Day 17 Abiquiu to Santa Fe. The Final Day.
This was the final leg of the trip and should have been a fairly routine 50 miles. The route continued on Highway 84 and after about 15 miles I got my first puncture of the day. The culprit was a piece of wire from debris picked up from the shoulder. This a problem when riding…
Abiquiu Retreat on the River Campground Update
I realised I hadn’t posted any pictures of the Campground so here goes. Not bad for $10 a tent. Glamping at its finest!
Day 16 Chama to Abiquiu
Got a good night’s sleep at the RV park despite lots of unofficial fireworks and “street lights”. Never thought to check for those before pitching the tent but fortunately I was under a tree so it was ok. We packed up and headed for breakfast at the the Elk Horn Restaurant. Brent had been looking…
Day 15 Pagosa Springs to Chama, New Mexico
After a breakfast burrito at Higher Grounds Coffee bar we set off for Chama, New Mexico. The journey was mostly on Highway 84 We stopped in the “town” of Chromo. There was nothing there apart from a run down building with lots of swallows nests. I decided to push on to the state line and…
Day 14 Rest Day In Pagosa Springs
What a very lazy day! Not much to tell you really. On the way to breakfast we watched a couple of hot air balloons launch. Nice morning for it. We had breakfast at the Colorado Cafe and then had a stroll to Walmart. I’d never been to a Walmart before today. It’s what I imagined,…
Day 13 Park Creek Campground to Pagosa Springs
It was a good peaceful night next to the river. The campground hosts, Dwayne and Dixie (or it might be Ditsy) introduced themselves last night but I forgot to mention it in yesterdays blog. They’ve been travelling for 5 years and were planning to stay for the season to get a $500 bonus! We spoke…
Day 12 Del Norte to Park Creek Campground
The homeless guy had gone by the time we woke up and he had left no trace. We did get a visit from the cops around midnight but they only shone their searchlight from the car. The town hall had let them know we were staying. We had a good breakfast at Boogies Restaurant in…
Day 11 Saguache to Del Norte
We checked out of the Big Valley Motel and started off for Del Norte, about 38 miles away. Del Norte is pronounced Del Nort, they drop the “e”. Again we found ourselves riding into a headwind but at least it was a flat ride today. We stopped for a brief rest at Russell Lakes State…
Day 9 & 10 – Salida to Saguache
Day 9 – Chillin in Salida Day 9 was a recovery day in the town of Salida, a cool place to hang out and chill. Salida has some funky shops and the Arkansas River runs through it so there are lots of activities such as rafting, kayaking, floating and a standing wave. There are also…
Days 7 & 8 Salida to Salida
The original goal for Day 7 was to reach Tomichi Creek Trading Post, 41 miles and a 4100ft climb away. We were all pretty jaded from the previous day. The wind, sun and ride had taken it out of us. Mike wasn’t feeling great so we decided to split the ride over two days and…
Day 6 Hartsel Ranch to Salida
I woke up to the mist rolling over the river. It was a chilly morning but beautiful We packed up and rode into Hartsel for breakfast. Hartsel is a cowboy town as indicated by this notice in the bathroom. We started the journey and passed a field of buffalo, or they could have been bison.…
Day 5 Selkirk Campground to Hartsel
The food survived the night and so did we. It really was a stunning campground. With my extra volume I was able to carry some extra food and so I had a real banana with breakfast and now I don’t feel like I’ll get scurvy! The ride today was very different and the easiest so…
Day 4 Blue River Campground to Selkirk Campground
An early start from the campground and a few miles to Silverthorne and Dillon where we had breakfast. I decided to revise my packing situation so a quick trip to REI solved that problem. Now I have extra volume so I can add some variety to lunches, including crisps (chips)!!! We picked up the bike…
Day 3 Muddy Creek Cabins to Blue River Campground
The day began with a hearty breakfast at Moose Cafe in Kremmling and then a trip to the local supermarket to restock some supplies. Unforgivably they did not have any bananas! After a few miles on Highway 40 we cut off into County Road 39 and rode past Williams Fork Reservoir. A quick stop here…
Second Days Ride – Lynx Pass Campground to Muddy Creek Cabins
The campground was amazing and we had breakfast with a view. We packed up and left for our next destination. Again the weather perfect, clear skies and great views. Today was mostly unpaved road. We had some tricky climbs and a water crossing. I decided to take of my bike shoes and wade through in…
First Days Ride – Steamboat Springs to Lynx Pass Campground.
We left the Rabbit Ears Motel and got some supplies for a couple of days from Safeway and Ski Haus. Bear spray was on the list but they’d sold out so fingers crossed we don’t need any. The weather was perfect, sunny with cloud and the perfect temperature. We got going and after a few…
Day 1 – The Journey to Steamboat Springs
An early start from SBA, 5:15am to Denver. Arrived in Denver and the bikes arrived undamaged. After a 3 1/2 journey in the SteamBoat Express we arrived in Steamboat Springs . It was a tight squeeze loading the bikes. We put the bikes together and checked into the Rabbit Ears Motel. Steamboat Springs is a…
The Kit for the Ride
I’ve pretty much got everything together and the total weight is going to be about 32lbs. Here’s a video of the stuff I’m packing.
Practice Weekend to Figueroa Mountain
My good friend Mike and I decided it was a good idea to head off for the weekend with full packs and do some climbing in preparation for our Colorado Divide trip. We left early on Saturday morning and drove to the town of Los Olivos in the Santa Ynez Valley, our starting point. Loaded…