Rocky Mountains

Well, looks like I took a wrong turn somewhere because I'm back in Frisco, Colorado that is.
Little town outside of Breckenridge, a major Ski resort.  I have seen all the big ones but Vail.  Telluride, Aspen, Crested Butte, and now Breckenridge.  The past week has been spent crossing mountain passes, hiking, and sleeping in bear infested camps. (more on that later)  The roads in the mountains are truly riding roads.  A lot of motorcycles out here and for a good reason.  Long winding roads with beautiful forest and views of snow capped mountains, streams, lakes, some nice climbs up steep slopes. I ended up shooting a lot more video with the GoPro than taking pictures.  The riding was just so much fun....

From Telluride, I headed up to Crested Butte, where an old college friend August and his Family put me up for the night. They have a beautiful house with a million dollar view and a great family that loves to camp and enjoy all that Colorado and the surrounding environs have to offer. I'm jealous.  If there was an ocean nearby I would consider moving to this place.  After enjoying their hospitality I took off over Kebler Pass headed for some white water rafting in Buena Vista, via Aspen.  The pass is mostly hard packed dirt and not too hard to ride.

Unfortunately, about 15 miles of it was being sprayed with Magnesium Chloride, a water and chemical sealant that keeps down dust.  The way they do it is to drench the dirt road in water with big trucks going up and down the road and then spraying the Mag down and let it dry.  All well and good when dry but wet it was like trying to ride in liquified shit.  Not fun. I was doing about 5 mph just trying not to drop the bike. Not fun.  That and the bike got caked in a mix of mud and the white Mag which is nice and corrosive like road salt.

Luckily when I stopped in Aspen at the Forest Rangers to enquire about camping they let me use their garden hose in the parking lot and rinse the bike. Rangers pointed me to some nice camps by the river outside of Aspen and casually said watch out for bears.... No big deal, I've camped in bear country before, heard them at night and know enough to keep my tent free of food and other odors.  It's the other folks in camp who are dangerous....


I had gone to sleep early at around 9 as I wanted to be up early for the ride over the Continental Divide and Independence Pass.  At around 9:30 I am awoken by Pop, Pop Pop Pop.  Great, some rednecks shooting off guns.  I get out of my tent and walk to the bathroom. As I do my neighbor calls me over and says there were two bears in the camp, a big 450 lb one about 100 feet from my tent just walking by and sniffing for some food.  The idiot starts shooting again and we two walk over to tell this guy to chill out.  He was really freaked. We try to explain that him turning the camp into a shooting gallery is way more dangerous than the bears.  He and his family and friends are hysterical. They start going in their trucks and circling the camp shining lights into the trees, one guy walking around camp with flashlight over handgun, cop style,  shining this way and that, comical if it wasn't for the chance he could end up shooting someone.  After about an hour of this crap they pack up and head out of camp, leaving their tents. No way the bears are coming back after this, so I head back into my tent a little spooked but fall asleep after a while.  For those who are not familiar with bears, they basically are just looking for a handout.  They are way more afraid of us.  People leaving food lying around give the bears a free snack and they become less scared.  If you have no food or scented items in your tent they will walk right by.

Next day up and out by 7am to hit the pass.  I love riding early in the morning. The light is softer, the air calm and cool and less cars on the road...

Independence Pass

The descent..You can see me pointing up at a sheet of snow.  There are a few little dots you can see. Those are people.  Probably practicing their snow climbing... One thing you notice here in Colorado is people are active.  All over they are biking, climbing, kayaking, hiking.

In Buena Vista I did a little white water rafting.  The Arkansas river runs through this valley with nice 40 degrees white water.  I ran a course called "The Numbers" a class IV run. Lots of fun, but cold, cold, cold.  I was nominated to be in the front since my group consisted of a family and their son and I were the strongest of the bunch (not saying much, I know). The front takes all the water in the face as you go pounding through the rapids.  Mom, behind me fell out at one point but held on to the rope so we were able to haul her back in.

So I'm now in Frisco.  I will be flying out to see Dad in Alaska on the 26th so probably no updates until I get back on July 9.  Don't worry I haven't been eaten by a bear....