I am almost on my way for a visit to your lovely state. What weather should I expect next week? I will be spending my first night in Trinidad and from there possibly the next night in Gunnison depending on how long my wife and I spend at the dunes and in Creede. After that I expect to be seeing the sights around the Colorado Springs area. Also can anyone recommend any must see must drive spots in these areas? I am pretty excited about my first road trip in my Evo and though what better place to go than Colorado.

Any input, ideas, and suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

 

Hey man,

Colorado is really great to drive this time of year. There is a short thread about good driving roads in Colorado, check there for a few ideas.

I haven't been as far south as Creede but I have heard that the 'Silver Thread' road that goes through Creede connecting South Fork and Lake City is really nice. Pikes Peak, the place where the famous hill climb takes place (on the 22nd of this month incidentally), is due west of Colorado Springs. There is a toll road that runs to the top of the peak you can take, but it does include gravel sections near the top which are paint-chip friendly. I don't really know of any more specific 'must see' places but honestly I think you will be assaulted by enough cool scenery that you won't need to go looking.

The places I've been through recently are Rocky Mountain National Park and Squaw Pass Road up to Mt. Evans. They are both GREAT drives, but I think they might be too far north for your upcoming visit.

As for weather, hehehhehe.. its sort of a joke on the front range. There is really no way to forecast weather correctly in and near the mountains because a lot of the severe and inclement weather is extremely localized. You know how most major news stations have that jovial weather guy with the super cheesy nickname that happily forecasts the weather with 80% accuracy? I don't think we have one of those.

Going by the 'normal' weather in the mountains you can expect sunny and clear for most of your trip, with a few weird rain or snow showers as you drive through a pass or something.

A few things to keep in mind though, in case you haven't camped or been up in the mountains for extended periods.

1. Bring sun lotion, and apply liberally unless your skin is already tough and leathery. You will burn much faster at the altitudes in which you will be staying.
2. Bring lots of water, the dry air sucks the water out of you much faster than in more humid climes (like Houston for example )
3. The altitude will put you out of breath faster when you are walking or hiking, keep that in mind when deciding how far you want to hike.
4. The nights are COLD. Like a desert, the air does not keep much heat once the sun goes down. You can expect temps below freezing during the night in some of the places you are staying.

I don't know if you are an experienced mountaineer or what, but those are things I would like to know if I didn't know what to expect.

Enjoy your trip

-toast

 

Toast thanks for the response. I am very excited about the trip. I can't wait to get out see the sights and finally put the Evo on some roads it was made for. Also thanks for the tips on the altitude, I am not a mountaineer by any stretch so I will try and acclimate myself cautiously.

I will definitely hit Pike's Peak. We are planning on doing some slightly touristy stuff interspersed with the driving.

Anybody else have any good ideas/suggestions? Any little bit helps.