Riding the BMW through 4 Western States in one day: Wyoming, Idaho, Utah and Colorado

 We started today a bit earlier to try and beat the mid-90 degree temperatures forecast for today, which meant the temperature dipped down into the high 40's at the beginning of our ride, then quickly got warmer when we rode into sunny areas.

We spent the night in Afton, Wyoming that boasts the largest arch made of elk horns in the US.

We rode US 89 South over the Salt River Pass at 7630' on the Continental Divide between the Gannett Hills and the Salt River Range, enjoying the mountain views.

US 89 jogs a bit into Idaho, and then re-entered Wyoming and turned south on WY 61 through a wide ranching valley as we joined US 30/WY 89. There was almost no traffic and we enjoyed zooming along the 2-lane highway by ourselves.

We turned south on US 189 for a short distance before continuing on WY 412 East, passing ranches, large mining operations, and lots of snow fences to remind us that winter can be fierce in this area.

WY 412 became WY 414 in Mountain View, and then the same road became UT 43 after we crossed the state line, riding by buttes that reminded us of Arizona landscapes, and then distant mountains.

In Manila we turned southeast onto UT 44 which climbs, twists, sweeps and then descends through Flaming Gorge, named by John Wesley Powell in 1869 for the red sandstone cliffs and today home to a  91-mile long reservoir on the Green River. The reservoir is at about 70% of it's full capacity which is quite full by today's dry standards. It's such a fun motorcycle ride that we enjoyed riding today from north to south; last week on our way to Montana we rode in the opposite direction on the more eastern side of the Gorge on US 191.

 

We continued south on US 191, another sweeping, curving road that is perfect for the BMW. We rode past another, smaller reservoir - the Steinaker Reservoir that stores runoff water from Ashley Creek to irrigate the agriculture in the valley.

We stopped for lunch in Vernal, Utah and turned onto US 40 south/east. This is part of the 512 mile Dinosaur Diamond scenic byway route in Utah and northwest Colorado that provides access to many significant dinosaur fossils and museums. The landscape is breathtaking and well worth venturing to this remote part of the West.

We rode into Colorado, the last of four states for today and then turned onto CO 64 East in the town of Dinosaur, still part of the Dinosaur Diamond scenic byway. The town was first known as Baxter Springs, then Artesia (to promote water in the area) and finally in 1966 changed it's name again to Dinosaur.

We are stopping for the day in Rangely, CO just 13 miles from the Utah border.

We rode 300 miles today, ending with temperatures right at 90 degrees - perfect to enjoy ice cream before we checked into the air conditioned motel. Tomorrow is the last day of this trip, winding our way southeast through Colorado on some of our favorite mountain roads in the state.

Riding from northwest Colorado through Utah and into Wyoming

 Today is the second day of our ride to Flathead Lake, Montana and we rode 326 miles from Craig, CO to Pinedale, WY.

We started off west on US 40 through rolling hills covered with sagebrush with almost no other vehicles on the road and nothing to see as far we looked around us.

Mike kept noting that we were riding through 'the big empty' - it's amazing how far you can see to the horizon and how little manmade objects there are.

We rode past signs for Dinosaur National Monument and remembered when we visited here 18 years ago. The Colorado welcome center just over the line into Utah was a great bathroom stop, and then we continued on US 40 past Blue Mountain that displays different levels of sandstone, rock and fossils first deposited 290 million years ago when a shallow sea covered this part of the western United States and has been eroded by wind and water ever since.

This is a prime hang gliding and paragliding spot with some people able to fly 100-150 miles on the thermals. We didn't see anyone today, but it's amazing to imagine. It's a perfect spot for a photo of Mike on the BMW:

Every town we rode through in this area plays up the dinosaur theme, and after we passed the huge pink dinosaur in Vernal, UT we turned north on US 191.

US 191 goes through the Flaming Gorge and the reservoir formed by the dam on the Green River. Signs along the highway point out the wide variety of geological deposits as the road twists and curves through stupendous rock formations.

Most of the time we've been riding at over 7000' elevation and today we dipped down below 6000' before ascending once again to over 8000'. Once again we couldn't see anything manmade except for fences and sometimes electric lines as we rode from Utah into Wyoming.

We're in Pinedale Wyoming and tomorrow continue north into Montana, looking forward to riding through more of the Rocky Mountain peaks.

Colorado - Utah - Wyoming on Day 2 of our trip

We made a last minute decision to ride through Colorado National Monument this morning as we headed out of Grand Junction - and what an incredible experience! 23 mile long Rimrock Drive winds, twists, goes through 3 tunnels and offers breathtaking views of the canyons and the top of the mesa.

We were lucky enough to spot 2 Desert Bighorn sheep calmly watching us from a rock outcropping.

We didn't see any other motorcycles and very few cars, but there were quite a few bicyclists enjoying the newly paved road.

We then headed north on CO 139, riding first past ranches and farms and then steadily climbing into the Bookcliff Mountains, topping off at 8,205' on Douglas Pass. 

The BMW's odometer turned over to 46,000 miles and it was fun to reminisce about those miles over the past 6 years that we've had the bike.

We were on US 64 west for a few miles, then US 40 west crossing into Utah, and finally US 191 north for the rest of today's ride. The landscape kept changing from twisting through stunning rock formations to riding along the grassy, windswept mesas at over 8,000' elevation (the cooler temperatures very much appreciated!).

We crossed the Flaming Gorge Dam on the Green River and caught glimpses of the 91 mile long reservoir that lies in both Wyoming and Utah.

We rode 264 miles today through three states with amazing landscapes on very lightly traveled roads - a dream day on the BMW. Tomorrow we continue northwest into Idaho with more twisty hairpin turns and long sweeping curves to keep us happy.

3 states: Colorado, Utah and Wyoming

 We started off our day in Grand Junction, Colorado, riding west on CO 340 into Fruita along the Colorado National Monument's towering red rocks.

Once in Fruita we headed west on US 50 for just a few miles until turning north on CO 139 toward Rangely. This 134 mile stretch of road from Fruita to Dinosaur is the Dinosaur Diamond scenic byway, home to several dinosaur and fossil museums. We started riding through irrigated green farmland toward the Book Cliffs. We were at about 5500' in the north desert shrub zone, and as we steadily climbed we rode through stands of aspens and firs as we crested Douglas Pass at 8205'.

It was a gorgeous day for a motorcycle ride as we zoomed along straight sections of the 2-lane highway, then wound around long sweepers, and twisted our way up and down the pass. 

15 miles of CO 139 goes through the Canyon Pintado National Historic District, named by Spanish Fathers Dominguez and Escalante as they traveled through this area in 1776. People have lived in this area for over 11,000 years, and there are numerous places to stop and learn more, plus view pictographs. We stopped at the White Birds Interpretive site and hiked up the steep, short trail to view pictographs of birds and corn.

Back on the road we turned onto CO 64 in Rangely to Dinosaur (originally it was named Artesia and changed its name when Dinosaur National Monument came into existence). In Dinosaur we turned west onto US 40 and soon crossed into Utah.

Heading north on US 191 we enjoyed more twisting roads that climbed up and down, through large stands of aspens, and with views of snowy mountains. We also surprised a few deer who bounded across the road in front of us.

Turning west onto UT 44 we rode through some of the most stunning scenery of the day along the Green River and the Flaming Gorge. John Wesley Powell and his intrepid crew started their exploration of the Green and Colorado rivers here in 1869. They named the area Flaming Gorge when they saw the sun setting on the red rocks of the canyon.

There was almost no traffic, so we were able to pull over and stop at the side of the road a few times to take in more of the amazing scenery.

We stopped in Manila, UT at Browning's for lunch with thick and delicious chocolate marshmallow malts along with our sandwiches. 

Heading west on CO 43, which became WY 414, the landscape changed again to a high plateau with distant views of mountains - and also several dark and threatening storm clouds.

Our luck held out and made it to Kemmerer, WY without getting soaked. We had 298 miles of motorcycle fun through three western states as we continue to head toward Montana.