As for LaVeta, if you aren't familiar with mountain passes, winds and such, leave it for another time.
Ditto everything else and double-agree on La Veta Pass -- there's a lot of "practice" wrecks up there for us SAR folk.
The "problem" with La Veta Pass is the same as a few others in Colorado. Winter winds in the mountains tend to be out of the Northwest.
As you can see from the map on the right here, there are a few passes that are oriented Southwest to Northeast:
http://coloradopilots.org/mtnfly_passes.asp?menuID=2
Also note that the La Veta Pass AWOS has been messed up for quite some time now. Last date with a report... August of last summer:
http://weather.noaa.gov/weather/current/KVTP.html
If you can imagine that there's very tall mountains on either side of most of these, and the wind blowing across that peak that might be jutting up into the Jet Stream, the lee side (down-wind) of that first mountain the wind hits is going to have lots of mechanical turbulence. Winds aloft from about 20 knots on up at the mountain peak altitude (not ground level down in the relatively "protected" valleys, where the airports are) can create downdrafts in excess of the climb performance of most normally aspirated single-engine aircraft.
Without some training on techniques to avoid the bad weather (which may look perfectly flyable from ground level down in the valley), good planning for aircraft performance and route alternates, and good weather information, etc. -- Some of these Passes contain "gotcha" scenarios that aren't fun.
Raton Pass -- otherwise known as the "go around the end of the mountains route" is a much more benign route that's just as fun for a long X-C.
But let's not kid ourselves... any flight over mountainous terrain, even what we would consider "low" mountains around here (9500' MSL) requires some thought and planning. Look over your route on a sectional carefully, and plan to stay high as you head over the higher terrain.
Here's an NTSB report that reads like almost every story I've ever heard on a search for an aircraft around here. It's West of the Raton area near Cimmaron.
http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief2.asp?ev_id=20001206X02723&ntsbno=FTW95LA066&akey=1
Items of note:
December. It was likely pretty cool/cold out. Imagine the performance of
this aircraft in the summertime. He wouldn't have even made it as far as he did.
Topped off the tanks, and probably a max-gross trip for a 182 with three people and full fuel. Performance again. Do you need full fuel? Have you done the performance numbers at max-gross?
Pilot lost site of a visual landmark (a road) and continued up the wrong valley. This is in the accident reports in the mountains over and over and over again. If you're lost, go back to somewhere you're not lost. Pressing forward into terrain that can "out-climb" your aircraft is foolish.
http://www.planecrashmap.com/plane/nm/N182X
Aircraft impacted around 9000' MSL. A 182 can easily climb higher than that, but you have to plan it and start earlier. 2000' above rough terrain is always recommended.
This isn't to scare anyone, but to educate... flying over mountainous terrain requires you be a little more "on your game", but routes like this one are well-within the limitations of even new pilots, as long as they plan and are prepared. Someone who just jumps in an aircraft without looking at a performance chart in 10 years, is going to get hurt in the rocks. Or if they get lucky, the spend a very cold night out at 9000' MSL like this pilot and his passengers did. They got lucky.
C'mon up for a visit, and fly safe!
