The Enchanted Rockies Trail

So this has been a long time coming but we have just finished Part I of our new series "The Enchanted Rockies Trail" on YouTube!

Some of you already knew we were cooking up something different after we began researching alternates to the Shadow of the Rockies Trail. Well, what we ended up with was around 800 miles of off-pavement travel through multiple districts of 9 National Forests, 2 National Parks, and even a Castle (yes, a legit castle). We completed our 2,000 mile round trip in 10 days and captured tons of video, photos, and GPS data to share with those who would like to follow our route in the future.

We will begin to roll out GPS segments as we fine tune the data (had to erase a few back-tracks).
Anyhow, just wanted to share this new video and trail system with the community... so without further ado, here is The Enchanted Rockies Trail - PART I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbQpMh3TS9M&t=4s
Did you take the video down? I get the 'this video is not available' error? Nor can I find it in youtube when I search for it.

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk
 
Might be something to do with my tablet. I just subscribed to your utube channel, so no worries.

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk
 
Still cant view it when using the youtube app on my tablet, but all other videos of your channel are fine. I'll try using the laptop later to see if i still get the same error.

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk
 
So this has been a long time coming but we have just finished Part I of our new series "The Enchanted Rockies Trail" on YouTube!

Some of you already knew we were cooking up something different after we began researching alternates to the Shadow of the Rockies Trail. Well, what we ended up with was around 800 miles of off-pavement travel through multiple districts of 9 National Forests, 2 National Parks, and even a Castle (yes, a legit castle). We completed our 2,000 mile round trip in 10 days and captured tons of video, photos, and GPS data to share with those who would like to follow our route in the future.

We will begin to roll out GPS segments as we fine tune the data (had to erase a few back-tracks).
Anyhow, just wanted to share this new video and trail system with the community... so without further ado, here is The Enchanted Rockies Trail - PART I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbQpMh3TS9M&t=4s
Stumbled across the first vid on YouTube today now seeing this thread. Wanted to post to say thanks for sharing your efforts with the community here.

Great start, subscribed, and looking forward to the next installment!
 
Great video! As others have said, this is what contemporary "overlanding" should be about. Not the weird pseudo-military "intergalactic expedition" stuff that seems so popular right now.

Your video looks like an awesome, fun, family adventure and would make a heck of an advertisement for the 4Runner. Keep up the good work! :rockon:
 
Still cant view it when using the youtube app on my tablet, but all other videos of your channel are fine. I'll try using the laptop later to see if i still get the same error.

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk

Just noticed you're in Canada... that might have something to do with it since it has copyrighted music in it. I checked the YouTube music library and the songs were ok to use and didn't have any flags for other countries... but doesn't mean it still didn't get blocked.

I'm hoping to get away from copyright music in the future... so sorry it's not coming through for you.

Any other non-US folks having issues?
 
Awesome, Awesome video, thank you very much for sharing, this is the reason I purchased a 4-Runner, what brand of trailer did you go with. I have been considering the echo 6 or one of the conqueror models, just trying to justify the price. :)
 
So how rough is this route? Obviously the t4r could do pretty rough terrain. Yours maybe more so. With the trailer a little less, especially if there are tight switchbacks. There is a rating system for trails, but I'm not familiar with it. My frame of reference is the Alpine loop from Lake City to Silverton, Colorado and various roads around that area. What other kinds of vehicles could do it?
 

So very sorry... I will definitely work on an international version that won't get hit with the copyright blocks!

This is why I got my truck. Thanks for the ideas and inspiration

Awesome! Thanks for watching!

Awesome, Awesome video, thank you very much for sharing, this is the reason I purchased a 4-Runner, what brand of trailer did you go with. I have been considering the echo 6 or one of the conqueror models, just trying to justify the price. :)

Thanks so much! After tons of research we went with the Turtleback Trailer. None of the other trailers out there fit our needs for the price point. Granted they are expensive for a "trailer" but when you consider that an expedition trailer is truly an extension of your rig, and therefore has to endure the same (if not worse) abuse, then the price makes more sense.
We are planning a very detailed video review of our Turtleback in the future which will touch on all these points.
 
So how rough is this route? Obviously the t4r could do pretty rough terrain. Yours maybe more so. With the trailer a little less, especially if there are tight switchbacks. There is a rating system for trails, but I'm not familiar with it. My frame of reference is the Alpine loop from Lake City to Silverton, Colorado and various roads around that area. What other kinds of vehicles could do it?

This is a very mild route as long as the weather stays decent. I believe a stock 4Runner could handle the route as long as you took your time through the roughest parts (mostly in New Mexico). We wanted a taste of technical from time to time without bouncing the family to death for hours on end. I think the path we choose does a great job of that. Plus, there are tons of alternate routes or spurs that would be fun if you wanted something a bit more challenging.
The GPS data is coming along, I just need to figure out the best way to share it now.
 
Enchanted Rockies Trail GPS Data – Queen to Lincoln (NM)

Queen-to-Lincoln.png


Blog Post: Enchanted Rockies Trail GPS Data - Queen to Lincoln (NM) - Lifestyle Overland

Over the next few months we will be rolling out the GPX files from our Enchanted Rockies Trail expedition. We are breaking the 800 miles of trail data into 100 mile (+/-) sections to make it a bit easier for us to process and share.

This file is the first release and details the southernmost leg of the trail (for now) which documents our travel from Queen, New Mexico to Baca Campground near Lincoln, New Mexico. This portion of the trail is not part of the 10 days of travel in our YouTube Series, but a portion we mapped and traveled as part of a “Father-Daughter” weekend with Overlandnewmexico575 and his girls.

Nearest fuel from starting point: Carlsbad, NM
Nearest fuel to end point: Hondo, NM or Capitan, NM
(Note: This is the wild west, confirm fuel stops before your journey!)

Trail Section Travel Data

Total Length: 159.8 Miles
Actual Trails: 119.3 Miles
Paved Sections: 40.5 Miles

Estimated Travel Time: 6.5 Hours

Difficulty: Easy (Pending weather as prolonged rain can create muddy and flooded conditions.)
Trail Type: Gravel, Small Rock, Dirt

Click Here to See and Download this Route at the Gaia GPS Website

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Awesome journey so far! I am so envious of the scenery that the guys out west get to enjoy... Someday we are going to take a road trip out there for an extended vacation! Nicely done!
 
Great job! I would love to do this north to south either in 2016 or 2017. Thank you for taking the time to give back to the community.
 

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