Colorado 4Runner Adventure

[ptung07]

This was my first trip to Colorado over the summer with my friends. It was a memorable experience for us. We did white water rafting, ATVing, mountain biking, hiking, and off roading. This was the first time I went off roading with my 2003 4Runner V8 4x4 Sport Edition. It is all stock condition with the exception of the front toyota skid plate. As recommended by many people on the forum, we went to mosquito pass near Leadville, Colorado.
The trip was successful!
Check out the pictures:
The Drive Guide:

Near the mine:

Pictures:

 

[Sac State]

Looks like a lot of fun. Love those '03 Runners with the cladding. You only have 21K miles?

 

[oldboy]

Wow, this looks cool!

I'm going to checkout where this is since I'm leaving for Co. this Saturday!

Did you need that skid plate?

Lou

 

[ptung07]

Hey,
Thanks! Now, I have 29k miles I should update that.
I did not really need the skid plates if I avoided the tall rocks on the trail. However, when my friend was driving, he did not see a tall rock and the skid plates hit it. There was no sign of damage or issues at all with what toyota put as "stock" skid plates. Lou, that trail is located in Leadville, Colorado. It is very open and not busy with many other off roaders. However, if you look at the last pics, there is tons of snow in the top which forced us to turn around. (Around 12,980' ft)

Thanks again guys!

 

[G.I.G.]

Great pics ptung07, glad you enjoyed yourself!

Yeah, you can hit snow well into the summer (and sometimes all year round) on some of those high mountain passes. Great scenery up there!

 

[airbur]

Nice trip report ptung07! I've got all 3 of that author's CO 4x4 books and they are great. I've noticed though that he doesn't mention many side trails that are available. Did you notice that at all?

Last weekend we did Trail #57 on page 209 of that same book. After we hit Rampart Range Rd, we were able to find another trail (Hotel Gultch Rd) that connected to 67 and then on to Deckers with the GPS.

For those interested....Dakan Rd trail, which is normally an easy rated trail, has a section close to the top which is VERY rutted with deep holes. So much so that we turned around.

We'll have to try Mosquito Pass next.

Thanks for the writeup!

 

[T133]

Cool.

Last weekend I did Lead King Basin (which is rated difficult in the book) and was not as bad as I was expecting. Definitely not for stock 4Runner but with Cornfed and BFG I did not have any problems.

There are mainly two things I hate about offroading in Colorado and one in general:

1. Switchbacks, which sometimes are so narrow and inclined that make you lean to either
edge enough to make you scared.

2. Bushes and branches and soft 4Runner paint, they scratch your car very badly.
Sometimes even wax and scratch removes don

 

[airbur]

I hear that! There are many times when I look out the driver's side window and straight down a mountain! You really learn to hug the shoulder!

 

[oldboy]

Ok, can I do this mosquito pass thing?

Guys, my ride is a stock limited w X-REAS. Am I ok for this mosquito pass ride or should I pass? I don't mind the tight turns so much, my wife will kill me if it gets scary though, and I don't want scratches and dings... I'm ok with 65 mph on dirt roads with whoop dee doos and drifting, and slow / ultra slow double track w gravel and stuff that doesn't attack my chassis/suspension...

Thanks in advance, Lou

 

[G.I.G.]

oldboy, you should be fine. Any trail in that book (I just bought the same one) that is rated as "moderate" should be fine in a stock SUV with 4 wheel drive. I did the toughest "moderate" trail in that book with a stock Jeep GC and did fine. The good thing is that if it starts to get sketchy, you can always turn back the way you came. Very rarely will you find a situation where you are stuck and can't avoid something that you don't want to do. Just trust your instinct. My ol' lady gets a little scurd at times but she's good. :

 

[oldboy]

G.I.G. That's great to hear.

I'm ok with back roads and slightly rugged stuff. I just don't want to get into a situation where I have to pay tons of attention and listen to the wife talk to me about it at the same time. Then it will not be fun...

Thanks a bunch for the info!

 

[airbur]

oldboy.....You'll have a great time. Colorado trails have AWESOME scenery and really cool old mines and buildings. Try not to go alone as it's always best to have a buddy in another 4x4 to tag along.

 

[ptung07]

Thanks for the replies.
Airbur, I did notice some other trails that branched off the Mosquito Pass trail, but by then we were kind of tired and decided to head down because near the top, there was too much snow to continue. Nice pics too! I love your GPS system setup!
Oldboy, the trail was wide enough that I did not rub up or "scratch" into the trees, rocks, or anything to the body of the car. It was a great trail for beginners (I have never off roaded before) However, I went at a slow speed (under 4 miles an hour on average up and down). I liked using the Down Hill Assist, while descending but I think I had overheated the system after awhile because the system stopped working and just emitted this loud repetitive "VSC" beeping at me. I stopped and let the car cool down for a bit.
Enjoy your trip!!!

 

[JB.]

... we went to mosquito pass near Leadville, Colorado.

Thanks for the report. That's a trail I've yet to do in Colorado.
Maybe this summer.

...I liked using the Down Hill Assist, while descending but I think I had overheated the system after awhile because the system stopped working and just emitted this loud repetitive "VSC" beeping at me. I stopped and let the car cool down for a bit.
Enjoy your trip!!!

Yeah, it's not really meant as a substitute for engine braking over long periods of time. That's a good spot to just let the engine do it for you by picking the gear that gets you the speed you want. But at least now you're familiar with the brake overheat warning.

The system is supposed to recover pretty quickly after the overheat warning. Was that your experience?

 

[ptung07]

Thanks for the report. That's a trail I've yet to do in Colorado.
Maybe this summer.



Yeah, it's not really meant as a substitute for engine braking over long periods of time. That's a good spot to just let the engine do it for you by picking the gear that gets you the speed you want. But at least now you're familiar with the brake overheat warning.

The system is supposed to recover pretty quickly after the overheat warning. Was that your experience?

Yes, the system unbelievably cooled down so fast (less than 20 to 30 seconds) I thought maybe the brakes had failed and the system didn't even bother warning me anymore. haha Toyota's system is just unbelievably designed so well! I expected boiling brake fluid and steam from the system because I have never overheated the system before. (I opened the hood, and everything appeared good)