Summer Road Trip Report! We visit Utah and Colorado!

[thatbaldwinlife]

Well there is a very good chance I will not finish writing the trip report anytime soon, we camp too much! We have Descend coming up and then we head out to Alvord for a bit so just to finish this thread, here are parts three and four.

Hope you enjoyed this summer trip, we sure did!
nate


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1987 Westy
Insta: @Thatbaldwinlife
Vanagon Adventure and DIY videos:
That Baldwin Life YouTube Channel

[thatbaldwinlife]

[pnwkayaker]

Thanks a lot for posting the detailed writeup, pics and videos, very nice! I also like how you and your family are able to adjust on the fly to closed roads/crowds/unexpected situations, etc and still enjoy the road trip (some other folks may give up and drive back to their home base).

I've been only once to Colorado for a short trip and your trip report is reminding me that it's a beautiful state that I need to pay a visit soon.
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87 Syncro Westy EJ25 ("Tardis")

Seattle Meetup at Marymoor (link)
A collection of Simple Useful Mods (SUM) (link)

[thatbaldwinlife]

Updated for the part two write up back on page one under the video
nate
_________________
1987 Westy
Insta: @Thatbaldwinlife
Vanagon Adventure and DIY videos:
That Baldwin Life YouTube Channel

[thatbaldwinlife]

[coqcitywesty]

Great videos - again, thx for sharing. How did the RJE 2.2 manage with the elevation gains? Eisenhower Pass?
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1991 Westfalia EJ251, 1972 Volvo 1800 ES

[thatbaldwinlife]

[Rorke]

Nate,
Great videos and information. What an awesome family experience.

Do you think that it will be too crazy still for me leaving Michigan with no set plans?

I was planning to get to Crested Butte, Creede, then who knows?.
The Canyon Lands area looks ultra cool.
Utah and Grande Canyons look frighteningly crowded. But people are telling me that it is doable / worth it.

I have my daughter for a bit and figured that I could fly her home instead of hustling back.

The bus is mechanically sound. Limited slip. Subaru 2.2. Westy set up. Good new tires. ARB compressor aboard.
No recovery gear. No Jerry can or mount.

Thanks.

Rorke

1988 SeaCow Edition

[thatbaldwinlife]

[joetiger]

[Silverghost500]

Great stories and photography! Thank you for sharing. That's a great place to explore. You're right about realizing the magnitude and beauty of it. It truly has to be experienced first hand to appreciate it.
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1986 Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia "Von Westy"
Honda K24A conversion
3-Speed Automatic

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

[thatbaldwinlife]

[joetiger]

I enjoyed the second video. That section of 550 dropping into Ouray is incredible.

I had the same issues, as outlined in my little trip report, with throngs of people. I can't imagine how many more you dealt with on 4th of July weekend. With international travel still iffy, it seems like everybody in the continental US came to Colorado this summer.

From my experience, Colorado is best explored in early May and late September/early October AFTER the aspens turn. There are less tourists and while the established campgrounds are closed, the dispersed camping is more easily found. The specter of bad weather is there as well, though. I almost got trapped in a blizzard on Loveland Pass on May 15th once in my last van.

Also if you're willing to beat up your van a bit, you can get deeper into the mountains and find spots where fifth wheels and RV's fear to tread.

Even with too many folks everywhere, I hope you enjoyed the trip! The footage is fantastic.
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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

[joetiger]

Great first leg of the trip! I feel very fortunate to know all of those spots in and around Moab you described. It's an incredible place.

Onion Creek:

Kids are quite resilient, aren't they? My girls have never once complained about heat or cold on our road trips, while their parents in the front seat have had a tendency to piss and moan from time to time.
_________________
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

[thatbaldwinlife]

Super busy right now so I am not sure when I can process pictures and write up the story so here is the YouTube video. I will come back and edit this and add the write up later.


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Part Two:

After packing up we headed towards Colorado! I had been looking forward to this for a long time and all of us were excited to explore a new state.

We saw on Google Maps a Monument for Canyons of the Ancients and with no where to be, we headed out that way.

We followed this gravel road for some time, really doubting it would put us in the right place and after 20 minutes of driving, we ended up at a dead end road at a natural gas pipeline plant. Something went pretty wrong in our directions but that’s ok, we just headed off to Cortez.

We decided to get a hotel in Cortez as we planned on camping for the next 7 days or more and we were all pretty dusty and sweaty from the drive down and Utah dirt. Plus we needed to do some laundry.

The next morning, we headed off to Mesa Verde National Park where we had two nights reserved at Morefield campground. After picking out site, we headed off to explore the park.

There were some SERIOUS steep roads in the park and we struggled in second gear at times but the views were worth it.
The main attraction in the park, Cliff Palace, was closed due to road construction and we were not lucky enough to secure a tour ticket for other locations, so we drove around the park taking in the sites we could.
This place is pretty special and we spent the entire day roaming around, hiking, and taking in the history of this amazing area.

We went back to camp, made dinner and enjoyed the cooler weather before heading off to bed.

We decided to leave a day early since we had explored what we wanted and were excited to see more of Colorado. We had to take a quick detour into New Mexico to visit a Best Buy to pick up some additional hard drive space but then back up to Durango.

After a quick stop to stock up on ciders (had a hard time finding good ones since leaving Portland) we sat by the river for a bit deciding on where to camp. With what seemed like limited options before highway 550 started climbing, we settled on an iOverlander site off of Lime Creek road. When we got there we were a bit surprised by how many people were there but we decided to give it a shot.

We had a good time walking around talking to different groups of people before heading off to bed thinking of the steep climbs up to Silverton.

What can you say about the Million Dollar Highway? It has Million Dollar views? It does. It is a must drive section of road? It is. That there are endless places to explore (given the right vehicle)? There are.
We did not take a lot of pics on the drive from Durango to Silverton (or Ouray for that matter) but we did try and take some video to show the beauty of this area. It doesn’t work. You need to experience it for yourself. Anyway, here are a few.

Silverton was a cool little town with dirt roads and old buildings. We explored a bit and ate lunch before heading out towards Animas Forks.

On the way out, we were reminded that it was 4th of July weekend and the area was crawling with 5th wheels, side by sides, ATV’s, Jeeps, and anything that can hold an American flag.

We decided against heading out to Animas cause the road was a zoo and we found the only semi-secluded spot we could in the area. It was only 1:00 in the afternoon but we claimed our spot and spent the day reading, napping, playing games and drinking (well us, not the twins)

The next morning we headed out to Ouray with plans of hiking Box Canyon and relaxing in the town. Boy were we wrong.
The drive from Silverton to Ouray was amazing as we hugged the cliff and the other side of the road was a sheer drop down with no guardrail. Nancy was relieved that we did not have to drive on that side.

As we descended down the highway, we awestruck by how many people were here. The road out to Box Canyon was lined with people and we were very fortunate to even find a spot to park. Not very relaxing. To be fair it was Saturday, July 3rd. Not great planning on our part. We stayed a short time but decided to move on. We can come back to Ouray some time in the future.

Highway 50 east of Montrose was closed during the week for construction so we used this time to head out that way while the highway was open. A quick stop so Nancy could bath in the Gunnison River and we headed out to find camp.
We gassed up in Gunnison and headed north on the 135 looking for some National Forest land. We saw some areas to camp near Spring Creek reservoir and hoped to find some seclusion out there. After a few miles down a gravel road, we were rewarded with a nice site right on Spring Creek. It was not totally secluded as we had people on both sides of us but there was enough distance that we could not see (or hear) them.

The road was a bit busy and the dust that was kicked up was kind of annoying but down by the creek, we forgot all about that as we enjoyed our ciders and cool water.

The next morning we pack up and head off to find an epic party in Crested Butte. But that is in part three!!
_________________
1987 Westy
Insta: @Thatbaldwinlife
Vanagon Adventure and DIY videos:
That Baldwin Life YouTube Channel

[thatbaldwinlife]

[Vanuber]

[coqcitywesty]

[4Gears4Tires]

Awesome trip and great pics!

[thatbaldwinlife]

We heard from some friends that Moab is a zoo now but we happen to be going through and wanted to check out Canyonlands. Would have love to explored more of Utah but out goal was Colorado on this trip. Nancy and I will got back soon when the weather is cooler and explore southern Utah a bit more.
Working on the next video now and hope to have it out by this weekend then will do a write up for here on that as well.
thanks for the feedback so far, it is appreciated.
nate
_________________
1987 Westy
Insta: @Thatbaldwinlife
Vanagon Adventure and DIY videos:
That Baldwin Life YouTube Channel