Heading home from weekend Colorado trip

 After rain and dark, cloudy skies the past two days, today is clear and sunny with bright blue skies as we ride about 3 hours home from Salida.

Much of our ride is through the San Luis Valley, the largest alpine valley in the world at about 150 miles long and 75 miles wide. Usually we can see mountains all around us, but today the skies are hazy due to many wildfires in the West.

This is a big agricultural area known for hay, potatoes, carrots, lettuce and also ranching. Without irrigation, the area is arid with not much growing naturally.

Still in the San Luis Valley, we turned west onto US 160 from US 285 in Del Norte. We wound up Wolf Creek Pass, at 10,856' along the Continental Divide. Road construction crews have been paving the Pass all summer, and today we enjoyed riding on new asphalt without the usual bumps and cracks.

We've ridden this Pass numerous times yet have never stopped at the scenic overlook on the west side of the Pass that overlooks the San Juan River flowing into Pagosa Springs - today we stopped, looking down about 3000' to the valley below.

Before we left Salida we talked with a group of four motorcycle riders from Minnesota on their first time riding in the Rocky Mountains. We live in the Rockies and every time we jump on the BMW, we're thankful to ride in this gorgeous part of the country.  A weekend trip reminds us why we choose to live here.

Riding home: familiar and new Colorado roads

 We started off the third and last day of our motorcycle trip Monday morning in Leadville, looking forward to more high mountain passes and a road we haven't yet ridden. We started off riding south on US 24, looking out over the snowy Rockies.

Soon the highway started curving and winding along rocky cliffs cut by the Arkansas River that starts near Leadville and ends 1469 miles later at the Mississippi in Arkansas.

We saw a few fly fishermen but no rafts on the river. Soon after we started riding along the Collegiate Peaks, a 57 mile stretch of the largest concentration of mountains over 14,000' in the United States.

We've ridden this way many times, but I'm always awed by the sight of these towering mountains, and even more impressed with hikers who climb them.

South of Buena Vista US 24 meets up with US 285, continuing south past more of the Collegiate Peaks.

In Poncha Springs we turned west onto US 50 and started winding our way up Monarch Pass our highest point for today at 11,312'. There's a ski area just east of the summit, and the gondola is open in the summer to take visitors for a sky-high view of the area.

After riding out into a broad valley, we turned south onto CO 114 - a road we had never been on. To our delight, the first 23 miles were freshly paved, and with no other traffic in sight we zoomed along the road.

We knew more fun was in store when we started seeing road signs warning about twisting curves.

The ride through Cochetopa Canyon is beautiful, with sharp turns through the rocky canyon.

We started seeing signs warning about road construction, and soon came upon the end of the newly paved section of highway. We crossed another pass - this time North Pass at 10,010' that travels along the Continental Divide. This was one of the original routes through the Continental Divide as it's a relatively gentle climb and descent - for a motorcycle, but not for someone with a horse and wagon!

CO 114 ends at Saguache where we turned once again onto US 285 south. We rode this route through the San Luis Valley in reverse on the first day of this trip, and started thinking about where we might stop for lunch as we passed bright green irrigated fields bordered by dusty brown desert.

We stopped in Del Norte on US 160W for lunch. It's often challenging to find a restaurant open on a Monday, and we were lucky to find the Three Barrel Brewing Company open 7 days per week. Leaving Del Norte we had about 90 miles left on our trip, riding over Wolf Creek Pass at 10,856'. This is a busy highway with trucks and RVs, and because the road has several tight turns and steep elevation changes, there are runaway truck ramps - just in case.

Riding down the Pass into Pagosa Springs we were just a few miles from home. We rode through incredibly beautiful areas over these past three days, yet the final stretch toward home is one of the most gorgeous areas in the entire state.

Colorado mountains and rivers

 We started the first of a 3-day motorcycle trip today, riding east from Pagosa Springs on US 160E, riding over Wolf Creek Pass in the San Juan mountains over the Continental Divide. We rode this route in reverse last Sunday, so check out that post for photos of the twists and turns up and over the mountains.

Once in Del Norte we turned north on CO112, riding through the San Luis Valley, one of the largest high altitude (about 8,000') valleys in the world and home to ranches and farming.

It's the end of July, but riding at this altitude the temperature is comfortable in the mid to high 70's. When we reached Saguache (derived from a Ute word that means sand dunes, referencing the nearby Great Sand Dunes National Park) we turned onto US 285, continuing to head north through the San Luis Valley.

We rode over Poncha Pass, at just 9,010' one of the lowest passes in Colorado. Winding down the north side of Poncha Pass we came into Poncha Springs, and stopped at the Flamingo food truck for lunch just as it started to rain. This is a do not miss stop - delicious food and friendly people. Luckily there is an indoor place to eat, and by the time we finished lunch the rain stopped.

We turned east on US 50 to ride through Bighorn Sheep Canyon along the Arkansas River. This was our first time riding the BMW through this area, and the twisting road along steep rocky cliffs and clear water was a ton of fun - even though we didn't see any sheep.

Just past Parkdale we left the Arkansas River and turned north on CO 9 and climbed out of the river valley into South Park, one of three high altitude basins in Colorado. 

We rode 280 miles today, twisting over mountain passes and through river valleys, ending up on a straight road at over 9,000' elevation with views of snowy Rocky Mountain peaks in the distance. Our stop tonight is in Fairplay, founded in 1859 as part of the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. You can still pan for gold in the Middle Fork of the South Platte River that runs through town. We've ridden through Fairplay several times, and this will be our first time staying here.

Tomorrow our route will take us over more mountain passes through the heart of the Rockies. We're looking forward to it!

Sunday morning ride

 We decided to ride in a big circle today, heading south from Chromo, Colorado to Chama, NM and then turning east on CO 17. This is a twisty 2-lane paved road that winds through the Sangre de Cristo mountains that are the southernmost part of the Rockies straddling the Colorado and New Mexico border.

We rode over Cumbres Pass at 10,0220' and as we descended toward the east we left behind green meadows and started seeing towering rocky cliffs as we headed into the San Luis Valley. 

At over 7,600' elevation, this 122 mile long, 74 mile wide high desert valley is home to agriculture and ranching. This area was originally home of the Utes, later explored by the Spanish and part of Mexico, and ceded to the United States in 1848 after the Mexican-American war.

CO 17 meets up with CO 285 in Antonito, and we then headed west on US 160 in Monte Vista. 

Up until this point we saw very little traffic, enjoying the road to ourselves. US 160 is a much more heavily traveled road and Mike zoomed past slower moving RVs and trucks at every opportunity.

We left home about 8:30am and by the time we reached South Fork we were hungry - and stumbled upon a superb food truck/bar/outdoor spot:  Rachel's. 

They had a small yet unique and delicious menu - we shared KoKo's Huevos and a Banana Split parfait while sitting at a picnic table in a shaded area. We were too early for the band that starts at noon on Sundays and are already planning another trip here.

We continued on US 160W over Wolf Creek Pass in the San Juan Mountains, crossing the Continental Divide at 10,857' before we descended down into Pagosa Springs.

We live about 25 miles south of Pagosa Springs, so we stopped at the Farmer's Market for fresh Palisade peaches, cherries and sweet corn before turning south on US 84 and home.

We rode 220 miles in about 4 hours (including the two stops) on a beautiful July summer morning. Fabulous motorcycle riding is one of the big reasons we live here, and today is a fantastic example of a perfect motorcycle day.

Last day of our 2-week Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana trip

 We enjoyed sunny skies our two days in Lakewood, CO visiting our son and his girlfriend, and today the rainy weather finally caught up with us. It poured all night and continued raining hard as we loaded up the BMW (thank goodness our son has a garage). We worked our way through busy Denver traffic and headed south on US 287. Due to the heavy rain and temperatures in the low 40's, I wasn't able to take any pictures until we crossed Kenosha Pass at 10,000' and dropped down into South Park, the third and final high altitude valley - over 9,000' - in Colorado that we've ridden through on this trip.

We crossed Trout Creek Pass that marks the southern end of South Park, and once again it started raining. As we wound down toward Buena Vista, the rain stopped and we were able to enjoy views of the Collegiate Peaks, the highest concentration of mountain peaks >14,000' in the country.

The rain picked up again but we had a rain-free window when we stopped for a delicious lunch at the FlaminGo food truck. They're open until 1pm - don't miss it!

More rain, then another dry spell as we rode through the San Luis Valley, a major agricultural center. 

As we started up Wolf Creek Pass, 10,857' on the Continental Divide in the San Juan Mountains, we knew we were close to home. 

Pagosa Springs is on the western side of Wolf Creek Pass and even better the sun was shining!

We rode 303 miles today for a total of 2090 miles on this two-week trip, visiting our two sons, riding through two national parks, and seeing more of the West. Now that we live in Colorado, we plan to explore more of the area this summer - and hopefully not when it's raining!

Twisting, sweeping turns through the Rocky Mountains

 We started this morning wandering around Glenwood Springs, Colorado, trying to find CO 82 East. We'd see a sign, get turned around, take a wrong turn on the extremely confusing roundabout, and finally stopped and asked directions. It was worth it, because CO 82 East heads directly toward 12,965' Mt. Sopris in the Elk Mountain Range of the Rockies just outside Glenwood Springs. 

The day just kept getting better as we turned south on CO 133, riding along the fast-moving White River on the West Elk Scenic Byway

The road climbs up 8% grades to McClure Pass, winding to the 8755' summit then twisting down the other side.

Like many of the mountain passes in Colorado, the Ute Native Americans were the first to traverse this area, followed by the Spanish in the late 1700's. It's difficult to comprehend how miners and ranchers drove their wagons up the steep grades when this was a rutted dirt road. 

CO 133 winds through Paonia, named for numerous peonies in the area (evidently the early settlers didn't know how to spell), and now home to farms, orchards, and wineries.

Staying on the Elk Loop Scenic Byway, we picked up CO 92 East, continuing through green ranches until the road started climbing, twisting, and turning in the Curecanti National Recreation Area. 

Steep cliffs drop down to the Gunnison River and reservoirs formed by three different dams and hairpin turns lined with wildflowers and aspens snake through the mountains.

We turned east on US 50, passing by the Blue Mesa Reservoir, then turned south on Colorado 149.

CO 149 from Blue Mesa Reservoir to South Fork through the San Juan Mountains was named the Silver Thread Scenic Byway in 1990.

We stopped in Lake City, incorporated as a silver mining town in 1875, for lunch at the Lake City Cafe, a superb restaurant in a gorgeous setting. Although home to only about 450 residents, it's a busy tourist center with over 400 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After lunch we continued south on CO 149, twisting our way up to Slumgullion Pass at 11,530'.

With grades up to 9%, this is one of the steepest paved maintained roads in Colorado. This area is part of the Slumgullion Earthflow National Natural Landmark where about 700 years ago a large chunk of decomposing volcanic rock slid down the mountain to form a natural earth dam that blocked the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River and formed Lake San Cristobal (the lake that gives Lake City its name). 

CO 149 took us through Creede where two major rivers start:  the San Juan and the Rio Grande.

CO 149 ends at US 160, and is also the end of the Silver Thread Scenic Byway. We headed west on US 160 to Wolf Creek Pass and the Continental Divide. Traffic came to a halt right at the top of the Pass due to a truck pulling a camper that caught fire. We got off the motorcycle, walked around, and read the signs about the Pass at 10,857' for about 25 minutes before we were able to continue down the mountain.

We rode 307 miles today, almost exclusively on scenic byways through some of the most beautiful areas of Colorado. We're stopping for the night in Pagosa Springs at 7,126' above sea level in the San Juan Basin. 

At Hermit's Rest in the Curecanti National Recreation Area