Grand Mesa to Twin Lakes Overlanding Colorado: COPS Section Two, Colorado Overland Photo Safari

Route Details: coloradooverla...
This journey was designed for a friend and his photographer wife that lived too far to bring their own rig to Colorado; the plan was to fly into DIA, rent a stock 4Runner or Wrangler and go Overlanding without (hopefully) damaging the vehicle.
We had a book in common, Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon which became part of the inspiration for this route, but with a twist; instead of focusing on local cuisine like the book, he and his wife wanted to see “local” Colorado; quiet places that aren’t in vacation guides or popular on social media, places where time has stood still and history can be seen and felt. This route is largely dirt roads and “blue highways” leading to excellent adventures, unique photo opportunities, great camping, historic places and really good pie in Paonia. We nicknamed it the “dirty road trip” because it’s more of a road trip featuring dirt roads than an offroad challenge. It’s designed to be an easy route, so much so that I never thought I would run it myself. I saved it and forgot about it. Our friends never ran it either, it remained a concept until a few years later when a last minute change of mind led to one of the best decisions of my life.
We went to the shelter looking for a puppy but ended up adopting an 11 year old, 107 lb. Australian Shepherd / Great Pyrenees mix that had lived his life outside in a small pen, had untreated medical conditions, was deaf, scared in general and afraid of men specifically. There was something about him though, I felt him from the moment I saw him. He was sweet and kind, he liked our cats, and loved walks; everything was new and interesting to him, but he remained stressed out and riding in the back of our Xterra was the only time he truly relaxed. I’m not sure he had ever been in a vehicle before and it seemed to hypnotize him, he would stare out the window smiling and often drift off to sleep. My wife suggested we take him on a long road trip to help him relax and see some of the beautiful state he lived in. I remembered this route, found the planning files on an old laptop and we set off a few days later to run it. It was epic for us, I loved this adventure from beginning to end. We connected and bonded with him, saw Colorado through his eyes and made memories that will last for our lifetimes. He was with us for 32 months until his passing, they were some of the best days of my life.
SECTION TWO: Grand Mesa to Twin Lakes
0:01 Grand Mesa!
0:58 CR 121 Lakeshore Drive to Grand Mesa Visitor Center
4:42 Visitor Center to Lands End Road
6:03 Raber Cow Camp
7:08 Lands End Observatory
7:50 Lands End Road
10:51 Highway 50
11:11 Escalante Canyon
11:26 Big Horn Sheep
11:54 Walker Cabin
12:46 Brands Shot into Rock
13:00 Captain Smith's Cabin
13:30 The Potholes
13:56 Highway 50
13:58 Blue Mesa Reservoir & Dam
17:00 Pontoon Boat
18:15 Highway 92
18:40 Pioneer Point
20:16 Hermits Rest
21:40 Highway 133
22:05 Big B's Delicious Orchards / Cherry Pie
22:29 Paonia Pie Company Apple Pie
23:44 Marble Mill Site Park
25:08 Hays Creek Falls
25:21 Redstone Coke Ovens
58:02 Carbondale
26:22 Highway 82 Aspen
27:58 Independence Pass Road
29:22 Independence Pass & Ghost Town
29:58 Highway 24 Twin Lakes in the dark
#colorado #overland #overlanding #route #photo #coloradooverland #routes #coloradooverlandroutes.com #grandmesa #winterpark #moffatroad #needleseyetunnel #bluemesa #fourmile #twinlakes #independencepass #marblemillsitepark #overlandroute

[@Zorazora1234]

Thank you for such a lovely video!

[@ColoradoOverland]

Thank you so much for saying that, you made my day! :)