Jeeping (No Mammoth Allowed)

June 28

Today we headed to Silverton, CO to pick up a Jeep we'd reserved. The views over Coal Bank Pass and Molas Pass are always amazing, but hard to really see and enjoy at 60MPH. We picked up the jeep about 8:15AM and headed out towards the Alpine Loop, a great area for off-roading. The road starts as packed gravel, but then quickly turns into something more suited for 4x4s! In fact they have many warnings recommending high-clearance, 4-wheel drive only.

 

We averaged about 5-10 mph most of the time. We also had to stop for oncoming traffic -- 4-wheelers, other jeeps, and off-road motorcycles -- as the trails are mostly one-lane. We drove over Engineer Pass, which reaches an altitude of 12,800 feet above sea level. It was beautiful to see lots of snow, high above the treeline, and very tiny tundra as the only vegetation.

 

Along the way we saw chipmunks, ground squirrels, and marmots. At one point, we stopped and ate the lunch we brought, listening to the roaring rapids of snow-melt rush down a mountain stream.

We then continued to follow the rocky, barely improved road to Lake City, CO. A quaint little town! We fueled, did some shopping, and headed out again, to Cinnamon Pass, at 12,640 feet. We'd been this way on a previous trip, but the scenery never gets old. We even saw two deer. 

We really were amazed at the amount of snow that was still left. Much more than we'd seen a few years ago. We also saw lots of rushing streams and waterfalls, cascading down to the various rivers.

 

 

 

We got the Jeep back about 4:30PM. We traveled 69 miles total, and it took about 8 hours. Whew! Tony did an amazing job of handling the jeep, and we had a great time.