US Hwy 50 Colorado

[homelesshartshorns]

Wondering how late in the year we can head over Hwy 50 west bond through Colorado, and some thoughts on the difficulty Grades?

[rickeieio]

Crap shoot.  Monarch is the only pass of consequence on US 50.  Easy climb, east or west bound.  Hope your brakes are good.  That pass was a factor in my wife being on board with the hdt.

[ms60ocb]

Westbound is the easier than as Eastbound  traffic is closer the drop-off.  I see you are from the Ozark's and real difference is the time your going up hill watching engine and transmission temps and then the time maintaining a slower speed so your brakes cool incase you have to stop for rocks in the road or??. Maybe the curve in the road is tight. Let your engine do the work.

About half way between Gunison and Montrose there is a major road rebuilt but there an alternate route.  See https://www.us50info.com/ for detail and open times

Clay

 

[2gypsies]

Westbound descent from the Monarch Pass summit (11,312' elevation) there's a sign saying 6% grade next 9 miles. The CO Dept of Hwys lists it at 6.4% if that matters. It's fair steady & there are numerous 30,35,40 mph curves the first 6 mi. There are no escape ramps heading west.    Just watch the weather as you get closer. No one can tell, for sure.  We've done it in mid-Sept.

[Steve Bergkamp]

Homelesshartshorns – “…how late in the year we can head over Hwy 50 west bond through Colorado, and some thoughts on the difficulty Grades…”

I grew up in CO,  and have been on Monarch several times.  Slow, easy, dry, and in the daylight is highly recommended.    Weather in the CO and especially in the mountains is unpredictable.  My bday is 9/16,  and CO has had it’s first snow by then in past years.   I would recommend early in September.   The aspens should be beautiful then.  It’s a mountain pass so there are tight turns and steep grades but I wouldn’t be worried about that.  I assume you have good gear.

[homelesshartshorns]

Thanks for the comments..... Im guessing 160 will be better in november....Im hopoing Utah is still warm up until December!

[Chalkie]

2 hours ago, homelesshartshorns said:

Thanks for the comments..... Im guessing 160 will be better in november....Im hopoing Utah is still warm up until December!

Having lived in Colorado for 30 years I would say no it is not. While Wolf Creek Pass is lower, it is also "scarier" IMHO going west bound. Ever listen to the song "Wolf Creek Pass" by C.J. McCall? While both places can get a lot of snow it seems like Wolf Creek gets more gets more averaging 50+ inches in November. Wolf Creek also has steeper grades. 

Having driven them both pulling a 40' fiver I would choose Monarch any day but as has been said watch the weather. Colorado may be the only state that allows the use of studded snow tires all year long as you can get snow in the high country at any time of the year. 

As to Utah, don't forget that it too is a mountain state with ranges on the north, east and west.

[homelesshartshorns]

10 minutes ago, Chalkie said:

Having lived in Colorado for 30 years I would say no it is not. While Wolf Creek Pass is lower, it is also "scarier" IMHO going west bound. Ever listen to the song "Wolf Creek Pass" by C.J. McCall? While both places can get a lot of snow it seems like Wolf Creek gets more gets more averaging 50+ inches in November. Wolf Creek also has steeper grades. 

Having driven them both pulling a 40' fiver I would choose Monarch any day but as has been said watch the weather. Colorado may be the only state that allows the use of studded snow tires all year long as you can get snow in the high country at any time of the year. 

As to Utah, don't forget that it too is a mountain state with ranges on the north, east and west.

 

10 minutes ago, Chalkie said:

Having lived in Colorado for 30 years I would say no it is not. While Wolf Creek Pass is lower, it is also "scarier" IMHO going west bound. Ever listen to the song "Wolf Creek Pass" by C.J. McCall? While both places can get a lot of snow it seems like Wolf Creek gets more gets more averaging 50+ inches in November. Wolf Creek also has steeper grades. 

Having driven them both pulling a 40' fiver I would choose Monarch any day but as has been said watch the weather. Colorado may be the only state that allows the use of studded snow tires all year long as you can get snow in the high country at any time of the year. 

As to Utah, don't forget that it too is a mountain state with ranges on the north, east and west.

Thanks for more info so I am compleately confused now. I understand passes are full of snow as late as July and now Im finding out there impassable as early as Sept?

[2gypsies]

Passes aren't full of snow in July. We've driven some in June, including Red Mountain Pass - 11,000' EL between Ouray & Silverton on 550.  We wanted to be there for the awesome July 4 festivities.  The boondocking places were already filling up.  It all depends on the weather.  If it does snow chances are it would melt in a day. Plan a spot in lower elevation to hang out until the road is clear.  

[Chalkie]

7 hours ago, homelesshartshorns said:

 

Thanks for more info so I am compleately confused now. I understand passes are full of snow as late as July and now Im finding out there impassable as early as Sept?

No, they are never impassible except for relatively short periods until the snowplows get out. We're talking November, I thought. Another thing to be aware of is the Colorado Chain Law which requires commercial vehicles to carry chain in the winter months but can at times apply to all vehicles at the discretion of CDOT or the State Patrol. 

The best advice I can give you is to take the passes slow and easy, let the gears do the work and not your brakes. If it is snowy hang out at a lower elevation if you are not totally comfortable driving in the snow. I'm not telling you to not go over either pass, I am saying I prefer Monarch to Wolf Creek, and that you should be very aware of current road conditions which you can monitor at the COtrip Travelers website.

 

[Ray,IN]

For travelers West of the Mississippi (actually Kansas), this IMO is the best single weather and road conditions website on the internet. One Stop Shop for Travelers.

It takes a bit to learn how to use this powerful tool, but once you get the hang of it you can do numerous mapping and weather related things. The live camera feeds are great for putting eyes on current road and traffic conditions.

It combines all the states road and weather conditions in one website. It was started by California and other Western states, that's why East of the Mississippi does not have the same map coverage.

Edited May 26, 2022 by Ray,IN

[homelesshartshorns]

14 hours ago, Ray,IN said:

For travelers West of the Mississippi (actually Kansas), this IMO is the best single weather and road conditions website on the internet. One Stop Shop for Travelers.

It takes a bit to learn how to use this powerful tool, but once you get the hang of it you can do numerous mapping and weather related things. The live camera feeds are great for putting eyes on current road and traffic conditions.

It combines all the states road and weather conditions in one website. It was started by California and other Western states, that's why East of the Mississippi does not have the same map coverage.

I went to this page on my phone and my laptop and find the cameras do not work. Do I need to do something more to make them work?

[Ray,IN]

The weather forecast is still available when you click the link. There is a weather advisory issued to the area with high fire danger this weekend, with temps. in the 90's.

Now all cameras are "unavailable" for some reason. Technical difficulties?

Edited May 27, 2022 by Ray,IN

[homelesshartshorns]

On 5/25/2022 at 10:00 PM, ms60ocb said:

Westbound is the easier than as Eastbound  traffic is closer the drop-off.  I see you are from the Ozark's and real difference is the time your going up hill watching engine and transmission temps and then the time maintaining a slower speed so your brakes cool incase you have to stop for rocks in the road or??. Maybe the curve in the road is tight. Let your engine do the work.

About half way between Gunison and Montrose there is a major road rebuilt but there an alternate route.  See https://www.us50info.com/ for detail and open times

Clay

 

As much as I can read here the road is only closed at night, and mostly one lane in day time and both lanes open on week ends. Am I correct in assuming I can go this way next month?

[2gypsies]

Yes, you can drive it during the day and weekends.  If driving it Labor Day weekend here's the schedule.

https://www.us50info.com/

[Kirk W]

3 hours ago, homelesshartshorns said:

Am I correct in assuming I can go this way next month?

If you mean in September, absolutely but do watch the weather as it would be unusal for the entire month to pass without any snow at all. But it is early enough that you can easily wait out any snow that may fall. 

[rynosback]

I’ve gone over the pass on 50 several times. Just watch the weather reports later in the season.