Sketchy Yet Beautiful: A Road Trip Over Colorado’s Engineer Pass

The state of Colorado is famous for its natural beauty. Those who love the outdoors have plenty of places to choose from whether they are looking to go hiking, rafting, fishing, climbing, or off-roading.

However, many of these off-road trails, while beautiful, are not for the faint of heart. A lot of them require a heavy-duty, four-wheel-drive vehicle and slow, cautious speeds.

One of these popular drives is just outside of Ouray, Colorado, and is known as Engineer Pass.

Colorado's Engineer Pass is Beautiful Yet Sketchy

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Engineer Pass is a 20.5-mile dirt road that stretches through some of the most beautiful country Colorado has to offer. The dirt road runs through mountainous areas, hilly areas, and even some wooded areas.

In addition, Engineer Pass also runs through two old Colorado mining towns that have been abandoned and are not considered to be ghost towns. One of these towns, despite being named Capitol City, never lived up to its name but is certainly pretty to drive through.

The other ghost town that you'll find along Engineer Pass is known as Ute Ulay Town and Millsite which has many of its old buildings still intact, including the old mill.

Another example of beautiful scenery that you'll find on Engineer Pass is a handful of gorgeous waterfalls, including Whitmore Falls.

While much of the drive is relaxing, there are also plenty of stretches with steep drop-offs that could prove to be extremely dangerous if adequate caution isn't taken.

Keep scrolling to take a virtual drive over Colorado's Engineer Pass: