Epic Colorado and Utah Spring Break Road Trip: 4 Days of Desert Camping, Family Adventure, and Rugged Luxury
- Emily Richards
- 18 hours ago
- 4 min read
Epic Colorado and Utah Spring Break Road Trip
We are not your typical “go to the beach for spring break” kind of family. Instead, we’re always chasing something a little more off the beaten path, something wild, scenic, memorable, and hopefully just a little bit rugged.
This year, we wanted to do something epic, but we only had a short window of time. So we reached out to our friends at Rossmönster and got ourselves the most epic rig possible: the Rossmönster Baja Plus (this was gifted to us in exchange for pictures / videos)
This thing is built for adventure. It gets you way out there, but with all the comforts that make traveling with kids actually enjoyable. We were blown away by how well it drove, how capable it was, and how comfortable it was. We had zero problems the entire trip.
Four nights. Two states. Endless views. Great food. A few wins, a few fails, and a whole lot of core memories.
What’s Inside This Post
The Route: 4 nights, 2 states — from Denver to Fruita and Moab, then looping back through Colorado
Day 1: Sunset camping and campfire nachos in Fruita
Day 2: Scenic Colorado River drive, petroglyphs, and one tragic campfire pizza
Day 3: Waterfall hikes, red rock canyons, starry movie nights, and steak redemption dinner
Day 4: Lakeside stops, favorite Colorado pizza, and our final campsite in White River National Forest
The Rig: Our adventure-ready Rossmönster Baja Plus setup
Final Thoughts: Why the Rossmönster Baja Plus blew us away
Day 1: Denver to Fruita
We kicked things off with a drive from Denver to Fruita, which is about 4.5 to 5 hours depending on stops and traffic. On the way, we made a stop in Silverthorne to stock up at Whole Foods for a little culinary adventure, and of course, we had to grab a quick slice of road trip pizza too.
Fruita is one of those lesser-known Colorado destinations that deserves way more attention. It has world-class mountain biking, a super charming small-town feel, and incredible dispersed camping with free sites and unreal views. We spent the night surrounded by desert landscapes, warm temperatures in the 80s, and one of the best sunsets of the trip.
Dinner that night was campfire nachos, and honestly… why don’t we make these more often? They were so good.
Day 2: Fruita to Moab
We woke up in Fruita, squeezed in a quick bike ride from camp, and then headed toward Moab to meet up with friends and explore some wild Utah camping spots.
We took the scenic route along the Colorado River, which was absolutely stunning. We stopped at a beach along the way to stretch our legs and take a swim before heading into town.
That night, we camped about 20 minutes outside of Moab in a spot with an absolutely ridiculous view. There was no evidence of our attempted campfire meal from that night, because I tried to make a cast iron pizza and it was barely edible. Somehow, it still sustained us until breakfast the next day.
Day 3: Ken’s Lake Falls and Onion Creek
The next morning, we headed out for a waterfall hike at Ken’s Lake Falls. With three young kids, we wanted something that was short, easy, and still gave us a big payoff — and this was it.
The kids swam and splashed in the falls while the adults relaxed and dipped our feet in the water. It was the perfect easy day.
After lunch in the rig — classic turkey sandwiches, nothing fancy — we headed out on Onion Creek Trail. This area is known for its dramatic red rock walls, canyon scenery, creek crossings, and those sweeping views of the Fisher Towers and La Sal Mountains. We drove way out into the middle of nowhere and found a campsite that was absolutely breathtaking.
That night’s dinner was the redemption meal: steak over the fire with chimichurri and roasted honey balsamic Brussels sprouts. It definitely made up for the pizza failure from the night before.
We also treated the kids to a movie night under the stars using our little projector. Moana, of course. Once the stars came out, the sky was unreal.
Day 4: Heading Back to Colorado
The next morning, we said goodbye to our friends and started heading back east toward Colorado.
We stopped in Fruita for lunch at Hot Tomato, one of the best pizza places we’ve found in all of Colorado — second only to Pizza Colore on Pearl Street in Boulder, in our opinion.
We had hoped to camp at Rifle Gap, since it had been a long time since we’d been there for rock climbing, but the road leading up to the top of the canyon was closed. So we kept going and found another spot.
We ended up stopping by Harvey Gap, which is a gorgeous lake, and then continued up into the White River National Forest to find a dispersed campsite. It was beautiful, quiet, and empty — though we did spend some time picking up trash around the site, which was a little disappointing.
That night we made campfire chicken pot pie. The presentation was not ideal, but the taste was amazing.
The Final Morning
After four nights of rugged luxury in the Rossmönster, it was time to head back to the Front Range, clean it up, and return it.
It was the perfect trip in the perfect rig.
Why We Loved the Rossmönster Baja Plus
We were truly amazed by how well this thing handled the road and how capable it was once we got off pavement. Even with kids, cooking gear, and everything else that comes with family travel, it made the whole trip feel easy and comfortable.
If you want to learn more about the rig, you can check it out here:https://rossmonster.com/pages/baja-plus
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