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Photos from Leadville Colorado

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byBob
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Emerald Lake near Leadville, CO.

Emerald Lake near Leadville, CO.

If you told me I could only visit two states in the summer for the rest of my life, without any question those two states would be Colorado and Utah. Between them the variety and beauty of the land is staggering! And I man that literally, if your heart is open to nature, the wonder of their gorgeous landscape can bring tears to your eyes and make your knees weak. I could easily spend the rest of my life exploring them every year and never grow weary of it. But just as important they have such a variety of elevations that I can find great weather from April to November and then return to Arizona (which is close by) for the harsh winter.
Lead-Cody-2
Colorado has a virtually unlimited number of breath-taking mountains and calm, pastoral valleys to explore and it’s riddled with small towns to wander around and resupply at along the way.  But be warned, it’s almost all at high elevations (7000 feet would be a low area) and requires climbing many steep and winding mountain roads. It’s a constant symphony of climbing up and over one pass, then down into a valley only to climb another pass on the other side. You’ll need to be sure you can handle the elevations and your vehicle can endure the hard work on it’s engine of climbing up one side and then its brakes of descending the other.
Mt. Massive (second highest mountain in Colorado) from near my camp.

Mt. Massive (second highest mountain in Colorado) from near my camp.

If you you can handle it, you’ll be rewarded with a continual parade of unending magnificent scenery to stop and stare at! Leadville is a little town I would put at the top of the list of must-see places! But, to really get to know it you can’t just stay on the main roads and pass through town, you’ve got to get off the pavement and onto the dirt roads and go back into nature. You can’t just stand (or sit in your car) on the edges of it and look at it in the distance and expect it to have a deep impact on you.
lead-pond
Like most of the Rocky Mountain towns in Colorado, Leadville was originally a mining town. After gold and silver was discovered miners poured into the state and explored every inch of the mountains hoping to make the next big strike. Because of that there are roads criss-crossing nearly every mountain pass in the state. It’s a 4-wheel-drive enthusiasts paradise, but you don’t need 4×4 for many of the roads, they are passable by even a standard van because of our high ground clearance–especially if you add a locker to your rear differential. But even without it you can still see a huge amount of gorgeous scenery.
lead-creek
Leadville is no different, there are several great mountain roads emanating from it to keep you entertained for as long as you want! Because I have an extended van with a Long Wheel Base I only went down one mountain road while we were there, and even then not very far, I was just looking for some good photos and spent most of my time pulled over taking shots! A true 4×4 is far better and will take you much further back, but it’s nowhere near as comfortable as a van so I gladly give up the ability to go any further. But even with the limitations of my van, it’s still possible to go back a long way back into Colorado and be deep into nature.
While the road was in good shape and easy, nothing wider than a van would have made it through the narrow places.

While the road was in good shape and easy, nothing wider than a van would have made it through the narrow places.

The key thing isn’t that you need the extra traction a 4×4 provides (although sometimes you do) but you almost always need high ground clearance to get down the rough roads. But that’s not all, you need more clearance to the sides and above the vehicle as well. That’s why short, narrow vehicles like SUVs do so well off-road, they can fit between and around the obstacles that you almost  always run into the further back you go.
People ask me all the time if an RV will work for a boondocking rig, and the answer is yes, of course it will. But you have to understand that its sheer physical size and terrible ground clearance means you can only go about half the places I want to go. I don’t want to camp with the crowd and all the other RVs, I want to go further back and be alone and a van lets me. No, it’s not a Jeep and will never take me to the places a Jeep can take me, but it’s capabilities are more than enough for me.
lead-cody-rd-001
An RV could not have made it into our Leadville campsite (described in the previous post) and most of the photos in this post were from places an RV could not go. The only way to get these shots was in a van (or smaller vehicle) or to hike into the location.  In the winter I live in a 6×10 cargo trailer, and while it does pretty well off-road it still limits me too much so it stays in storage for my summer travels.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these photo from Leadville and that I’ve inspired you to get out there and explore our beautiful country. You’ll be glad you did!

I’m making Videos on my good friends James and Kyndal’s YouTube Channel. See them here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_W_E5SFCxwpSOaqMjOOBTg

Thanks for supporting this site by using these links to Amazon. I’ll make a small percentage on your purchase and it won’t cost you anything, even if you buy something different.

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  1. This is a great guide book to Colorado, I wouldn’t go without it, Photographing the Southwest–Colorado and New Mexico: http://amzn.to/1VGEBt0
  2. Also, you’ll want to have the Benchmark Atlas to Colorado, it’s invauable: http://amzn.to/1T6Pcgr
  3. You’ll need a Guide to Colorado Backroads and 4-Wheel Drive Trails. It’ll tell you where the roads are and if you can make them in your van: http://amzn.to/1MDelsb
  4. Finally, a book I’ve found very helpful is John Fielders Best of Colorado: http://amzn.to/1MDfwIe


Emerald Lake near Leadville, CO.

Emerald Lake near Leadville, CO.

lead-road-sign

16 Comments

  1. John Dough
    John Dough on March 23, 2016 at 7:04 pm

    Gorgeous photography Bob, absolutely stunning. The colors are sheer beauty, and I know photos never do true justice compared to being there, but wow!

    • Bob
      Bob on March 25, 2016 at 12:16 am

      Thanks so much John!
      Bob

  2. Bethers
    Bethers on March 23, 2016 at 9:17 pm

    Is there any special protocol
    when driving a narrow dirt road and you meet another driver coming from the other direction? Like who is supposed to back up and get off the road so the other can pass? I bet it could get scary on a mountain road or if pulling a trailer. Probably another good reason for the simplicity of a van.

  3. Lucy
    Lucy on March 23, 2016 at 10:47 pm

    I love the pictures with their vivid colors ! Cody is amazing & is seems like he’s all over the place- just like in the videos, LOL – he appears to be enjoying his adventures to the maximum. Wish next month you 2 have as much fun as the prior year.

    • Bob
      Bob on March 25, 2016 at 12:11 am

      Lucy, he is always on the go! He pops up all over the place, and yes, I’m giving him the best life I possibly can!
      Bob

  4. Michael
    Michael on March 24, 2016 at 6:52 am

    Bob,
    Thanks for yet another excellent post with fantastic pics. I am in the process of finishing up work on my van and intend to hit the road this summer. I know you have talked about this before, but could you tell me where to find your posts on mail forwarding services? Which ones do you recommend? Thanks in advance and if I can find you this summer, I would love to meet you in person.
    Keep up the excellent work.
    Michael

  5. Jeff
    Jeff on March 24, 2016 at 10:34 pm

    Hey Bob,
    Enjoyed the post. Is there anything that would stop someone to raising their van to gain some ground clearance. I know pickups get raised all the time, just wonder if this could be a consideration?

    • Bob
      Bob on March 24, 2016 at 11:56 pm

      Jeff, sure, you can get a lift kit for them just like for pickups.
      Bob

  6. Ming
    Ming on March 25, 2016 at 11:40 am

    Hi Bob,
    lovely pictures! How nice that you are about to leave on new adventures.
    Do you think that my 2WD truck could get to where you went? I may have 1-2 inches less ground clearance conveniently high off the ground for that kind of travel.

    • Bob
      Bob on March 25, 2016 at 11:37 pm

      Ming, no problem, I really didn’t get into any rough stuff at all, it was just too narrow for an RV. Having driven it before, I turned back before it got iffy.
      Bob

  7. Ming
    Ming on March 25, 2016 at 12:46 pm

    I meant I have less ground clearance than you and vans are built nicely high for that kind of travel.

    • Bob
      Bob on March 25, 2016 at 11:36 pm

      Thanks Ming.
      Bob

  8. George
    George on May 21, 2016 at 12:04 am

    I’ve found places near a fairly large city I camped on for a year only riding a bicycle I was a mile from a large mall basically find land that is overgrown with briars and cut a zigzag path to your campsite. I made a nice stove to cook on out of a piece of tin roof so i didn’t cause a forest fire just bend it in a circle and make slots in the bottom for ventilation. Puts out much less smoke to attract attention.I hated squatting on someone’s land but I was homeless.

    • Bob
      Bob on May 22, 2016 at 7:01 pm

      Thanks George, we do what we have to do to get by.
      Bob

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