This video captures an off-road ride on October 19, 2025, with the Larimer County Four Wheel Drive Club. The route began on Sugarloaf Mountain, continued along Switzerland Trail, passed through Pennsylvania Gulch, and returned to Sugarloaf Mountain. From there, we followed Highway 72 to Gold Hill Road, rejoined Switzerland Trail to Mount Alto Picnic Ground, then returned up Switzerland to Switzerland North, taking the Knob Hill spur and finishing with Sawmill Gulch.
We started with a group of twenty vehicles that split into two groups following different routes. Lee and I drove our 2025 Wrangler in the first group, led by Michelle, and we were the last vehicle in that convoy of ten. The weather was cool and breezy with partly cloudy skies—overall, a great day for wheeling. The second group’s split appeared somewhat impromptu; they turned left to head downhill on Pennsylvania Gulch rather than continuing along Sugarloaf with the rest of the group toward Switzerland Trail and then up Pennsylvania Gulch. We were able to maintain GMRS radio contact with them for at least part of the day.
For Lee and me, this was our first time on these trails, although we had driven through the area many times en route to other trails. Aside from a few rocky sections on Pennsylvania Gulch and Knob Hill, the ride was relaxed. One of the club’s guests, also named Chris, had some difficulty navigating a rocky section on Pennsylvania Gulch and accidentally backed into a tree, damaging his passenger-side rearview mirror, which he later removed for the remainder of the trip. On Knob Hill, Cave took a more challenging line through a steep silty section, struggled with traction, and ultimately decided to turn back. The rest of the group continued up Knob Hill to a rockier area that provided somewhat better footing. Some of the guests chose to bypass the more difficult sections.
Here’s a few pics from the ride…
