Wow! I-70 is a wild ride, especially with a 30 foot trailer in tow! We pointed our rig west around noon and pulled in here just after 6 pm. In between: steep climbs, dizzying descents, tunnels, winding canyons, and scenery I just can’t begin to describe. It’s incredible.
I was impressed with the handling of the rig. On steep uphills, we had no trouble maintaining reasonable speeds. We blew past a lot of trucks struggling in the right lane. On 8% downhill grades, I could keep it at 53 MPH in second gear and not have to touch the brakes at all.
We couldn’t stop at Loveland Pass (11,013 feet) because there’s no place to pull off, but we did stop a bit later past Dillon for a few photos. What a perfect day! Snow-capped mountains (but none on the road), blue skies, great views! I was sorry to see the sunset.
Since it was dark when we arrived I can’t say much about the campground but I bet it will be gorgeous in the morning. We’re situated in a canyon, next to a river. I’ll take photos tomorrow, and we’ll also stop in at Colorado National Monument, just a few miles down the road.
November 7th, 2005 at 6:14 am
Hello Rich, Eleanor & Emma –
I guess in the last 25 or 30 years things have changed up on top of Loveland Pass. Last time I went thru there we got to the top and after a snowy, slippery and dangerous ride up the east side we reached the top to find clear blue skies and two guys in a Triumph Spitfire convertible (top properly stowed – down, of course) who parked their car, hopped out, grabbed their skis from the car, and got ready to ski down the west side. We stopped and had a beautiful picnic lunch while sitting on top of the picnic table and using the seats as foot rests – the snow was about even with the top of the table and we had to clear out little “footwells” just to touch the seat boards!
Keep enjoying!