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Contemplating a long road trip

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
Thinking about hitting the road for a bit. L has given me a free-pass as long as I dont spend too much money.
I am thinking of heading west to ski, mostly xc since it is so cheap, hike & camp & I will prolly take my bike. Still tossing around ideas & the trip may not materialize but the thought sounds exciting. Any thoughts on cheap places to stay? I am thinking hostels & car camping mostly. I know it will be cold.
I have also looked at some rideshare bulletin boards & that seems like a good way to save of gas, as long as you don't share a ride with a serial killer.

Anyone ever done a trip like this?
 

SkaredShtles

Michael Bolton
Sep 21, 2003
65,375
12,529
In a van.... down by the river
Buddy and I did a skiing road trip back in... '94/'95? We stayed mostly with friends and family but did do some "car" camping as well as some tent camping in the middle of BFE Wyoming.

It was fun until his Samurai's transmission blew up.
 

laura

DH_Laura
Jul 16, 2002
6,259
15
Glitter Gulch
Buddy and I did a skiing road trip back in... '94/'95? We stayed mostly with friends and family but did do some "car" camping as well as some tent camping in the middle of BFE Wyoming.

It was fun until his Samurai's transmission blew up.
Thanks for the feedback you ****ing fossil but we're looking for information that we don't have to query via microfiche. :D
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
lol. road tripping in a sammurai. bet that was a great ride. :rofl:

but really though...how was the camping?
I know it will be cold but I think I could handle it. I could always go south too.
 

SkaredShtles

Michael Bolton
Sep 21, 2003
65,375
12,529
In a van.... down by the river
lol. road tripping in a sammurai. bet that was a great ride. :rofl:
Goddam that was a long, cold, slow ride. :D It was where I acquired my unusual appreciation of RATM, though... so that worked out.

but really though...how was the camping?
I know it will be cold but I think I could handle it. I could always go south too.
It was REALLY f**king cold. If I were you I'd stay south - maybe hit up some of the mts of New Mexico, SW Colorado, and AZ... you could XC ski up in the mountains and ride in the desert. XC skiing around Flagstaff is probably pretty damned good this year and the riding in Sedona is REALLY nice. :thumb:
 

boostindoubles

Nacho Libre
Mar 16, 2004
7,838
6,145
Yakistan
I've done a couple car camping trips down to Utah and Moab in the second week of march, always hit kick ass weather and top notch riding. Driving through Eastern Montana/WY might be not be the smoothest idea, it's like 10 below in Wolf Point today.

Did some car camping two weekends ago in the eastern Cascades foothills up around Chelan/Winthrop WA. It wasn't bad at all. Don't come this far and expect any good snow though. It's been Sh!t all winter. Its practically riding season down off the mtns now. Over 40 degrees today.
 

JRogers

talks too much
Mar 19, 2002
3,785
1
Claremont, CA
If it's below freezing all night in the winter, camping is not that fun for me; long nights make it much harder. But maybe that's just me. For the most part, when I car camp I try to go near Forest Service or BLM land and maybe do a little research beforehand on possible camping sites. If I don't have time or don't care to look anything up, it's usually not that hard to find something that works (clearings, seldom-used parking lots, out of the way pull-offs). I just make sure to have a good map (Delorme gazetteer maps are very useful for roaming around an area) so I know where to go and where (generally) property lines are. Camped for a week in Vermont and maybe 2.5 weeks in Colorado doing this.

The CO trip I did was closest to what you describe. Went to CO Springs, Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Winter Park and a few other places. Did some hiking and stuff, but mostly XC riding. I drove in from New Jersey, sleeping in my car on the way there and back. I admit I did poach a campsite one night in Indiana (came in at about 1am, woke up and peaced out before the made the rounds; I didn't even set up a tent or anything, just slept on the ground next to the car). In CO, I stayed with friends in the area for a few days and camped on public land the rest. I did not pay for lodging once. It was great.

Another resource you might want to check out is: couchsurfing.org. I have not used it personally and it does require some time investment, but friends of mine say it is awesome.
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
If it's below freezing all night in the winter, camping is not that fun for me; long nights make it much harder. But maybe that's just me. For the most part, when I car camp I try to go near Forest Service or BLM land and maybe do a little research beforehand on possible camping sites. If I don't have time or don't care to look anything up, it's usually not that hard to find something that works (clearings, seldom-used parking lots, out of the way pull-offs). I just make sure to have a good map (Delorme gazetteer maps are very useful for roaming around an area) so I know where to go and where (generally) property lines are. Camped for a week in Vermont and maybe 2.5 weeks in Colorado doing this.

The CO trip I did was closest to what you describe. Went to CO Springs, Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Winter Park and a few other places. Did some hiking and stuff, but mostly XC riding. I drove in from New Jersey, sleeping in my car on the way there and back. I admit I did poach a campsite one night in Indiana (came in at about 1am, woke up and peaced out before the made the rounds; I didn't even set up a tent or anything, just slept on the ground next to the car). In CO, I stayed with friends in the area for a few days and camped on public land the rest. I did not pay for lodging once. It was great.

Another resource you might want to check out is: couchsurfing.org. I have not used it personally and it does require some time investment, but friends of mine say it is awesome.
This sounds like what I wanna do.

As far as snow, I don't care how good it is as long as the grooming is decent. like i said i would mostly be skate skiing the xc trails.

I am pretty familiar with the moab/fruita area & I know I can get away with some great camping for free or close to it there, so a week or three there would be fun, but I really want to ski in the mountains. Any ski trails in the La Sals? gotta check.
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
F-staff has some nice looking ski trails. i am thinking of a loop now with maybe some hiking in the grand canyon now. :think:
 

HAB

Chelsea from Seattle
Apr 28, 2007
11,580
2,005
Seattle
It was where I acquired my unusual appreciation of RATM, though... so that worked out.
What's unusual about liking RATM?


I've got nothing more useful to contribute than to say I'll buy ya a beer if you make it to SoCal for some reason.
 

DNA

The human raccoon
Jan 31, 2003
1,443
0
NH
There is a lot of good stuff up on the Grand Mesa and in Aspen and Vail. All of it is an hour and a half or less from where I'm at. You've got a free place to stay here. PM me.
 

Jeremy R

<b>x</b>
Nov 15, 2001
9,698
1,053
behind you with a snap pop
I am confused at car camping at ski resorts in February.
That is on my list of things I want to do right behind:
Sneaking up on a sleeping wolverine for surprise buttsecks.
Its #59865894837 on my list.;)
 

greenchris

Turbo Monkey
Jun 24, 2005
1,381
0
DA BEARS.
i'd def go to flagstaff. there is a hostel near the train station that looked clean every time i'd pass it- it's also near a fun bar called the joint or something like that- go on a Wednesday and go into the back room...
 
Aug 6, 2006
349
0
Denver, CO
I did a nice roadtrip last fall for a solid 6 weeks. 3 were spent in a hostel, and maybe another week was spent with friends, the rest was camping in some sort.

I had some stretches where I would drive for 2 days without stopping. For those days I would usually sleep in the passenger seat of the car. I think twice I actually set the tent up. The tent wouldn't take too long, I could be falling asleep less than 10 minutes after parking. In the mornings I could have breakfast prepared and camp broken down in less than 20, then eat while rolling. But it got to be a pain to have to deal with all the gear I had packed in my car.

a few things I'll be doing differently on the next trip (march 1st)

Better sleeping bag. Using my 40 degree bag with a stack of blankets took up a lot of room in the car

Smaller stove/grill, that's also a little easier to use, it heats and cools faster too.

A much smaller tool selection: I don't think I had a single mechanical on my bikes the whole time. If I did have something that would've required more than just a trailside fix, there were plenty of shops around to lend a hand.

Roadtrips are a great chance to get rid of old clothes too. Since you'll have a few occasions where you'll spend days away from people, just wear something old and ugly. When it stinks too much to wear, throw it out, or use it to start a fire. I actually wasted a lot of time in laundramats.
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
There is a lot of good stuff up on the Grand Mesa and in Aspen and Vail. All of it is an hour and a half or less from where I'm at. You've got a free place to stay here. PM me.
Thanks.but be careful what ya say. ;)

I have a plan B....to go south for a few weeks & see some old friends. that wouldn't be the same though. :think:
 

profro

Turbo Monkey
Feb 25, 2002
5,617
314
Walden Ridge
F-staff has some nice looking ski trails. i am thinking of a loop now with maybe some hiking in the grand canyon now. :think:
I was just going to suggest that. Flagstaff has a lot of snow right now and 45 mtns south is all the 60 degree bike riding you could want.
 

Leppah

Turbo Monkey
Mar 12, 2008
2,294
3
Utar
If you're coming towards utah, you should go to the St. George area and hit up gooseberry mesa. You can camp in the car there for free. I've done it many times. Depending on when you'd be heading out, it might not be that cold. I'm thinking in a few weeks. Me and some buddies are actually going to be doing that the weekend of March 13th. I've done it a lot out there. I just sleep in the minivan.
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
If you're coming towards utah, you should go to the St. George area and hit up gooseberry mesa. You can camp in the car there for free. I've done it many times. Depending on when you'd be heading out, it might not be that cold. I'm thinking in a few weeks. Me and some buddies are actually going to be doing that the weekend of March 13th. I've done it a lot out there. I just sleep in the minivan.
sweetness. i want to hit up a lot of Utah that I havent seen, ridden or hiked & I have a bug about hiking in the grand canyon.
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
If you're coming towards utah, you should go to the St. George area and hit up gooseberry mesa. You can camp in the car there for free. I've done it many times. Depending on when you'd be heading out, it might not be that cold. I'm thinking in a few weeks. Me and some buddies are actually going to be doing that the weekend of March 13th. I've done it a lot out there. I just sleep in the minivan.
Iwill shoot you a pm if i am in the area around then & maybe I cna tag along. :D

new developments: my dad (newly retired) may meet me out in zion or flagstaff for a few days of hiking & camping. awesome. :thumb:
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
It snows where ever I go, as long as I am above the mason dixon line.

Remember the christmas blizzard of 2006? that was me. then I went home yall didnt get any decent snow for the rest of the winter. :rofl: