Best route to Loveland,Co

[Red_Eagle]

Will be camping in Buena Vista, Co in early August, then heading up to Loveland, Co. Hwy 285 towards Denver seems to be more direct than hwy 24 to Colorado Springs & I-25. Have traveled hwy 24 years ago without pulling an RV. Will be pulling 31' 5er w/2015 GMC 2500 4X4 gasser(4.10 axle). Is hwy 285 my best route?

[Red_Eagle]

Thanks for the info. Have driven in Colorado before & pulled the RV thru southwest Colorado last summer w/2004 Dodge truck. Mainly interested in just getting FROM Buena Vista TO Loveland. Will NOT pull over Trailridge road; but will consider the other options. Again, thanks for your advice.

[Busskipper]

tmm2good wrote:

AZRick wrote:
How about 285->470/93->36W->Rocky as an option? Looks like that avoids Denver traffic.

I assume that 470 on that section is not part of the toll road?

No tolls on that portion of 470..

But does not avoid Boulder TRAFFIC, you will drive right through the middle of town. Boulder is not a little two light town.

Not as bad as Denver but still not good, IMHO.

One more interesting and very scenic option, would be to head out I-70 and then take Rt 9 out of Silverthorne to Kremmling then Rt 40 over to Granby. Then Rt 34 over Trail Ridge (Rt 34) through Estes and into Loveland. Again a really Beautiful drive, but for many 34 is a bit of a challenge. Have not driven it after the floods so not sure what shape the roads are in, but last time I had the chance I LOVED it. Some of the most BEAUTIFUL ROCKS in the world.

Again if you were to think about this it is a Mountain driver's road and will require your full attention, and IMHO you will never forget it.

Just one more option,

Busskipper

ps. having driven all these routes many times they are all fun, even Boulder and Denver, just need to time the drive with the traffic, of which there is a lot near the cities.

[tmm2good]

AZRick wrote:
How about 285->470/93->36W->Rocky as an option? Looks like that avoids Denver traffic.

I assume that 470 on that section is not part of the toll road?

No tolls on that portion of 470..

[AZRick]

How about 285->470/93->36W->Rocky as an option? Looks like that avoids Denver traffic.

I assume that 470 on that section is not part of the toll road?

[C7XR7]

It is a good route. Only problem is you will miss Colorado Springs and all it has to offer.

[padredw]

I heartily concur with the suggestions about the Peak to Peak. This is the way we go from Buena Vista to Estes Park. Always enjoy the drive. Made the mistake one time of going THROUGH Central City following a brand new thoroughfare. Even enjoyed that -- but only for one time!

Busskipper wrote:

Red Eagle wrote:

Will be camping in Buena Vista, Co in early August, then heading up to Loveland, Co. Hwy 285 towards Denver seems to be more direct than hwy 24 to Colorado Springs & I-25. Have traveled hwy 24 years ago without pulling an RV. Will be pulling 31' 5er w/2015 GMC 2500 4X4 gasser(4.10 axle). Is hwy 285 my best route?


I will likely catch some flack here but for me that is a terrible drive.

Are you comfortable in these mountains?

If so think about this - I mean you have driven from Alabama and now you want to get off some of the most beautiful drives in Colorado and get into city traffic, sorry not for me.

My inclination would be to head North on 24 to Leadville (Quincy's is great fo dinner and I love Leadville) and then 91 to I-70 taking that to Exit 244 Rt 6 to Rt 119 Peak to Peak hwy taking you by Blackhawk/Central City on the way (Golden Gate State Park) to Nederland and Lyons. When you get to Lyons (city CG with 4-6 spots in town) you could spend the night and/or run up to Estes. Then take Rt66 to Rt287 to Loveland.

This will keep you out of TRAFFIC and in the mountains you drove so far to see.

IMHO Rt 285 is just plain BORING and I hate to drive in the city.

Just a thought/option.

BOL,


No flack here! That's actually a good alternative, for folks who don't mind driving in the mountains.

Just a point of clarification (for OP if they are looking for signs!) -- CO 119 goes from Central City/Blackhawk to Nederland, where it heads east to Boulder. In Nederland, one gets on CO 72 for the Peak-to-Peak Highway, and take it to where it intersects with CO7, going down the South St. Vrain Canyon in to Lyons.

[Thom02099]

Busskipper wrote:

Red Eagle wrote:
Will be camping in Buena Vista, Co in early August, then heading up to Loveland, Co. Hwy 285 towards Denver seems to be more direct than hwy 24 to Colorado Springs & I-25. Have traveled hwy 24 years ago without pulling an RV. Will be pulling 31' 5er w/2015 GMC 2500 4X4 gasser(4.10 axle). Is hwy 285 my best route?

I will likely catch some flack here but for me that is a terrible drive.

Are you comfortable in these mountains?

If so think about this - I mean you have driven from Alabama and now you want to get off some of the most beautiful drives in Colorado and get into city traffic, sorry not for me.

My inclination would be to head North on 24 to Leadville (Quincy's is great fo dinner and I love Leadville) and then 91 to I-70 taking that to Exit 244 Rt 6 to Rt 119 Peak to Peak hwy taking you by Blackhawk/Central City on the way (Golden Gate State Park) to Nederland and Lyons. When you get to Lyons (city CG with 4-6 spots in town) you could spend the night and/or run up to Estes. Then take Rt66 to Rt287 to Loveland.

This will keep you out of TRAFFIC and in the mountains you drove so far to see.

IMHO Rt 285 is just plain BORING and I hate to drive in the city.

Just a thought/option.

BOL,

No flack here! That's actually a good alternative, for folks who don't mind driving in the mountains.

Just a point of clarification (for OP if they are looking for signs!) -- CO 119 goes from Central City/Blackhawk to Nederland, where it heads east to Boulder. In Nederland, one gets on CO 72 for the Peak-to-Peak Highway, and take it to where it intersects with CO7, going down the South St. Vrain Canyon in to Lyons.

[Busskipper]

Red Eagle wrote:
Will be camping in Buena Vista, Co in early August, then heading up to Loveland, Co. Hwy 285 towards Denver seems to be more direct than hwy 24 to Colorado Springs & I-25. Have traveled hwy 24 years ago without pulling an RV. Will be pulling 31' 5er w/2015 GMC 2500 4X4 gasser(4.10 axle). Is hwy 285 my best route?

I will likely catch some flack here but for me that is a terrible drive.

Are you comfortable in these mountains?

If so think about this - I mean you have driven from Alabama and now you want to get off some of the most beautiful drives in Colorado and get into city traffic, sorry not for me.

My inclination would be to head North on 24 to Leadville (Quincy's is great fo dinner and I love Leadville) and then 91 to I-70 taking that to Exit 244 Rt 6 to Rt 119 Peak to Peak hwy taking you by Blackhawk/Central City on the way (Golden Gate State Park) to Nederland and Lyons. When you get to Lyons (city CG with 4-6 spots in town) you could spend the night and/or run up to Estes. Then take Rt66 to Rt287 to Loveland.

This will keep you out of TRAFFIC and in the mountains you drove so far to see.

IMHO Rt 285 is just plain BORING and I hate to drive in the city.

Just a thought/option.

BOL,

[Thom02099]

Red Eagle wrote:
Will be camping in Buena Vista, Co in early August, then heading up to Loveland, Co. Hwy 285 towards Denver seems to be more direct than hwy 24 to Colorado Springs & I-25. Have traveled hwy 24 years ago without pulling an RV. Will be pulling 31' 5er w/2015 GMC 2500 4X4 gasser(4.10 axle). Is hwy 285 my best route?

It's a good route, no significant problems.

Some things to be aware of:

--Kenosha Pass at 10000 feet (easy pass as CO passes go), with beautiful vistas of South Park when you get up top. There's a pull off so you can take pictures if you'd like.

--The climb from Bailey to Pine Junction. There's a hill there coming out of Bailey that is deceptive. It's a fairly long climb and steep (or at least that's the perception), but it's doable. Heck, I did it with a 4banger Toyota van pulling a PUP years ago...was in 2nd gear most of the way up.

-- Good 4 lane most of the way. A bit twisty in Turkey Creek Canyon and for goodness sakes watch your speed heading down! Morrison PD LOVES to catch speeders and they don't generally give warnings. And they are not overly lenient on speed over the limit. They were featured in a news report recently about Colorado Speed Traps. Just gear down and watch the limit changes and you should be fine.

-- As 4runnerguy stated, I-76/I-25 interchange is nearly always a mess. I was through there last weekend on a Sunday morning and traffic moved along fine. That's the best time to try to do it if you can schedule it that way. From the interchange up to 104th Ave can get heavy, particularly around 84th Ave/Thornton Parkway area. Once you get beyond 120th Ave, it does lighten up a bit, and is 3 lanes each direction all the way to the north Longmont exit.

[4runnerguy]

Yes. US 285 to C-470 to I-70 to I-76 to I-25. No "major" passes on that route. Note that where I-76 joins I-25 is a real snag during evening rush hour. Avoid that junction from 3-6 p.m.