Landcruiser Phil and I took off last Sunday (Aug. 5th) headed toward Ouray. We took a rather scenic route (through Farmington, NM)..we were hoping to find a better way there rather then cruising those bumpy reservation roads..I believe we added at least 150 miles to the trip to Ouray.
We arrived late Sunday afternoon after an apparent rather large thunderstorm. The Million Dollar highway into Ouray had several cleanup crews working the mudslides off of the roads. It was pretty funny watching minivans and other SUV's "forge" through the 2 inches of muddy waters on the road. After driving for 10 plus hours we were happy to finally be there.
That night we set up at the KOA and grabbed some dinner there. I would definitely recommend the KOA in Ouray. The food there is good and the cabins and restrooms (shower facilities) are pretty clean.
The next day we took off for the treacherous Black Bear Pass road from Ouray to Telluride. I had read a lot about this road and expected it to be a good test for my 100 and my driving skills. I could see how in rainy or stormy conditions the road could be very difficult. But we had 60 degree temps with a few light showers and navigating the road was really quite easy. The switchbacks are tight but not more than 2 backups were really needed for any of them.
The waterfalls and abundant streams are definitely worth the trip. LandcruiserPhil had done this trip numerous times before, but it was the first time for me and my two kids...I think this area in Colorado will definitely be on my return trip list for years to come....even my kids kept talking about coming back for summer breaks to enjoy the awesome cool temps...
After completing BBP we came back after eating a scenic lunch right by Bridal Veil Falls...Imogene was our path back to Ouray...This road is too very cool. The views are very good and there was even snow on top for my kids to play in...I would say Imogene is a little tougher than BBP if you really want to rate them. The end of Imogene even has a new exit route through over some large granite slabs where you can capture some good poser shots. Again the waterfalls and old mining facilities are all over the trail. Imogene is very cool and combined with BBP it makes for a full day for both drivers and kids along for the ride...
Day two we realized that our kids needed some time so we started late and spent a couple of hours at the Ouray Hot Springs....It was kind of like a scene from that old movie COCOON with all the elderly folks sitting in 100 degrees plus water...the kids had fun there and outside on the big playground area.. After the designated kid time we headed off for the Yankee Boy and Governor's Basin area...This is a cool area with massive basin's...The views are very good and again combined with the under 70 degree temperatures it was a perfect day...
On day three we did Engineer's Pass, this is probably the rockiest of the trails that we did. It is not very hard and probably has the least amount of good views in comparison to the other trails that we did. It was cool watching people get spotted in their Jeep Libertys over little rocks that we just cruised over while changing our radio stations and looking for change under the seats..
Day four was the drive home and it was shorter than the drive there. We headed through Ridgeway, Telluride and on to Cortez then through the reservation to Flagstaff then home. We did have a set back when an entire tractor trailer burned all the way down to nothing before getting to Flagstaff. About a 1 hour delay but that just let us drive faster down the I-17 to get home...
I will post up some pictures but I am not a documentary expert like other guys on the board so they probably won't have too many captions...
Hey Phil, you can add whatever I forgot...My kids and I had a great trip with you and your daughter..thanks for leading me around and letting me take you up more than one dead end road....
We arrived late Sunday afternoon after an apparent rather large thunderstorm. The Million Dollar highway into Ouray had several cleanup crews working the mudslides off of the roads. It was pretty funny watching minivans and other SUV's "forge" through the 2 inches of muddy waters on the road. After driving for 10 plus hours we were happy to finally be there.
That night we set up at the KOA and grabbed some dinner there. I would definitely recommend the KOA in Ouray. The food there is good and the cabins and restrooms (shower facilities) are pretty clean.
The next day we took off for the treacherous Black Bear Pass road from Ouray to Telluride. I had read a lot about this road and expected it to be a good test for my 100 and my driving skills. I could see how in rainy or stormy conditions the road could be very difficult. But we had 60 degree temps with a few light showers and navigating the road was really quite easy. The switchbacks are tight but not more than 2 backups were really needed for any of them.
The waterfalls and abundant streams are definitely worth the trip. LandcruiserPhil had done this trip numerous times before, but it was the first time for me and my two kids...I think this area in Colorado will definitely be on my return trip list for years to come....even my kids kept talking about coming back for summer breaks to enjoy the awesome cool temps...
After completing BBP we came back after eating a scenic lunch right by Bridal Veil Falls...Imogene was our path back to Ouray...This road is too very cool. The views are very good and there was even snow on top for my kids to play in...I would say Imogene is a little tougher than BBP if you really want to rate them. The end of Imogene even has a new exit route through over some large granite slabs where you can capture some good poser shots. Again the waterfalls and old mining facilities are all over the trail. Imogene is very cool and combined with BBP it makes for a full day for both drivers and kids along for the ride...
Day two we realized that our kids needed some time so we started late and spent a couple of hours at the Ouray Hot Springs....It was kind of like a scene from that old movie COCOON with all the elderly folks sitting in 100 degrees plus water...the kids had fun there and outside on the big playground area.. After the designated kid time we headed off for the Yankee Boy and Governor's Basin area...This is a cool area with massive basin's...The views are very good and again combined with the under 70 degree temperatures it was a perfect day...
On day three we did Engineer's Pass, this is probably the rockiest of the trails that we did. It is not very hard and probably has the least amount of good views in comparison to the other trails that we did. It was cool watching people get spotted in their Jeep Libertys over little rocks that we just cruised over while changing our radio stations and looking for change under the seats..
Day four was the drive home and it was shorter than the drive there. We headed through Ridgeway, Telluride and on to Cortez then through the reservation to Flagstaff then home. We did have a set back when an entire tractor trailer burned all the way down to nothing before getting to Flagstaff. About a 1 hour delay but that just let us drive faster down the I-17 to get home...
I will post up some pictures but I am not a documentary expert like other guys on the board so they probably won't have too many captions...
Hey Phil, you can add whatever I forgot...My kids and I had a great trip with you and your daughter..thanks for leading me around and letting me take you up more than one dead end road....
...steps and off camber are part of wheeling - yes
