Grand Junction, Colorado Was Not What I Expected
- Matt Zefi
- Jul 1
- 5 min read
I'd been sick in the camper for two days in Moab, which is not a lot of fun in 96 square feet. It was a man cold, nothing serious, but the place was an absolute disaster by the end of it.
Feeling human again, I headed to Grand Junction, Colorado, about an hour and a half away, for a weekend in a city I'd never seen. Grand Junction was not what I expected.
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Why Grand Junction
I'd been in Moab for two or three weeks and wanted to see somewhere new. Grand Junction is close, and the climate is similar. I'd been told it's like a combination of Moab and Sedona, and I wanted to find out if that was true.
There was also a practical reason for the timing. Still recovering, I picked this route specifically because it doesn't change elevation much. My ears hate elevation changes, and that's actually why I'd been posted up at a fairly terrible little campsite for a couple of days rather than moving.
The drive: Highway 128
This is the one everybody talks about, and I'd never driven it.
It was supposed to be an hour and a half. It took considerably longer, entirely because I kept slowing down to look at the surroundings. Worth it.
Where I slept the first night
A store parking lot. No camping.
I didn't know the area at all and I don't like pulling into an unfamiliar campsite after dark. For all I know I'm parking on the edge of a cliff. Find a lot, sleep, sort out camping in daylight.
That's a rule worth adopting generally.
The Jeep needed a radiator
Right, so this happened.
I had to get the radiator on my Jeep Wrangler replaced, which I'm told is a somewhat common problem. I'd also just crossed 100,000 miles that week, so I suspect things are simply going to start happening now.
I did the install myself with a POV mount on my head the whole time. It works.
That's the reality of towing a home behind a vehicle. The more miles you put on, and the more dirt roads you take, the more of this you get.
Camping via Harvest Hosts
I wanted to drop the trailer for the day so the Jeep could be more nimble, so I found a farm on Harvest Hosts to camp at.
If you haven't used it, Harvest Hosts is a yearly subscription that gets you access to farms, wineries, and similar properties to stay at.
I wasn't crazy about the actual spot they put me in. I think it was a snow-related placement. But my real goal was dropping the trailer, so it is what it is.
Two small camper lessons from setting up
The leveler app earns its keep. I opened it on my phone, clicked the device, and it told me I was tilted about 3 inches to the left. No hopping in and out of the Jeep to check.
I hadn't put my jacks down in over a month. I simply hadn't been stationary that long, which tells you something about the pace.
I still need a proper replacement jack stand for my tongue jack. I lost the old one and never loved it anyway. What I want is one that grips the tongue jack stand properly, because otherwise it shifts around and that's genuinely concerning under load. Still looking.
Trail Life Brewing
Recommended to me for food and beer. It was too early to drink and I didn't feel like it, so I went purely for the food. The place was packed.
I ordered the hot chicken, a side salad, and fries. On the hot chicken: that's not hot chicken. Colorado, please.
The camper build that made me rethink mine
A few days earlier I'd run into a guy, told him I live in my camper, and he said he does too. Turns out he builds them, at least 20 units.
Seeing the inside changed how I think about my next build. The durability, and especially the insulation, which is absolutely insane compared to a standard camper or a tent.
The specs he's running:
1,300 amp hours of battery
Off-grid air conditioning, and off-grid basically everything
Induction cooktop and hot water with no gas and no propane at all
840W of solar on the roof, and highly efficient panels that pull more than rated
For comparison, I'm running about 300 amp hours, and that powers drones, cameras, a laptop, and Starlink perfectly well for my usage. But 1,300 is apocalypse-ready, and being able to run air conditioning off-grid solves the exact problem that chased me out of Moab at 90 degrees.
My next build has to be something like that.
Serpents Trail, Colorado National Monument
This was the highlight.
I didn't even know Serpents Trail existed a week ago. It's a cliff-edge trail in Colorado National Monument, and you can see the entire city from up there.
The lesson I keep relearning: the more you explore, the more things pop up for you. I found this by wandering, not by planning.
So is Grand Junction like Moab and Sedona combined? Close enough that I understand the comparison, and different enough to be worth its own trip.
FAQ
How far is Grand Junction from Moab?
About an hour and a half, and the Highway 128 route is worth driving slowly.
What is Harvest Hosts?
A yearly subscription that gives you access to farms, wineries, and similar properties to camp at overnight.
Where should you park overnight in an unfamiliar town?
A store parking lot beats an unknown campsite after dark. You can't see the terrain at night, and campsites can put you somewhere you'd never choose in daylight.
What's the best hike near Grand Junction?
Serpents Trail in Colorado National Monument, if you like cliff edges and a view over the whole valley.
Do Jeep Wranglers have radiator problems?
I'm told it's somewhat common. Mine needed replacing right around 100,000 miles.
How many amp hours do you need for off-grid camper living?
I run about 300 and it covers drones, cameras, a laptop, and Starlink. If you want off-grid air conditioning, you're looking at something far closer to 1,300.
Final thoughts
Sick in Moab, a radiator in Grand Junction, disappointing hot chicken, and a cliff-edge trail I didn't know existed a week earlier.
Where should I head next? Let me know in the comments. I'll see you out there on the road.
Related:
Gear in this video
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