Thursday, September 30, 2010

September 27, 2010 - Ellington to Farmington, MO

This morning Andreas left us (a second time).  We will really, really miss him! 

I totally flunked map reading today and headed south rather than north (I was actually following Andreas!).  I discovered my mistake 13 miles out so turned around and rode back to Ellington.  If I had ridden my 26 mile total mistake and the planned ride it would have been more than a 90 mile day so Fran and Donna drove to to where I met up with Dana and rode the rest of the way with her.  It was a nice ride; part of it was on a bike path in St. Joe's State Park on the outskirts of Farminton, MO.


Andreas leaving us in Ellington, MO

Monday, September 27, 2010

WHAT A CHANGE A DAY MAKES

We went down to Branson for our rest day in full-fledged summer. Everyday lows of 70 highs in the mid-90's and humidity--we returned for full-fledged fall. Everyday low of 50 and high of 60ish. We went from flat and gently rolling to STEEP!! We climbed more in a day in Missouri than we did in any day in Colorado.
Plus we were foolish enough to convince Andreas that he did not have to carry his bags on his bike--the Elephant would be kind enough to carry them--so I had to kill myself for two days chasing him up and down the hills.
The Ozarks are steep, hilly, woody with lots of dogs chasing us. They are beautiful but I am glad to be done with them.
Tomorrow we cross the Mississippi and head into Illinois. Another new state for me.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Missouri is NOT Flat!

Over the last two days we have ridden from Marshfield to Ellington, Missouri.  We covered about 130 miles of very hilly terrain.  It started out as rolling farmland, not much different from eastern Kansas.  However, in Missouri people are more likely to have farms, many of the dairy farms, whereas in Kansas they are more likely to have large cattle ranches.  The farther east we have travelled through Missouri the hillier it has gotten.  Today we climbed almost as much as any day in Nevada, Utah or Colorado.  We are now fully in the Ozarks with very steep, rugged climbs, beautiful rivers, and hills filled with oak and pine trees.  The leaves are just starting to change and a ride/drive through here in a few weeks would be spectacular.


Current River in the Ozarks

I never did see a horse & buggy but assume this is Amish country - wish they would add a bicycle to the sign!


Friday, September 24, 2010

Missouri!

Our last full day in Kansas I decided not to ride.  I have been plagued with "saddlesores" most of the trip and I was really needing a day off of the saddle.  I must say that my day off really seemed to help and I enjoyed our next day's 64 mile ride from Chanute Kansas to Everton, Missouri.

We will miss riding in Kansas.  It is really a beautiful state with rolling countryside and wonderful people.  We were, of course, riding in very rural Kansas with small towns.  My memories will be of fields of corn, soghrum, and soy beans, cattle grazing, and friendly people.

Yesterday we rode into Missouri and it is very green with much steeper "rollercoaster" hills.  Andreas decided to join up with us again for a rest day in Branson, MO where Fran and her friend Donna (she has joined us for the rest of trip) are enjoying some shows.  Dana, Andreas and I took a "Ride the Duck" tour of Branson which was quite entertaining and got us out of town to see a bit of the surrounding area.  It is really great to have Andreas back with us!

Dana and Andreas in the Duck Boat


View of Table Rock Lake from Duck Boat


Chanute to Pittsburg-still in Kansas then on to Missouri

Our last full day in Kansas. It has grown more beautiful each day. I was dreading the long passing--but turns out the highlights of our trip may have happened here. Andreas, Glenn & Sondra, El Dorado Lake (pronounced like the city in Texas--not Gold). Eastern Kansas is quite beautiful and gently rolling and the road surfaces are the best we have ridden on--most are as smooth as glass.
The winds blow here--but I understand we were lucky in that they were not as hard as they could have been. Two tornadoes in the state but both missed us!!!
Into Missouri the hills have gradually gotten steeper--way more and way steeper to come. We may be walking some. Our friend Andreas said he has already had to walk one as had Nancy due to a shifting problem. We have a bet going to see who has to walk up the most hills--they get free drinks for a night.
We are now in Branson, MO. What a strange city--but it is nice to have a day off.
So since it is a day off--here are the re-caps since the last time I posted.

Pueblo to Ordway Colorado: 39 miles, 70-84 degrees, 141 feet of climbing.
to Eads: 58 miles, 60-94 degrees, 616 feet.
to Leoti, Kansas: 78 miles, 65-92 degrees, 439 feet.
to Ness City: 80 miles, 55-84 degrees, 144 feet.
to Larned: 64 miles, 60-94 degrees, 567 feet.
to Hutchinson: 35 miles, 66-92 degrees, 68 feet.
to El Dorado Lake: 73 miles, 53-94 degrees, 705 feet.
to Toronto Lake: 57 miles, 70-94 degrees, 938 feet.
to Chanute: 45 miles, 71-92 degrees, 866 feet.
to Pittsburg: 63 miles, 70-87 degrees, 1158 feet.
to Everton(drive to Branson): 64 miles, 70-96 degrees, 2132 feet.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

September 21, 2010 - Toronto Lake to Chanute, Kansas

Today was a fairly short day (about 45 miles), but with about 17 miles of headwind in the beginning.  The wind seems to come primarily from the South, which isn't bad unless you're riding directly into it.  We left Toronto Lake early in the morning and headed for Chanute, Kansas, a town of about 6,000 people (large by our standards at this point in the ride!).  It has your usual fast food restaurants, chain motels, and even a WalMart!  We're camping in a county park that for some reason doesn't charge anything for the first 2 nights of camping.  In the afternoon Dana and I walked to WalMart and got haircuts and picked up a few items.  Lisa rode to Pizza Hut in the late afternoon for the buffet; Dana and I ended up ordering a pizza delivered to us from Pizza Hut.  It was really a nice day.

September 20, 2010 - El Dorado Lake to Toronto Lake, KS

We hated to leave El Dorado Lake as it was our favorite campsite of the trip.  However, we were up at the crack of dawn as Andreas had a long distance to ride today.  It was our last day riding with Andreas as he needs to "make ground" in order to fly home to Switzerland on October 15.  We are really sad to see him go.  We rode from El Dorado Lake to Toronto Lake, a distance of about 57 miles.  It was a beautiful ride through the Trent Hills with Andreas leading the pace line (Dana and I will also miss not being able to draft off of him!).  We all had a late breakfast/early lunch together in the town of Eureka (thank you, Andreas!), then shortly after exchanged hugs and wished each other safe travels.  Andreas is encouraging us to fly to his home in Switzerland next summer and ride the 800 mile bike trail along the Rhein River - we may just do it!

I stopped at a rest stop not far from our destination (Kansas has beautifu, cleanl rest stops, most of them with some historical information).  At this particular one was a sign explaining the significance of the area:

As we get closer to Missouri we are encountering more rolling hills.  We know the hills will be steep once we reach the Ozarks.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

September 19, 2010 - Hutchinson to El Dorado Lake, Kansas - A GREAT DAY!

Today may have been the best day of our trip so far, thanks to our new friends Glenn and Sondra Barrier.  Dana, Andreas and I left Hutchinson first, and Lisa left somewhat later.  Our route was somewhat confusing as we were not following the Adventure Cycling map and were "off route".  We knew we had to go through Newton, Kansas and that we wanted to end up in El Dorado, Kansas, preferrably in one of the state parks on El Dorado Lake.  Dana, Andreas and I probably spend about an hour in Newton riding around and also getting a bite to eat (pie!).  We then made a hasty decision about which route we would take to El Dorado.  Our decision was fine, but we then decided to take a "short-cut" to a particular road.  The "short-cut" ended up taking us to the alternate route (not where we thought we would be) and within a minute of us getting to the unintended route we saw Lisa.  We headed on into El Dorado (total distance of about 73 miles) where Dana called her mother to find out where we needed to go.  Somehow, Fran was confused (we had not given her very good directions!) and was 40 miles south of El Dorado on an entirely different lake!  It was 90 degrees by now and there was no way we could ride another 40 miles, so we told her to turn around and meet us at the Burger King/Walmart in El Dorado.  We decided to wait for Fran in the Burger King and started talking with a local couple.  They were interested in our ride and suggested the campground where we should stay which was right on Lake El Dorado, and had full hook-ups.  They also got on the phone with Fran and gave her good directions for finding the Burger King.

We followed Sondra and Glenn's advice, and found a perfect camping spot on the lake.  Lake El Dorado is a very large lake and is really beautiful.  We showered and started talking about dinner when we looked over on the lake and saw Glenn and Sondra in their boat close to shore where we were camping.  These dear people had gone out of their way to find us and then invited us for a boat ride.  Of course we accepted, and we had a wonderful evening with them.  The weather was perfect as was the company. 

One of the things I have noticed about Kansas is that it has some of the nicest, most helpful, and friendliest people you will meet anywhere.  Glenn and Sondra are a wonderful example of this.

Sunset on Lake El Dorado

September 18, 2010 - Larned to Hutchinson, Kansas

This morning we had a great, easy, flat, beautiful ride from Larned, Kansas to a National Wildlife Refuge north of Hutchinson, Kansas.  We only rode about 35 miles before Fran picked us up to take us down to Hutchinson so we could get a taste of a larger town.  We all needed to have some minor work done on our bikes and Hutchinson has a large bicycle shop (as it turned out the owner is a good friend of the owner of the Bike Gallery in Portland, Oregon where Dana works).  At a point in our ride we saw a fairly large turtle crossing the road.  Andreas stopped and picked her (Andreas referred to the turtle as a "her" but I'm not sure he could really tell what she was!) up and moved her onto the grass so she wouldn't get run over.

We got a nice hotel room at the Hampton Inn and had a great barbecue lunch.  After our bikes were fixed rather than doing all of the things we had planned to do in Hutchinson we decided to just relax and go for a swim in the hotel pool.  We did drive a few miles to Sand Hills State Park (Dana's idea) - all of us agreed that it is not worth going to!
Dana, Andreas & Nancy on top of sand dune at Sand Hills State Park

September 17, 2010 Ness City to Larned, Kansas

Today was not an easy day as we had 19 miles into a head wind, with most of those miles climbing (yes, there are hills in Kansas!).  Also, the traffic going into Larned, Kansas was heavy and the highway had no shoulder.  However, it was an enjoyable day! 

First, we came across a sign telling us we were in the world's largest watershed district.  When I have more time I want to find out more about this.

About 6 miles before reaching Larned we stopped and saw Fort Larned.  This was a worthwhile hour break in the day.  Fort Larned was established in the mid-1800's to protect the Santa Fe Trail.  Much of our ride today followed close to the Santa Fe Trail.
Fort Larned
When we were getting ready to meet Andreas (he is still with us) and go to dinner Fran discovered she had a dead battery in the "elephant" (the Honda Element she tows with her motorhome).  Once that got charged by the manager of the RV park we headed off to a Chinese buffet where we practically wiped them out of food.  After dinner when Fran, Dana and I were sitting in the RV talking a man knocked on the door from the RV adjacent to our to welcome us.  When he found out that Fran was from Yuma (a city of about 150,000 people) he asked her if she knew a particular woman there.  Amazingly, Fran not only knew her but she was the hospice volunteer who came regularly when her husband was ill, and she and Fran still keep in close touch.  It is a small world!

September 16, 2010 - An Easy 80 Mile Ride


Sunrise in Leoti

Today was a great day. First of all we had a really good hot breakfast at our motel that was included in the price of our rooms. I wanted to be the first one riding this morning and met up with Andreas outside our motel about 7:45 AM. We both took pictures of the beautiful sunrise then we headed east from Leoti, Kansas together for a few miles. We had some wind from the north but nothing severe. By the time we got to Scott City (about 24 miles east of Leoti) Dana caught up with us and after a short break we continued on to Dighton where we had originally planned to stay for the night. Dighton is about 58 miles east of Leoti, but we made it there by noon so decided to ride another 30 miles into Ness City.
Soghrum Field in Kansas


I really enjoyed the afternoon part of the ride. The winds was now coming from the South and, if anything, was a bit helpful. There was almost no traffic, and the terrain was more rolling than completely flat and straight. The temperature was in the 80’s, so very comfortable. About 15 miles west of Ness City we came across a historical landmark which explained that George Washington Carver had homesteaded near there when he was a young man.


Fran found an RV park in Ness (south of town about ½ mile) so we spent the rest of the afternoon sitting outside enjoying the great weather. Interestingly, the RV park has no name and no sign on it; Fran asked in town if there was an RV park and somebody made a phone call for her and she was connected to the owner. It appears to be an old mobile home park that is being converted into an RV park; we’re the only people staying here. Andreas had gotten a motel room in town but joined us late in the afternoon then we all went to dinner.

Dana, Nancy, Lisa & Andreas in Ness


Even though our ride was 80 miles, because of the relatively flat terrain, mild winds and comfortable temperatures, it was a very easy, relaxing ride. The roads in Kansas are the best we’ve travelled on (Colorado has the worst roads for cyclists), with good shoulders and generally well maintained. Highway 96 through Lane County, Kansas had the best road surface I’ve ever ridden on.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Kansas

Well it has been interesting. We have had tornadoes for two consecutive days in each case about 100 miles from us. Interesting to look at the super cells in person and on TV--but not close enough to worry about. I have also been riding with Andreas for the last 3 days. Great drafting as he is carrying all his gear which makes for a huge wind break.
The first day into Kansas was a huge wildlife day. About 30 prong horned Antelopes and prarie dogs. Then nothing until yesterday and today. Now we have seen a lot of wild turkey, prarie dogs again and a turtle trying to cross the road.
Visited Fort Larned--wonderful re-built fort from the 1850's. One of the best I have seen.
We headed into Hutchinson to get a little civilization as rural Kansas does not have a lot in it. We had our choice of the Kansas State Fair, Kansas Cosmosphere (largest exhibit of Russian Space items outside of Moscow??), or the Kansas Salt mine. We did not do any of them. Instead we went to the Kansas State Sand Hills Park--my friend Jason had recommended. We walked up one and promptly turned around. Not exactly the white sands of New Mexico--but that is for another day.
Kansas roads are generally wonderful--but unfortunately they have no shoulders and all seem to have a lot of traffic. The trucks go way around you but some of the cars seem to have no idea how to pass other than to do it as close to you as possible.
About 4 more days in Kansas.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

We are now in Kansas!

Today was an interesting day.  I was the last to leave which is not a good thing since I am the slowest rider.  We started the day with a great tailwind (probably more from the North than the West, but it made for easy riding).  About 14 miles into the ride I stopped for a moment and when I got back on the bike the wind had changed course and was now from the NE, meaning it was now a pretty strong cross/head wind - not good!  This lasted for several miles along with the sky threatening to rain.  Almost as suddenly the clouds disappeared and the wind calmed considerably.  The ride became much easier.  About 30 miles into the ride we left Colorado and crossed into Kansas.  Our original plan had been to ride 58 miles into Tribune, KS.  When they got to Tribune though, things really didn't look good as far as accommodations for the evening so Lisa and Dana decided to ride ahead another 22 miles to Lioti.  Fran waited for me and I decided to ride in the motorhome with her that last 22 miles though I was still really feeling good and was really torn whether to ride with her or ride my bike.  Going to Lioti was a good decision.  We ended up in an older but nice motel (Hi Plains Motel) that on Wednesdays (and today is Wednesday!) they include a home cooked dinner in the price.  Tonight was really delicious meatloaf made by the owner.  Also, about the time we arrived at the motel our friend Andreas rode up on his bike; he was planning to go further but we convinced him to stay and we enjoyed his company another evening.

The Plains

We all had a great 6 rest days. Now, it’s back on the bike.


Monday, September 14, 2010, was an easy day. We are now out of the Rockies and are starting to cross the Plains. We were planning to start riding in Pueblo but, because there was no convenient place for Fran to pull over in the motor home, we ended up starting several miles east of Pueblo. We had a favorable light tailwind, with very flat terrain, made excellent time and ended up in Ordway shortly after noon. Our ride only totaled about 40 miles. Ordway is a very small town with a hotel and rv park. I rode into town and had a good lunch at Martin’s (Lisa had dinner there and said it was excellent). Fran, Dana and I had an “ok” dinner at the rv park (actually, I had an “ok” dinner; Dana and Fran really liked theirs). We spent the afternoon relaxing.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010 was not quite as easy. I got started about 7:45 a.m. and made good time the first 20 to 30 miles, but then the wind picked up and, unfortunately, it was a SE wind that was pretty much in our faces the rest of the ride. We came across road construction about 30 miles into the ride and a construction worker very kindly put our bikes in the back of his truck and drove us through the construction area and into the next town where Fran was waiting to feed us. The rest of the ride was really tough, and Lisa and I were both exhausted from fighting the wind. We actually had some minor hills (they really don’t qualify as “hills”; maybe “minor inclines” is a better choice of words), that, with the headwinds added to the difficulty of the ride. I was helped into town by our new friend Andreas about 1.5 miles west of our destination, Eads. I had stopped to rest and Andreas pulled up on his bike next to me (Lisa had met him earlier in the day and had ridden a bit with him then). Andreas and I were both headed to the Friendly Lodge (the only motel/rv park in Eads) so we rode in together. I was able to concentrate on our conversation and forget how tired I was. Andreas was born in Germany, is currently living and working in Switzerland, and a few years ago lived in South Carolina for a couple of years; he is married to a woman from Peru. He started his ride in San Francisco and will complete it in South Carolina. Andreas joined us for dinner in the evening. He is planning on riding further than us tomorrow so we probably will not see him again, but we exchanged blog and email addresses.

Dana managed to see two herds of antelope, prairie dogs and rabbits on our Tuesday ride. I was too busy counting railway cars (you have to find something to keep you amused as you cross the plains!) until I got hit in the lip by a grasshopper, so I didn’t see the wildlife. Lisa also missed seeing the wildlife.

We are expecting east winds again tomorrow, so we will try to get an early start. However, we are going to actually eat breakfast in a restaurant for a change. Dana and I have a motel room tonight (not luxurious by any stretch of the imagination!) and, even though we just finished dinner, we are already talking about what we’ll have for breakfast in the morning. All of this riding makes food the Number One thing on our minds. I’ve probably lost too much weight so am making a conscious effort to eat more, which means I have to plan out my eating a day in advance (I am now stopping every 10 - 15 miles and eating something even if it’s only ½ a Luna Bar. Unfortunately, I’m also getting awfully tired of energy bars, so it really is hard to get enough food in during the ride.

Eastern Colorado and Kansas

What a change. After leaving Pueblo Colorado our days are now determined by wind direction. No more mountains only wind. You can see what seems like 100 miles on the horizon actually more like 10-20 miles but still alot. We plan our days around wind direction. Unfortunately the prevailing wind has had an east direction in it.
Last nite saw a giant supercell that spawned tornadoes and tonite tornadoes in Witchita. Still no rain for us on this trip. Who knows how long our luck will hold out.
Have been riding the last couple of days with Andreas from Germany and enjoying spending the evenings talking with him. He is doing the same as us--planning days based on the wind direction.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Westcliffe to Florence, CO and into Colorado Springs

Yesterday started out as a fairly easy ride.  We had to climb out of Westcliffe, but the climb was an easy one, with the wind at our backs.  The descent started out great, but got harder as the grade increased to 8% and the wind picked up (by now more of a cross wind with strong gusts).  As we got closer to Wetmore, CO where we turned north towards Florence, CO the winds intensified and were now either cross or headwinds.  The traffic also increased (this was the last day of a 3 day holiday weekend).  It actually became difficult to keep the bikes upright and out of traffic the wind was blowing so hard.  Lisa, our strongest and probably most experienced rider, said this was the most dangerous day she ever spent on a bike.  I was lucky that about 4 miles from the end of the ride Fran caught up to me in her motorhome and asked if I was ready to call it a day; I was!  At one point I was in "granny gear" and only going 4 mph into a headwind - with only 4 miles to go I figured I would take advantage of a motor vehicle to get me into Florence.  Besides, Fran was picking us up anyway to drive us to Colorado Springs where we were starting 6 days of rest (more than originally planned, but we are ahead of schedule.

I must say that the first 2/3 of yesterdays ride was really beautiful.  We rode through ranch land to the top of the summit then descended into rock walled canyons.  It was only when the traffic and wind picked up that the ride lost it's charm.

View on descent from what I think is Wet Mountain
We will resume our riding next Monday, September 13.  I am spending my rest days with my daughter and granddaughters in Castle Rock, CO.  Today Dana, Lisa and Fran took the cog railway up to the top of Pike's Peak (I was there in July so did not accompany them).  Tomorrow, Dana heads for Texas to visit her grandson and Lisa heads home to Oregon for a few days.  Fran is staying in Colorado Springs and plans to get massages and see some of  "the Springs".

We have finished climbing high mountains and will have very flat landscape for several days across eastern Colorado and Kansas.  Our biggest challenge will probably be the wind, unless we get lucky and have a tail wind the entire stretch (probably too much to ask for!)

Sunday, September 5, 2010

UPDATE ON DAILY DETAILS

I realized I have not posted the daily details since reaching Blanding Utah--so here they are:

August 28th: Blanding, Utah to Monticello: 23 miles, temps 67-72 degrees, 2011 feet climbing.
29th: to Doloris, Colorado: 63 miles, 59-80 degrees, 2732 feet.
30th: to Rico: 40 miles, 58-68 degrees, 2470 feet.
31st: to Placerville: 31 miles, 55-65 degrees, 1676 feet. Over 10,200 Lizard Head pass
September 1st: to Montrose: 53 miles, 48-85 degrees, 1856 feet.
2nd: Rest Day
3rd: to Gunnison: 60 miles, 55-85 degrees, 4570 feet.
4th: to Salida: 71 miles, 41-85 degrees, 3900 feet. Over 11,332 Monarch Pass
5th: to Westcliffe: 45 miles, 58-86 degrees, 2250 feet.

CROSSING THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE

WOW!!! I have ridden over the Rockies before but have never been above 11,000 feet before on a bike. After spending so much time above 8000 feet the breathing was never a problem--but it was a hard climb. 10 miles of steady 6-7% grade.
Mom caught up with me about 2/3 of the way up--there were lots of places to pull over. After I left her I stopped her again when she passed me since I was less than 15 minutes to the summit I asked her to wait there.
We got the cats out to pose at the summit. They enjoyed it!!! They also have become accustomed to the high altitude. Mom and I rode the tram to the top of the mountain for the spectacular view that seemed to go forever in every direction.
Seems like a milestone on the ride has been passed.
After a very fast descent into Salida I walked over to look at the Arkansas River where we were camped and had a shock when the river was flowing east. Startled me at first.
Today's ride was easy and amazing beautiful. Heading south-east we followed the Arkansas River through some Canyons then left the river bed but had the Sangre De Cristo Mountains on our right shoulder. Peak after Peak over 13K on our way into Westcliff. Fabulous.

Salida to Westcliffe, Colorado

Today was a shorter day (45 miles) but not easy.  Lots of climbing, holiday weekend traffic and rough roads.  However, Dana and I took it easy and loved the ride.  Lisa didn't like it (got tired of the rough roads).  I had another flat tire (my fault - it was a "pinch" flat caused by my not being careful enough when I installed the new tube yesterday after yesterday's flat - probably because I was being bitten by nasty flies & I just wanted to get back on my bike - I've learned my lesson!).  I stopped Lisa as she was riding past me and she helped me with the tire repair (we both checked very carefully to make sure I won't have another "pinch" flat).

The scenery today included lots of ranch land surrounded by mountains.  Everything was very green which surprised me for Colorado this time of year.  Dana, Lisa and I walked into Westcliffe after our ride for ice cream.  Westcliffe is a small but touristy and cute small historical town with lots of restaurants, art galleries and other shops.

Scenery on road from Salida to Westcliffe, Colorado
Beckwith Ranch on Hwy. 69 north of Westcliffe, CO
Cowboy Church on Hwy. 69 north of Westcliffe, CO

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Monarch Pass - the Highest Summit on our Trip

Today was another tough day, but for me, not as tough as yesterday.  We rode 35 miles from Gunnison to the base of Monarch Pass, then climbed for 10 miles up to the 11,312 summit.  About 2 miles from the Summit I had a flat tire.  Having to change it gave me a good rest and I zoomed to the top when I finished.  I had a late start, and with the flat, that made me not get into Salida until about 5 p.m..  The descent from the summit into Salida was a great 25 mile decline.

Cali and Patches, Fran's cats also got to experience the summit!

Cali, Patches and Dana at the summit of Monarch Pass which sits on the Continental Divide
Dana and her mom Fran, took time to ride the tram to the top of Monarch Mountain where the views were spectacular.

Dana on the top of Monarch Mountain

Friday, September 3, 2010

A Tough Day After a Rest Day

Yesterday we took a rest day in Montrose and drove to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.  Steve and I had been there in 2000 but I had forgotten what a special place it is.  Uniquely, the Canyon was formed where it was because of volcanic activity which caused the Gunnison River to flow where it did.  The Canyon is not as deep as the Grand Canyon but the rock formations are fascinating.  The Park would be heaven to a geologist!
Gunnison River flowing into the Black Canyon

Black Canyon of the Gunnison
Dana & Lisa at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

After a day's rest we had a tough 60 miles today from Montrose to Gunnison, CO.  We rode Highway 50 the entire way and it was busy!  (Of course, this is Friday before a holiday weekend).  Also, the shoulders were sometimes non-existent which made the passing semi's and RV's scary.  We started off the day with a wicked headwind and had to climb two fairly steep mountains (to the top of Cello Summit and Blue Mesa Summit) into a headwind.  As we descended to Blue Mesa Lake the wind shifted and we had a tail wind for the most part into Gunnison.

Blue Mesa Lake west of Gunnison, CO
Tomorrow will be another hard day.  We are riding over Monarch Pass which will have us climb to over 11,000 feet.  We expect to ride over 70 miles to just east of Salida, CO.  I, for one, am praying for tail winds!

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Another Easy Day

Today we had another relatively easy day.  We rode from Placerville (about 10 miles north - I think; with all if tge twists in the mountain roads I sometimes confuse what direction we're going! - of Telluride to Montrose, Colorado.  We rode over one pass, but, like Lizard Pass yesterday, the climb was fairly gradual and not at all difficult.  The road between Placerville and Ridgeway was smooth with large shoulders, and the descent was magnificent!  We had a tailwind for much of the ride, and the weather was great.

On the way up the mountain I ran into some other biking tourists.  They were from Santa Barbara and were also heading to Montrose for the night.  We spent some time talking at the summit and took each other's pictures.  It was a nice interlude.



Tomorrow is a rest day for us.  We're planning on driving to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.