Two Colorado Mountain Routes - Which Is Better?

[MNtraveler]

One has a shorter distance but the other follows the Interstate for a good while. But which has more hill climbing and descending to go through? See the attached PDF for the results which are surprising (since I don't know the terrain in the area) and also very helpful in making a decision.

Alt 1: 162.4 mi., Ascending 7411', Descending 7032', Max Ascent 9%, Max Descent 9%

Alt 2: 199.7 mi., Ascending 10425', Descending 10045', Max Ascent 25%, Max Descent 13% [I assume those last two numbers are just for brief periods but still...!]

Here is one of several web sites which can pull this kind of information using elevation data available through Google Maps:

https://www.doogal.co.uk/RouteElevation.php

Even though it's a UK based site, you can use it for US or elsewhere. But click the Options tab to switch to miles/feet instead of km/meters.

[f5moab]

Nice website!

Towing just a popup, I never worry about climbs but for those who pull some big rigs, I can see how this app can be used; especially out here in the west.
Especially for a 1/2 ton pulling a three axle Fuzion 5th wheel.

[MNtraveler]

LOL We "only" have a 25' Class C, but these differences are significant for how the day's drive will go, as well as how much fuel will be used.

[Skyliner]

The better route is the most scenic one when it comes to Colorado.

Before you visit my beautiful state please understand that brakes convert kinetic energy into heat energy. There is a limit to how much heat energy brakes can dissipate and that overusing brakes on a downhill can and will result in brake failure due to overheating or loss of air pressure if using air brakes.

Please plan your descents carefully. Use a lower gear, put as much load on your engine as you can and that includes air conditioning (usually a 10-15 hp load on a truck), engine brake engaged, tow mode one if applicable, all electrical on so alternator loads engine, allow speed to pick up to safe speed 10mph above your set goal and then brake to 10mph below that set goal, release brakes and then allow speed to go up to 10 above set goal and repeat...this allows brakes to cool and if using air brakes allows air pressure to be built back up.

I can't tell how how many times I have seen runaway trucks using the runaway ramp on I70 and other areas. Almost all were "professional" truck drivers who were otherwise clueless about descending down a mountain.

This method of braking is called snub braking and is better for a variety of reasons than continuous braking down a slope.

Pikes Peak Highway has a check point where rangers check rotor temperatures with an IR gauge. I'm proud that my wife and I are never pulled over to wait 30 minutes for brakes to cool and that 99.9% of others are and don't understand what they were doing wrong that forced them to stop for a bit.

Another tip if you don't mind additional reading: Be very aware of your surroundings going down a mountain. It is important that you watch out for the person in back of you. Stay in far right lane if possible and force others to pass you. You can be killed by someone in back of you that lost their brakes.

[jkoenig24]

My Super-C Class, 2015 Dynamax DX3-37RB is a 350HP Cummins diesel puller. I don't have to worry about hills.

[donanddona]

Awsome App. Thanks!

[Big Bill]

X2 skyliner

[mdstudey]

I have been on both routes multiple times. Alt 2 is basically freeway driving and the only pass is La Veta Pass and is not really a big deal. Alt 1 one is the most scenic and slower because it is all 2 lane. There is a steady clime from Woodland Park (looks like that is where you are leaving from) through Divide and going back down is not bad. Like Skyliner said, just watch your speed and use your gears instead of brakes as much as possible. If it was me, I would take Alt 1.

When you get to the Sand Dunes be mindful of the bears. We camped there on motorcycles and had to keep our stuff inside the dumpsters area and they did not have bear proof containers at campsites. Did not hear or see any but they are there. Enjoy and make sure to take a plastic snow disc with you especially if you have kids. They will have fun sliding down the dunes.

[BandJCarm]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

One has a shorter distance but the other follows the Interstate for a good while. But which has more hill climbing and descending to go through? See the attached PDF for the results which are surprising (since I don't know the terrain in the area) and also very helpful in making a decision.

Alt 1: 162.4 mi., Ascending 7411', Descending 7032', Max Ascent 9%, Max Descent 9%

Alt 2: 199.7 mi., Ascending 10425', Descending 10045', Max Ascent 25%, Max Descent 13% [I assume those last two numbers are just for brief periods but still...!]

Here is one of several web sites which can pull this kind of information using elevation data available through Google Maps:

https://www.doogal.co.uk/RouteElevation.php

Even though it's a UK based site, you can use it for US or elsewhere. But click the Options tab to switch to miles/feet instead of km/meters.

That's a great app!!! Thanks!!

But as I understand it, and I tested a few routes along western I-40, the numbers in your example are totals between two far flung points most likely. I did most of Arizona to Albuquerque and it showed a max and min of about 19%. Yet, I know there are no 19% grades along that route. So I assume (?) it's calculating the total maximum grade from the lowest point to the highest point, etc...

Could be way off.

If you move your cursor very slowly along the graph, it shows the gradient at that point. In my example, there was ONE 6% grade, for a very short time........yet the max was 19% for the whole route.

Edit: If while moving the cursor along the graph, look simultaneously at the map.....it will show a temporary cursor where that exact grade is located. I just did Albuquerque to Co Springs and 7% is the max at one spot, but 29% is the max total. Having driven it, I assume that's around Trinidad on I-25....

[corocky1998]

I would agree with mdstudey, I would take the highway​ route. I could tell what type of RV you have, but it is safer and more enjoyable looking at the scenery without​ worrying about what you are towing. Do day trips from them​ campground to see the sites.

I would also add if you are towing, get real familiar with manually operating your trailer brakes going downhill and make sure your controller is set correctly.

Have fun, you are going to some beautiful country. Check out the Wolf Center by Florisant too, it is really cool and they are great people.

[szabla]

I know your thinking of elevation and grade, the one thing you're not saying is time of year. I live in Colorado and do a lot of Yearly activities, winter we snowmobile and snow bike (Timber sled on yz450f motorcycles), spring we Jet Ski, fish in the warmer lakes/rivers, in summer we fish, ride dirt bikes (motorcycles) fall hunt.
I would be aware of the condition of the roads if you're not used to them in winter, this year we are running at an average of 150% in the Colorado River basin. If we get a quick melt we have had the interstate lift and crack open from a mudslide that went under it. In all cases crews do a good job, but they may have to close down a road for a while. Some like when a boulder dropped in Glenwood canyon, it added a few hundred miles to a bypass for travelers. But that area is seldom seen and is some great country.
Good luck which ever way you travel. We try to travel the gravel roads and dirt trails more than paved.

[david_reaves]

Road conditions are substantially different between the two routes. Not only is the off-freeway route two-lane, there are frequently areas where the speeds are reduced(for safety). The backwoods drive will be scenic, but depending on your vehicle/tow may be a lot more stressful. I've driven the route through Salida and some of those roads are tiny.

[mdstudey]

Originally Posted by jkoenig24

My Super-C Class, 2015 Dynamax DX3-37RB is a 350HP Cummins diesel puller. I don't have to worry about hills.

Going up is not a problem other it being slow, but you sure want to pay attention coming down a 10,000+ pass. Especially if it is two lane like Monarch Pass. Even in just a passenger vehicle you need to know how to break properly. Getting from one side of the mountains to the other in Colorado more than likely means you are going to go over a 10,000+ pass. I believe that they have the highest passes in the U.S.

The OP route won't encounter a pass that high, but the LaVeta pass is pretty close to it.

New La Veta Pass (officially North La Veta Pass), elevation 9,413 ft (2,869 m),[1] lies about 1.6 miles northeast of the old pass and is now the principal highway route through this part of the mountain range, carrying U.S. Highway 160.[3] While this new route is slightly higher, it has no sharp curves and is thus better suited to modern highway traffic.

I rode these passes mostly on my Harley and some of them can get be pretty hairy even on a motorcycle.

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by Skyliner

The better route is the most scenic one when it comes to Colorado.

Before you visit my beautiful state please understand that brakes convert kinetic energy into heat energy. There is a limit to how much heat energy brakes can dissipate and that overusing brakes on a downhill can and will result in brake failure due to overheating or loss of air pressure if using air brakes.

Please plan your descents carefully. Use a lower gear, put as much load on your engine as you can and that includes air conditioning (usually a 10-15 hp load on a truck), engine brake engaged, tow mode one if applicable, all electrical on so alternator loads engine, allow speed to pick up to safe speed 10mph above your set goal and then brake to 10mph below that set goal, release brakes and then allow speed to go up to 10 above set goal and repeat...this allows brakes to cool and if using air brakes allows air pressure to be built back up.

I can't tell how how many times I have seen runaway trucks using the runaway ramp on I70 and other areas. Almost all were "professional" truck drivers who were otherwise clueless about descending down a mountain.

This method of braking is called snub braking and is better for a variety of reasons than continuous braking down a slope.

Pikes Peak Highway has a check point where rangers check rotor temperatures with an IR gauge. I'm proud that my wife and I are never pulled over to wait 30 minutes for brakes to cool and that 99.9% of others are and don't understand what they were doing wrong that forced them to stop for a bit.

Another tip if you don't mind additional reading: Be very aware of your surroundings going down a mountain. It is important that you watch out for the person in back of you. Stay in far right lane if possible and force others to pass you. You can be killed by someone in back of you that lost their brakes.

Thank you. Yes, very familiar with the descent issue and our vehicle is a MB Sprinter 3500 diesel which is a very strong braking engine. Well aware of the intermittent "brake hard" method but thanks for the good reminder.

We'll look for those scenic routes, which I'm sure will be beautiful!

But we can't do Pike's Peak Rd. because we are 1' over length (24' max posted). [emoji20] We don't feel good about leaving the dog >4 hours to take the cog railroad though.

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by mdstudey

I have been on both routes multiple times. Alt 2 is basically freeway driving and the only pass is La Veta Pass and is not really a big deal. Alt 1 one is the most scenic and slower because it is all 2 lane. There is a steady clime from Woodland Park (looks like that is where you are leaving from) through Divide and going back down is not bad. Like Skyliner said, just watch your speed and use your gears instead of brakes as much as possible. If it was me, I would take Alt 1.

When you get to the Sand Dunes be mindful of the bears. We camped there on motorcycles and had to keep our stuff inside the dumpsters area and they did not have bear proof containers at campsites. Did not hear or see any but they are there. Enjoy and make sure to take a plastic snow disc with you especially if you have kids. They will have fun sliding down the dunes.

Thanks. We are hard sided and we'll keep everything inside. In bear country, with which we are familiar around here (also Yellowstone and up in Canada), we don't leave the grill out or even the grill rack we use on campfires!

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by BandJCarm

That's a great app!!! Thanks!!

But as I understand it, and I tested a few routes along western I-40, the numbers in your example are totals between two far flung points most likely. I did most of Arizona to Albuquerque and it showed a max and min of about 19%. Yet, I know there are no 19% grades along that route. So I assume (?) it's calculating the total maximum grade from the lowest point to the highest point, etc...

Could be way off.

If you move your cursor very slowly along the graph, it shows the gradient at that point. In my example, there was ONE 6% grade, for a very short time........yet the max was 19% for the whole route.

Edit: If while moving the cursor along the graph, look simultaneously at the map.....it will show a temporary cursor where that exact grade is located. I just did Albuquerque to Co Springs and 7% is the max at one spot, but 29% is the max total. Having driven it, I assume that's around Trinidad on I-25....

The max is the highest grade anywhere on the route, not the average, but it may just be one small spot along the route. For example, a marked "6% grade" on the road might actually have some 3% spots and some 10% spots within it. I doubt there is much 19% grade on any of the highways.

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by szabla

I know your thinking of elevation and grade, the one thing you're not saying is time of year. I live in Colorado and do a lot of Yearly activities, winter we snowmobile and snow bike (Timber sled on yz450f motorcycles), spring we Jet Ski, fish in the warmer lakes/rivers, in summer we fish, ride dirt bikes (motorcycles) fall hunt.
I would be aware of the condition of the roads if you're not used to them in winter, this year we are running at an average of 150% in the Colorado River basin. If we get a quick melt we have had the interstate lift and crack open from a mudslide that went under it. In all cases crews do a good job, but they may have to close down a road for a while. Some like when a boulder dropped in Glenwood canyon, it added a few hundred miles to a bypass for travelers. But that area is seldom seen and is some great country.
Good luck which ever way you travel. We try to travel the gravel roads and dirt trails more than paved.

We'll be crossing I-70 westward around May 10 so hoping for the best as far as no snow! We'll be coming back Cortez - Gunnison - Mosca - Florissant - Cascade then through CO Springs and past Denver to NE starting the end of Memorial Day weekend and through that next week.

[La Plata View]

"Max Ascent 25%"

Not sure what kind of mathematical wizardry they're using but it's way off .

I've done plenty of 4-wheeling where you don't reach 25%. And you're sure not going to find that on any highway. Here's a link to a Colorado Dept of Transportation web page listing grade on our mountain passes. You'll see that La Veta pass (the 25% route) maxes out at 6%!

https://www.codot.gov/travel/maximum...in-passes.html

[bubbles]

Originally Posted by La Plata View

"Max Ascent 25%"

Not sure what kind of mathematical wizardry they're using but it's way off .

I've done plenty of 4-wheeling where you don't reach 25%. And you're sure not going to find that on any highway. Here's a link to a Colorado Dept of Transportation web page listing grade on our mountain passes. You'll see that La Veta pass (the 25% route) maxes out at 6%!

https://www.codot.gov/travel/maximum...in-passes.html

Just a thought. I think you have misinterpreted the information provided.

[La Plata View]

Bubbles, I just went back and re-read the original post. Doh! You're right, I had read that as degrees rather than percent of slope.

Still, correct me if I'm wrong but 25% works out to a 14 degree incline. Not sure where on that route the incline/decline would get that high.