Mesa Verde going east to rt 25

2gypsies wrote:
I don't know your final destination after the sand dunes but if you wanted to skip the dunes, I'd suggest taking 160 east to Pagosa Springs and then Hwy 84 down to Santa Fe, NM and I-25. If you planned to go any further south you could do White Sands Nat'l Monument just of I-25 which is much more unique than the Colorado dunes. No big hills on this route.

Or...if you still wanted to do the dunes in Colorado...this would add more miles but from Pagosa Springs, take 84 south to NM 64 at Tierra Amarilla and head east to 285. Take 285 north back into Colorado which will take you right to the dunes.

If it were us we'd take Wolf Creek Pass. If you're truck is matched for the 5th wheel and you're not overweight there's no reason you can't climb hills. If you need to take it slow you'll surely have company. The semis will be in the right lane, too.

You're in Colorado which has mountains. :) How are you getting to Mesa Verde?

All . . . . thank you very much for the input. Thanks for the tip on going south and not east. Going south to the sand dunes will add 100 miles to the trip. We will try going over Wolf Creek. We are a little overweight . . . . Cedar Creek weighs around 15,000 pounds.
Maybe we will get an early start. I just hope my Ford can take the heat. And me. My topo map says that the total climbing millage is 17,000 feet.
thanks again.
ken and sue

I don't know your final destination after the sand dunes but if you wanted to skip the dunes, I'd suggest taking 160 east to Pagosa Springs and then Hwy 84 down to Santa Fe, NM and I-25. If you planned to go any further south you could do White Sands Nat'l Monument just of I-25 which is much more unique than the Colorado dunes. No big hills on this route.

Or...if you still wanted to do the dunes in Colorado...this would add more miles but from Pagosa Springs, take 84 south to NM 64 at Tierra Amarilla and head east to 285. Take 285 north back into Colorado which will take you right to the dunes.

If it were us we'd take Wolf Creek Pass. If you're truck is matched for the 5th wheel and you're not overweight there's no reason you can't climb hills. If you need to take it slow you'll surely have company. The semis will be in the right lane, too.

You're in Colorado which has mountains. :) How are you getting to Mesa Verde?

You could also take US 64 to cut across from US 84 over to US 285 to save some miles, but that road is more winding than staying on 84 all the way to 285.

Just FYI, this actually does go above 10,000ft. Not by too much though.

David

Unless there's a reason to not go above 10,000', then 160 eastbound is the route to take. Eastbound from Pagosa Springs is a little steeper climb over Wolf Creek Pass than westbound but still not that bad.

Wolf Creek pass is one of the easier passes to me. 2 lanes up, 2 lanes down, 1 switchback, places to pull off. It may have been bad years ago, but it is an easy one today...imo

Others have made very valid suggestions for what you want to accomplish. The bottom line is, from Mesa Verde to go east, without going south, and without going up to 10000 feet (sounds like one of those math questions!) is really not doable, practically speaking.

Wolf Creek Pass has a reputation...from the past and from a popular song from the past. CDOT has made substantial improvements to that pass over the years, and RV'ers and commercial truckers go over it all the time. That really is the most direct route to take to get to the Great Sand Dunes.

The only way I know of to NOT go over any 10000 foot passes and not go south would be a very, very circuitous route north through western Colorado into Wyoming and then down along the Front Range and the I-25 urban corridor back down to Walsenburg. This is really not practical unless you want to see a lot of western Colorado and southern Wyoming.

Take US 160 over Wolf Creek.

I agree with the above for the most part. US 160 over Wolf Creek Pass is a good wide road, 2 lanes going up so you can stay right and take your time and not hold up traffic. And several pullout areas if you need to take a breather or cool down. But it is a fairly steep climb for several miles. And the pass is over 10,800'.

If it is simply the altitude itself you want to avoid, then you can take US 84 south at Pagosa Springs to US 285 just north of Espanola, and north on 285 to Alamosa and back onto 160 to the Dunes. That does add a lot of miles but may be worth it to you. You could also take US 64 to cut across from US 84 over to US 285 to save some miles, but that road is more winding than staying on 84 all the way to 285. Use google maps street view to take a virtual drive thru the area.

You say you do not want to go south, but there is no other real option if not the pass itself.

We also just drove across US 160 from near Alamosa to near Durango. Yes, Wolf Creek Pass is a major pass, but a very good road. We had no trouble at all. We have been over it several times East to West and West to East.

We have a 2500 Duramax/Allison pulling a 34' HitchHiker II fifth-wheel--to give you a comparison.

The alternative routes would all be much longer, and some would involve major passes of their own.

Hi, I just did that drive a few weeks ago from Durango across 160 with my F250 and my 12.5K lbs fiver. It is not a tough drive at all as far as I could see. In fact they were repaving several sections of 160 so the road was very smooth. Go for it!

Wolf Creek Pass, US160, is too high, but is easier than the alternatives - unless you take a really a long detour (like 550 to Abq and I25). Look at its Wiki article.