Barf Sandwich: 14 rides in 10 ten days - southwest Colorado road trip

stayed pretty close to home for most of the summer, and by September it was high time for a change of scenery. So I loaded the bikes onto the car and headed north.

I passed this old water tank that serviced the now-abandoned Chile Line that connected Santa Fe with Colorado.

Soon I was in greener pastures.

I passed this sweet crib in Antonito Colorado. This guy is living LARGE!

I stopped on the way and did a 2-hour out-and-back on a little-used section of the Rainbow Trail that is east of Highway 285 at Poncha Pass. It was steep but the views were great.

That night I sampled the fine brews at Amica's in Salida. A very fine IPA was on tap.

The next morning I boarded a shuttle van that took me to the top of Monarch Pass. Rain was forecast by noon so I got smart for once and took the Green's Creek descent. I have always wanted to check this trail out, but always opted for the longer Marshall Pass - Silver Creek - Rainbow trail option. Green's did not disappoint - delightfully techy and very scenic. And my hunch was right on - rain was falling on the high trails as I was driving out of Salida later that day.

After recovering my car, I headed west towards Gunnison. It was a beautiful drive. Take my word for it because I lost the pics somehow.

The next morning I headed out to the Hartman Rocks riding area just south of Gunnison, which did not disappoint at all. Lots of techy sections separated by flat fields of fragrant sage.

After about 4 hours at Hartman's, I headed further west. I stopped at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and rode my singlespeed to all 12 of the overlooks, about 16 miles total. The views were incredible. This place ranks right up there with the Grand Canyon in terms of visual impact.

I crashed at my sister's house in Montrose, then headed up to Fruita the next day. I was going to ride everything at Loma and Mack, but it started raining just as I climbed up out of the Horsethief loop.

So I headed over to Grand Junction and rode a bunch of trails at the Lunch Loop / Tabeguache area. These trails never disappoint, unless you're retarded like me and start at the top on Little Park road. So I ended up descending first and then climbing back to the car. But I did manage to dodge the rain that day. Plus it was a blast.

My sister's cat was pretty cool. It is rumored that she has two, but I only saw this one while I was there: Introducing Loki.

The next day I stopped in at a local bike shop in search of a ride closer to Montrose. The owner sent me down to Ridgeway to try out "some new stuff". It turned out to be ALL old, loose doubletrack, and less than 2 hours worth of riding. Kinda disappointing but the views of the Cimmarons and Mount Sneffels were awesome.

After a delicious Thai lunch in Ridgeway (who knew?), I felt the need for more riding. So I drove west a ways and rode up Last Dollar Road. More killer views.

On Wednesday I drove up through Silverton towards Durango. My plan was to ride a section of the Colorado trail from Molas Pass, but the weather was not cooperating.

I saw this in Silverton. I think you could access just about any trail head in it.

I dropped into Durango and hit the Junction Creek trail head - the southern terminus of the Colorado Trail. A nice looped ride there got the kinks out of my legs.

I saw this crazy rock formation that reminded me of Sedona ;-)

Driving thru town I spotted this sweet ride. I bet it goes real fast!

The next day I was supposed to catch a Hermosa Tours shuttle up to a ride called Blackhawk Pass. I could tell by the way the weather was shaping up that it would be a bad idea. So instead I drove over to Cortez and rode Phil's World. I always enjoy this trail, and with the recent rains it was quite tacky and fast. Plus they have added a lot of new trails, so it has gone from a quick 2-hour ride to well over three.

Saw a fellow traveler out on the trail...

Good times. And I had successfully dodged the rain for 6 days in a row. I heard later that the folks who did the Blackhawk ride above Durango got hammered by hail and rain. Good call.

The next day I pre-rode the Single Speed World Championships course, which was to be held the next day. And what a challenging course it was - lots of climbing, a big hike-a-bike, 3 miles of exposed technical ridge line, and then lots more climbing. It whooped me good.

This little fellow followed me home from the liquor store. Some fine Colorado sippin' whiskey to share with my friends back home.

On the day of the race, I rode a bunch of trails in Durango's Horse Gulch area. I rode Telegraph Trail and parts of the race course. It was fun but by this time I was getting pretty tired - nine days of riding.

There's a reason they call it the Telegraph Trail.

I think somebody is going to miss this.

I headed over to the finish area. There were a lot of costumed riders and spectators, and free beer courtesy of Oskar Blues.

That evening I rode the bike paths along the Animas River 5 or 6 miles through Durango to the post-ride party at Ska Brewing Company. More good times. Met some friends from home. Made a lot of new friends.

Saw a few freaks.

I left before the playoff basketball game to determine the venue for next years' championship. I heard later that New Zealand beat Italy handily.

Day 10. Ok let's get this over with and get home!
I drove south to Aztec and rode the Alien Run trail, which passes the purported site of a UFO crash landing in the 1950s.