We will be traveling from Cheyenne WY to Glenwood Springs CO in two weeks and with the closure and mess of I-70 we are looking forward the best alternate route.We will be pulling a 32’ fifth-wheel with our Ford-F350Diesel. Any help and recommendations are appreciated as we have never traveled through this area before and don’t know if there arepreferred routes, definite routes to avoid, etc.

I-80 to Laramie, then WY 230 to CO 127 etc. to Walden. CO 14 to US 40. You'll join US 40 near the top of the passes there. It's a fair drop down into Steamboat Springs but just use your gearing. Lots of RV's do it every day. Then west on US 40 to Craig and south on CO 13 to I-70 etc. When you get to Rifle, take a left on Railroad Ave. at the three way intersection just past Wing Nutz. If you stay on CO 13 you may hit a back up because they are making people exit the highway at Rifle. When you get to the frontage road, stay on Railroad and cross the Colorado River and get on I-70 there. Things change day to day and they may make you detour on the frontage road. If so, head west on the frontage road to Silt and get on I-80 eastbound there.Except for I-80 and US 40, these are all lesser travelled roads but scenic in their own right. Wave at us when you get to GWS!

With the I70 closure, traffic on alternative routes to Glenwood Springs may be heavier. News also reports some shortages, such as for gas.

4runnerguy wrote:I-80 to Laramie, then WY 230 to CO 127 etc. to Walden. CO 14 to US 40. You'll join US 40 near the top of the passes there. It's a fair drop down into Steamboat Springs but just use your gearing. Lots of RV's do it every day. Then west on US 40 to Craig and south on CO 13 to I-70 etc. When you get to Rifle, take a left on Railroad Ave. at the three way intersection just past Wing Nutz. If you stay on CO 13 you may hit a back up because they are making people exit the highway at Rifle. When you get to the frontage road, stay on Railroad and cross the Colorado River and get on I-70 there. Things change day to day and they may make you detour on the frontage road. If so, head west on the frontage road to Silt and get on I-80 eastbound there.Except for I-80 and US 40, these are all lesser travelled roads but scenic in their own right. Wave at us when you get to GWS!And if you follow this excellent suggestion, make sure you fuel up in Laramie. There is no diesel available that I'm aware of between Laramie and Walden. It's 65 miles from Laramie to Walden and another 60 miles on to Steamboat Springs. There are 2 stations in Walden that both have diesel, neither of them are ideal for trying to get a truck/trailer combo in to fuel. They are right across from each other so if you need to fuel up there, you can choose the one that is less busy. Also be aware there is a goodly climb from Woods Landing-Jelm up to Mountain Home and the WY/CO state line. Doable certainly, but just be aware of it. WY 230 turns into CO 127 at the state line and is mostly down hill until you get to the junction with CO 125 in North Park. Relatively flat across North Park to the climb up to Rabbit Ears Pass on CO 14, which you'll pick up in Walden.

Someone on another travel site said to avoid this route through Walden and especially the backup around Steamboat Springs. They suggested traveling further west on I-80 from Cheyenne and then heading south on 789 to Craig and on down to Rifle. Is anyone familiar with this route?

RKMathis wrote:Someone on another travel site said to avoid this route through Walden and especially the backup around Steamboat Springs. They suggested traveling further west on I-80 from Cheyenne and then heading south on 789 to Craig and on down to Rifle. Is anyone familiar with this route?That route works also. It's about 50 miles longer. You also have fewer and less steep grades. But it's also a lot less scenic. And if there's wind, I-80 heading west can be daunting. We use the WY 789/CO13 route when we're heading north to places like Yellowstone or Glacier.

Cheyenne WY to Glenwood Springs CO | Good Sam Community

paulj
Explorer II
Aug 06, 2021
With the I70 closure, traffic on alternative routes to Glenwood Springs may be heavier. News also reports some shortages, such as for gas.
4runnerguy
Explorer
Aug 06, 2021
I-80 to Laramie, then WY 230 to CO 127 etc. to Walden. CO 14 to US 40. You'll join US 40 near the top of the passes there. It's a fair drop down into Steamboat Springs but just use your gearing. Lots of RV's do it every day. Then west on US 40 to Craig and south on CO 13 to I-70 etc.

When you get to Rifle, take a left on Railroad Ave. at the three way intersection just past Wing Nutz. If you stay on CO 13 you may hit a back up because they are making people exit the highway at Rifle. When you get to the frontage road, stay on Railroad and cross the Colorado River and get on I-70 there. Things change day to day and they may make you detour on the frontage road. If so, head west on the frontage road to Silt and get on I-80 eastbound there.

Except for I-80 and US 40, these are all lesser travelled roads but scenic in their own right. Wave at us when you get to GWS!

Forum Discussion

Cheyenne WY to Glenwood Springs CO

About Bucket List Trips

Related Content

Glenwood Springs Traffic Mess

From Glenwood Springs to Gunnison, CO

Glenwood Canyon I-70 mudslides....!

Heading West to Glenwood Springs, CO

Best route Glenwood Springs to Grand Lake, CO