My son and I are driving an NSX from Denver to the Los Angeles area this coming Monday. We are leaving Denver in the afternoon (around 4PM). Can we make it to Grand Junction, CO by sunset and anything important we should know about that stretch of highway ? Thank you.
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From Denver to LA
- Thread starter bboxer
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Well, Google Maps says the drive from Denver to Grand Junction is 3 hours 40 minutes to 4 hours 20 minutes leaving at 4pm on a Friday. We'll round to 4 hours for simplicity. Google also says that sunset in Grand Junction, CO is 8:42pm today. Google maps shows minimal traffic delays currently on the 70 fwy.
Based on that I'd say if you left at 4pm, you should have enough time to reach Grand Junction before sunset assuming no stops or breaks.
I did that drive not two months ago as I bought my NSX there and did the same drive. Grand Junction is about 4 hours out. Denver traffic is like any large city and can lead to some congestion. This time of year, the locals head to the mountains for their summer homes/lodges so expect heavy traffic, it may take you five (5) hours to get to Grand Junction. GC is a widening in the road of about three exits. I gassed up there and kept rolling.
That being said, it was a pretty drive going through Breckenridrige and Vail but do not follow trucks to closely. The debris on the road is amazing and there is a saying in Colorado, it's not if you get a stone bruise, it's when.
The prettiest part of the drive is when you are on the 40 and rolling thru Utah. From the state line to the Nevada border is drop dead gorgeous. I would take that trip again in a minute. Have your camera ready.
Good luck on the drive.
That being said, it was a pretty drive going through Breckenridrige and Vail but do not follow trucks to closely. The debris on the road is amazing and there is a saying in Colorado, it's not if you get a stone bruise, it's when.
The prettiest part of the drive is when you are on the 40 and rolling thru Utah. From the state line to the Nevada border is drop dead gorgeous. I would take that trip again in a minute. Have your camera ready.
Good luck on the drive.
I've done that drive twice in each direction; if I recall the specific section you are talking about, it is vast stretches of nothing in both directions. Very pretty but make sure your car is in really good shape because that wouldn't be a place you'd wanna be stranded and waiting for a flatbed tow truck.
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Also if you're driving in the late afternoon/evening, note that you will be driving into the sun for pretty much the entire time and as it gets lower and lower it will be increasingly difficult to block it out with your sunvisor. Just something to consider.
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Also if you're driving in the late afternoon/evening, note that you will be driving into the sun for pretty much the entire time and as it gets lower and lower it will be increasingly difficult to block it out with your sunvisor. Just something to consider.
Thank you JC and FFDrifter. Useful stuff.
Taking risks can be fun.....sometime. Will let you know by Tuesday night.
If my memory serves me right, this is the road where 12 (or was it 7) of my old NSX buddies all got a speeding ticket on their way to the 1997 NSXPO.
Taking risks can be fun.....sometime. Will let you know by Tuesday night.
If my memory serves me right, this is the road where 12 (or was it 7) of my old NSX buddies all got a speeding ticket on their way to the 1997 NSXPO.
This time of year it's a piece of cake.
You might want to try to leave a little earlier, because it will be THE most scenic part of the whole drive. Glennwood canyon is spectacular. When they put the road through, they adapted the road to canyon, so the west bound lanes are elevated above the eastbound.
I have done that drive many times. 3.5 hours is a "no stop" pace without worrying about speeding tickets. That is from the west side of Denver, you would have to add the time from where-ever you start from. When leaving Grand Junction, take a detour through Colorado National Monument, well worth the drive, and is kind of heading the direction you are going. Start at the entrance in Grand Junction. If you start early enough to catch the rising sun, breath taking.
You might want to try to leave a little earlier, because it will be THE most scenic part of the whole drive. Glennwood canyon is spectacular. When they put the road through, they adapted the road to canyon, so the west bound lanes are elevated above the eastbound.
I have done that drive many times. 3.5 hours is a "no stop" pace without worrying about speeding tickets. That is from the west side of Denver, you would have to add the time from where-ever you start from. When leaving Grand Junction, take a detour through Colorado National Monument, well worth the drive, and is kind of heading the direction you are going. Start at the entrance in Grand Junction. If you start early enough to catch the rising sun, breath taking.
Utah is NO place to speed. Waze will not help you. If you re only 5mph over the limit, you may be OK. But I would set the cruise control and enjoy the scenery. It is an amazing part of the world to see. Drive safe.
Thank you all; quite a bit reassuring for tomorrow. 4pm is probably the earliest we could leave Aurora. So traffic may very well be a problem and I am told there are heavy thunderstorms in the afternoons .
The objective is to be back in LA before midnight on Tuesday. Doable! I am sure we will enjoy the scenery.
The objective is to be back in LA before midnight on Tuesday. Doable! I am sure we will enjoy the scenery.
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Nope. That happened (to the eleven of us) on I-76 near Sterling, northeast of Denver; you will be traveling south-southwest from Denver. Remember the Sterling 11!!! :biggrin:
Have a safe drive, guys!
Ken, you are abslutely right; it is all coming back to me now. I was days from receiving my NSX and could not make it. I also remeber Kent Shepley of Honda going to that event in an NSX that was made up of two half-nsx's and somehow tracked and performed perfectly. He later gave me a ride in it. Wasn't it the first NSXPO?
Yes!
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