Four State Tour - Looking for advice/recommendations

[wdw0528]

Thanks a lot MTNTraveler - especially for the itinerary. I always build one like that and yours will be helpful in completing one for this trip.

I will plan to post details of what we end up doing and maybe the itinerary we ultimately use.

[jwfrede]

One other very important consideration is that most of these sites under discussion are at high elevations and our Dometic refrigerator simply does not work on gas above around 6,000' (the manual says 5500'). The gas jet is NOT adjustable to allow in more air flow. This made it more critical than we had realized to be able to plug in at each site. Often times while driving during the days the refrigerator would not work at all so we had to be careful with it and catch up in the evenings. Sites where you may experience this include Arches (up in park, not in Moab), Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, Zion (some parts), Grand Canyon, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Mesa Verde.

Have fun and enjoy our national treasures![/QUOTE]

I freeze water in 2 qt milk containers to get both the freezer and refrigerator going when I leave on a trip. I don't keep much frozen food and try to keep 2 of these in the freezer during the trip. I switch them to the frig before travel and often don't have the frig unit running when driving. also, often during day trips I move them to the coleman cooler in the back of the truck and but them back in the freezer when I return. It's often too inconvenient to go buy ice.

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by wdw0528

Thanks a lot MTNTraveler - especially for the itinerary. I always build one like that and yours will be helpful in completing one for this trip.

I will plan to post details of what we end up doing and maybe the itinerary we ultimately use.

Good luck! Look forward to hearing about it.

[fanrgs]

If you consider weather alone, the most logical way to route your trip would be 1) Colorado, 2) Utah, 3) Arizona, and 4) New Mexico. That gets you out of the cool summer states before the first snow flies and to the warm (or HOT in the case of AZ) fall states in late September and early October.

Keep in mind that Trail Ridge Road in RMNP is nearly always closed by snow before October 1 (it is at 12,000 ft). The prime aspen viewing season in northern CO is the second full week in September, while from Chama, NM, to Durango, it is the last week of September.

Since you will primarily be concentrating on parks in southern Utah, I would recommend concentrating on parks and monuments in southern Colorado too. By limiting the miles you are driving, you can spend more time at Great Sand Dunes NP, Chimney Rock NM, the Durango & Silverton NG Railroad to Silverton, and Mesa Verde (don't miss the Anasazi Museum in Dolores). Then take CO 145 from Cortez or Dolores north to Telluride and Bridal Veil Falls, then CO 141 and CO 90 to Moab, UT, and Arches NP. If you are going to Capitol Reef NP, don't miss the incredible drive on UT 12 from there to Bryce Canyon NP.

For more ideas on what to see and potential campgrounds along this and other US highways in Colorado, see my new blog at https://2fanrgs.blogspot.com/.

[rsdata]

For more ideas on what to see and potential campgrounds along this and other US highways in Colorado, see my new blog at https://2fanrgs.blogspot.com/.

I looked this blog over and can only say THANKS for the great detail on camping in CO...

I have not been out your way since the early 80's but hope to get back there soon.

[wdw0528]

Thanks for the info in this post and your blog...will be helpful in my planning!

[wdw0528]

Trip report - first, thanks very much for the input we received here on the forum prior to our departure for this trip...all of it was very helpful.

We ended up departing the Atlanta area on 27 Aug and returning on 11 Oct after putting 8K miles on our truck/trailer.

We had a wonderful trip and like many of you suggested - we didn't have time to see all we planned in the four states. We decided to do the ones we did pretty well (Colorado & Utah) with plans to return to do Arizona and New Mexico although we did a little touring in both of them this time.

For any of you that may be interested in the details of our trip (maybe more than you want) we kept a blog to document the trip and keep family members up on our travels....if interested you can view it at watersgonewest.blogspot.com

Thanks again for the great input!

[fanrgs]

Read your blog and was very impressed with your photos. Looks like you had a wonderful trip and managed to cram a lot more stops into a month+ than I would have thought possible.

Two factoids that I can help you with--Red Rocks Amphitheater was built by the CCC in the 1930s, not the Corps of Engineers. Some of the CCC buildings still exist in Morrison. And the pass you crossed on CO145 south of Telluride is Lizard Head Pass, named for a rock outcrop on the mountain west of the pass.

Finally, I have lived in Colorado for 54 years and never heard about the donuts on Pikes Peak! Sorry you got scammed by that "tourist trap."

[wdw0528]

Originally Posted by fanrgs

Read your blog and was very impressed with your photos. Looks like you had a wonderful trip and managed to cram a lot more stops into a month+ than I would have thought possible.

Two factoids that I can help you with--Red Rocks Amphitheater was built by the CCC in the 1930s, not the Corps of Engineers. Some of the CCC buildings still exist in Morrison. And the pass you crossed on CO145 south of Telluride is Lizard Head Pass, named for a rock outcrop on the mountain west of the pass.

Finally, I have lived in Colorado for 54 years and never heard about the donuts on Pikes Peak! Sorry you got scammed by that "tourist trap."

Thanks for the input & correction. We were told by an usher at Red Rocks that it was built by the COE and to that I said “that doesn’t make sense” but she insisted. The CCC makes sense - thanks!