolish pup back then."

Great adventure and thanks for letting us join you on the trip. I'm wondering about your tires. Super Knobs? by 285s?

Duncan

[sanchius]

[elizer]

I always enjoy your trip reports.
Thanks!