Best route from OC to both Colorado Springs and Ft. Collins in late November (Denver: car)

[Patdog]

So, I am doing an exploratory first trip ever to Colorado and am not sure of the most efficient way to explore the Front Range towns and end up back in OC. Was thinking I-70 to Denver, up to Ft. Collins, double back and down to Colorado Springs and return via I-40. Or vice-verso. Any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks.

[jazzlover]

Do you want to see scenery? Do you want the least mountainous route? Can you drive safely in rigorous winter mountain driving conditions (which can be common in late November, especially in the mountains)? Your answers will dictate what is the best route. And the "best route" one day may not be the best route the next, depending on weather and/or road conditions. By the way, I assume that OC means Orange County, California? Also, in order not to be branded as a complete California idiot, NEVER refer to a highway in Colorado as "The" anything, e.g. "The 25." I-25 or I-70 is, well I-25 or I-70. Just a word to the wise.

[Umbria]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

Do you want to see scenery? Do you want the least mountainous route? Can you drive safely in rigorous winter mountain driving conditions (which can be common in late November, especially in the mountains)? Your answers will dictate what is the best route. And the "best route" one day may not be the best route the next, depending on weather and/or road conditions. By the way, I assume that OC means Orange County, California? Also, in order not to be branded as a complete California idiot, NEVER refer to a highway in Colorado as "The" anything, e.g. "The 25." I-25 or I-70 is, well I-25 or I-70. Just a word to the wise.

I just mailed you some lutefisk - that should sweeten you up a bit.

[Idunn]

Your proposed itinerary is feasible, but keep an eye on the weather—as well as knowing one's limitations.

There has been some snow in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain West (with my understanding a fair amount in Montana), but you may be in luck as the forecast is for drier than normal conditions in northern Colorado through the end of the year. But of course in any given day or hour that can change.

So the question for someone from the OC is, how prepared are you to drive for perhaps hundreds of miles on snow packed roads? If up I-15, being most practical to reach I-70 from southern California, then snow could be expected just beyond St. George, UT, and for that matter it does occasionally even snow in Las Vegas, NV. The better chance is that any snow encountered on the road would only be through the Rockies in Colorado, so probably just before Vail, continuing until perhaps Georgetown. There are two sizable passes to navigate, Vail Pass (10,662 feet) and the Eisenhower Tunnel (11,158 feet), with good grades on the approaches. If contemplating this route in winter one should have the requisite skill driving on snow, as well as a decent vehicle equipped with at least good all season tires. Carry chains, and know how to use them, even if probably unnecessary.

The southern route via I-40 is less prone to snow, and until maybe Colorado Springs can be the drier alternative to I-70. But there is Raton Pass (7,834 feet) on the border of New Mexico and Colorado, and New Mexico can and does see snow. And although snow most likely in northern New Mexico, meaning north of Santa Fe, I-40 can see it as well. If the conditions are right—meaning wrong—it can be wicked bad west of Albuquerque with blowing snow; occasionally I-40 is entirely closed due snow near places such as Grants, NM. There is also a lot of semi-truck traffic on I-40, appreciably more than I-70, and if conditions miserable no place one wants to be. One could potentially be in and out of, or entirely in snow from Albuquerque until west of Flagstaff, AZ, where the interstate drops swiftly down in elevation towards Seligman.

To reiterate, the only real issue with I-70 is the mountain portion west of Denver, where one is most likely to encounter snow. Part of that is perception though, as if it is nasty everywhere the mountains tend to be more benign than, say, I-70 out on the eastern plains where it can be more likely closed due wind, blowing snow, and little visibility. It is also a quite scenic route through the mountains, so worth driving for that aspect. Indeed, it is an often interesting and beautiful route all the way from St. George to Denver, in an open and rugged kind of way. I-40, not as much so, although it has its charms in places. Either route can do, and both best avoided if in the midst of a real storm.

So watch the weather. Some snow will not matter much, but big storms should be circumvented. With spring the best time to travel if unsure of one's winter driving ability.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by Umbria

I just mailed you some lutefisk - that should sweeten you up a bit.

Well, believe it or not, I know what lutefisk is--blecccch! I have relatives from the Dakotas, including some who did stints in Minnesota, too.

As to Idunn's post, it's pretty much spot on. One can have great roads all the way, or one can have miserable winter weather. One of my worst winter trips was coming out of Las Vegas the Sunday after Thanksgiving one year. I hit snowpacked roads just a few miles north of St. George, Utah and they stayed that way all the way to Green River, Utah. Then it turned to black ice slicker than snot on a doorknob all the way to Grand Junction, Colorado. Fortunately, that was a far as I had to go because the passes on I-70 were a horrible mess. Fortunately for me, I had tons of winter driving experience and I was driving a front-wheel-drive car with studded snow tires. I lost count of all the cars, SUV's, and semis in the borrow pit along the way--well over a hundred, at least.

[Patdog]

Excellent info, Idunn, thank you! I will be in a 2WD Toyota 4Runner with newer tires and a Golden Retriever Co-pilot and in no particular hurry. I-70 there and I-40 back is looking likely...