Driving from OR to Crestone CO (Denver, Colorado Springs: rental car, rental, hotel)

[meltaylor48]

I will be driving from Cascade Locks OR to Crestone CO in Jan winter weather conditions and I am trying to find out the safest rout to drive on in winter conditions. I do have the option to drive from San Francisco CA to Crestone CO, as I will be staying with my son for Xmas. I heard if I wanted to avoid the mountains and winter conditions it might be best to go through AZ and Albuquerque New Mexico then to Crestone CO? If there is a safe route from OR I would prefer to drive that but if not I would just leave from San Francisco CA. Any suggestions as I need to plan this out ASAP. Thanks Melody

[Mike from back east]

Part of your planning should include checking prices to fly into Pueblo, Colorado Springs or Denver then using a rental car to go south on I-25 to Walsenburg then take 160 west to Alamosa then take 17 north. You could even fly into Albuquerque and drive up I-25.

Roads could be open or could be a mess with snow. CDOT does an excellent job keeping main roads open but it just might be cheaper to fly in most of the way.

The drive is at least 1200 miles each way which probably includes one night in a motel each way (2 nights x $150=$300) and lots of gasoline (2500 miles / 25 MPG = 100 gallons x $5 gallon = $500 round trip) not to mention food along the way. Get stuck in a snow storm and you might need an extra night in a motel. If you get an oil change every 5,000 miles then 2500 miles means you'll be spending half the price of an oil change. So, if driving it looks like you're in for expenses of $800 plus four days of round trip driving. My wife would beat me over the head if I subjected her to four days of my driving.

What kind of car are you driving (2wd, 4wd, AWD) and what type of tires do you have on your car, i.e., are they up to winter driving in the mountains?

We have a lot of people on here who can advise you very well on your inquiry. For sure, whether flying in to driving you ARE going to see some fabulous scenery, arguably the best in the country.

[hikernut]

You can get to Grand Junction on Interstate highways, and then US50 gets you most of the way to Crestone. There's a cutoff between Provo and Green Valley which would save some miles. It's all US highways so I'd expect they are fine, but I've never driven that stretch myself. I've also never driven the last bit to Crestone on CO114. If you wanted to avoid most of that you could continue on US50 to Poncha Springs and then go south.

I see no reason to divert through AZ and NM. That would add a huge number of miles to the trip. The more direct route through Utah and Colorado is on good highways that are well maintained in the winter. The only secondary roads you will use are at the very end of the trip, but these are unavoidable no matter which route you take. Of course it's possible to encounter winter conditions, but that possibility also exists on the Albuquerque route. If conditions get too bad for comfort you just spend a night in a hotel. I've had to do that once or twice over the years.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by meltaylor48

I will be driving from Cascade Locks OR to Crestone CO in Jan winter weather conditions and I am trying to find out the safest rout to drive on in winter conditions. I do have the option to drive from San Francisco CA to Crestone CO, as I will be staying with my son for Xmas. I heard if I wanted to avoid the mountains and winter conditions it might be best to go through AZ and Albuquerque New Mexico then to Crestone CO? If there is a safe route from OR I would prefer to drive that but if not I would just leave from San Francisco CA. Any suggestions as I need to plan this out ASAP. Thanks Melody

Use the most direct route. I-84 East, I-15 South, I-70 East, US-50 East, US-285 South. Go to Arizona or New Mexico only if road conditions or road closures in Colorado force you to. Both Arizona and New Mexico have winter driving conditions as well. So going that route would just add more miles of winter driving conditions.

[COcheesehead]

Originally Posted by hikernut

You can get to Grand Junction on Interstate highways, and then US50 gets you most of the way to Crestone. There's a cutoff between Provo and Green Valley which would save some miles. It's all US highways so I'd expect they are fine, but I've never driven that stretch myself. I've also never driven the last bit to Crestone on CO114. If you wanted to avoid most of that you could continue on US50 to Poncha Springs and then go south.

I see no reason to divert through AZ and NM. That would add a huge number of miles to the trip. The more direct route through Utah and Colorado is on good highways that are well maintained in the winter. The only secondary roads you will use are at the very end of the trip, but these are unavoidable no matter which route you take. Of course it's possible to encounter winter conditions, but that possibility also exists on the Albuquerque route. If conditions get too bad for comfort you just spend a night in a hotel. I've had to do that once or twice over the years.

This is the way I would go. The chances of big snow along this route are limited except in two areas, Central Utah and Monarch Pass in Colorado.

[interloper1138]

Originally Posted by hikernut

I've also never driven the last bit to Crestone on CO114. If you wanted to avoid most of that you could continue on US50 to Poncha Springs and then go south.

OP, if you decide to take Highway 50 through Colorado, I highly recommend taking Highway 114 rather than Monarch Pass. 114 between Gunnison and Saguache is almost always clear in the winter. In the past five years of living in the San Luis Valley (where Crestone is located) I have never once seen it closed due to blizzard conditions, unlike Monarch and Poncha Passes which close often. The only time I would not chance it would be overnight during heavy snow as 114 is not plowed overnight unlike Monarch. It will save you at least 40 minutes of driving and conditions are sure to be better than they are vs. taking Monarch and Poncha. I make frequent trips to Gunnison from the SLV and always take this route.

Once you hit the SLV, you'll likely be fine. Occasionally there is thick fog in the morning in winter, but snow is rarely an issue once you're down to the flats of the valley.

Also, like Mike suggested, flying is an option, too. Alamosa has an airport with Hertz rental car service and a connection to Denver. From Alamosa it's only about 55 minutes to Crestone.

[waltcolorado]

Only thing to add is that I believe there is some "open range" driving when you get close to Crestone. This mean that cattle may not be constrained from crossing or even hanging out on the highway.

Usually no issue but I always try and avoid driving any open range road at night. Twice Ive almost hit a cow on open range roads (once in Park County Co, the other time on Hwy 50 just entering Utah) but its always been driving late at night.

[pikabike]

I’ve driven between western WA/OR and CO more than a few times, including moving in winter. Not a fun drive in slick or windy conditions.

Your most direct route from Cascade Locks would have to include I-84 east across the northern border of OR and crossing southeasterly through the Blue Mountains and into ID. A beautiful area, but can be dicey in winter conditions. Most of the drive past that eastward in ID is relatively flat and open (more wind again). I-84 then drops south into UT north of SLC and joins I-15 heading south. Then you would need to choose routes based on where storms are moving. And at that point, winter hazards could be bad on any route that goes toward Crestone. None of them is a direct route; all require traversing mountain passes.

Know how to read and understand weather maps and make plans for alternate routes BEFORE you leave home. You might even need to change plans on the fly, especially if actual road CLOSURES cause those changes. The detours could add hundreds of miles.

We did multistage moves in both directions moving everything ourselves with 17-ft, 20-ft, and 14-ft U-Haul trucks plus our own trucks pulling a light trailer. Are you driving moving trucks or just your own regular vehicles? Remember that some motels don’t have lots of room for trailers or moving vans/trucks. Plan your gas station stops ahead, too!

[meltaylor48]

Thank you all for your suggestions. I do have to drive as flying is not an option as I need to bring my car/buying a home in Crestone CO that will not close till 12/21 and work will not allow me to leave earlier. I paid for an interstate moving company to move my stuff so it will be me and my dog traveling the first week in Jan. I have driven to Crestone before using the route I-84 to I-15 to I believe I-70 that crosses over a two lane road going up a very steep incline mountain. It looked pretty dicey even in Nov which is why I was trying to find another route not caring if it was going to tack on extra time just safety is the priority. What are some good weather maps to look up as I haven't utilized them before and I am totally in need of alternate routes as I am not familiar with the area? I do always plan out my gas stops and usually fill up when I hit a half of tank just to be safe. If everyone thinks going through AZ and NM is not any better then I will stick with the main route. I was just curious as I will be with family for Xmas in CA so I could leave from CA directly if that was a better route. Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!!

[ejisme]

You should already be familiar with Gorge winter weather/driving. Ice and snow from Cascade Locks to The Dalles is not uncommon. Then Meacham Pass out of Pendleton and Ladd Canyon out of La Grande. Both of those close often for storms, but if no storms, then they are easy drives. This site will give you Oregon highway cameras. Each state will have their own site with multiple cameras you can use for trip planning and checking on the road. Very nice roads in NE Oregon today, but can change quickly.

https://www.tripcheck.com/Pages/Custom-Cameras

You're whole drive depends on storms that might/might not hit on your travel days. Hard to predict until probably your 10 day forecast window. No matter which way you drive (I-84 east, or down to San Fran and I-70), you still have to climb over mountain passes.

Plus, driving down to San Fran just trades California and Nevada mountain passes for Oregon and Idaho passes, and you likely end up in Salt Lake City either way, just adding 9 hours driving to San Fran.