Going eastward from Muddy Pass southeast of Steamboat Springs, it transverses through North Park, first going northeast to Walden, then southeast through Gould along the valley of the Michigan River. It then transverses along the southern end of the Medicine Bow Mountains at Cameron Pass, where it enters Larimer County. It then descends through the pass to the northwest along the valley of Joe Wright Creek to Chambers Lake, traveling through the mountains along the valley of the Cache la Poudre River and passing through the Poudre Canyon. It joins U.S. Highway 287 southbound at Teds Place, a longtime local landmark just east of the mouth of the Poudre Canyon. It is concurrent with U.S. Route 287 southward to Fort Collins, where it splits from 287, going east from downtown Fort Collins along East Mulberry Street and reaching Interstate 25 at exit 269. East of I-25, it enters Weld County and passes through Ault, where it intersects U.S. Highway 85. East of Ault, it enters a sparsely populated area of the high plains in eastern Weld County, where it passes through three small towns, Briggsdale, New Raymer, and Stoneham. Along this stretch it passes alongside several parcels of the Pawnee National Grasslands. Its eastern terminus at Sterling is in central Logan County, along the South Platte River, just across the river from Interstate 76.