Today we woke up to a crisp 55 degrees in Buena Vista. And I'm happy to report that the Great Western Sumac Lodge provided a surprisingly quiet and comfortable night's sleep. And since there was no free hot breakfast as there was at our previous hotels, we instead chose to enjoy a package of cinnamon rolls from the neighboring King Soopers and 7-11 coffee on the picnic table.
In an effort to make sure the important items aren't left behind, Steve leads by example:
We headed north on US 24 through the San Isabel National Forest to Leadville, Colorado. US 24 is also known as the "Top of the Rockies Scenic and Historic Byway" for good reason: 14'ers (mountains with peaks over 14,000 feet) line the western view from US 24. It is absolutely beautiful. And Leadville (elevation 10,200 feet) is a very cool old mining town rich with historical museums and antique shops. We decided to take a short break in Leadville and ended up spending more than an hour walking the streets and browsing the antique shops. Too bad we had such limited space on the bikes!
Coincidentally, Leadville was hosting it's annual "Leadville Trail 100 Mile Ultramarathon" this weekend, where participants run 50 miles into the mountains and return on the same 50-mile trail. The race has a 30-hour cutoff, with most runners finishing within 24 hours. According to some nice people I met, the runners are not allowed to sleep or rest (beyond stopping and "grabbing a knee"). Runners who get caught sleeping or resting are disqualified and banned from the next year's event!
Since we didn't have our running shoes and we had bought all the antiques we could stow on the bikes, we headed out north on CO-91. We stopped at a roadside jerky stand in Climax, Colorado. Interestingly, Climax is the home of a large and historic molybdenum mine. Climax is now an uninhabited ghost town, located along the Continental Divide at an elevation of about 11,360 feet. It was the highest human settlement in the United States. Cool!
Riding north on CO 91, we stopped for a photo op at the Clinton Gulch Reservoir. In addition to enjoying the beautiful surroundings, we used a can of peanuts to make some friends:
After lots of laughs and good pics, we saddled up and continued north to Interstate 70. We rode east on I-70 through the Eisenhower-Johnson Tunnel (which was a bit unnerving on a bike) and exited at Idaho Springs, Colorado. A short but beautiful ride on CO-5 south took us to the base of Mount Evans. At 14,130 feet, Mount Evans Road is the highest paved road in North America.
Mount Evans Road is 14 miles in length from the admission station to the Mount Evans Summit parking area, and gains over 7,000 feet in elevation.
A MOMENT FOR A COMMENT: I believe that we here in Johnson County, Kansas, live in a fairly safe and sanitized world where if someone will let you do something (such as feeding animals at the zoo or walking in the infield at the Kansas Speedway) it's safe to assume that you won't get hurt as long as you pay a moderate amount of attention. Sometimes we try to make things seem scary and dangerous, such as the 70 mph Mamba rollercoaster at Worlds of Fun, but we know in our hearts that we'll be safe. Essentially, we live with a "it must be safe if they're letting us do this" attitude. THIS IS NOT SO IN COLORADO. In fact, it seems safety is largely left up to the individual. Such was the case on Mount Evans Road. Just because some very nice park rangers in Smokey Bear hats took our $3 a piece and gave us a glossy map of Mount Evans, our safety was not guaranteed nor even assured. Make no mistake: this was a treacherous ride. I offer my sincerest respect to all of us for safely making the ride to the summit, but especially to my Dad for riding his big heavy Gold Wing to the top! And Steve's new Ultra is no lightweight, either. Good job, all of us.
Here's are a couple pics I stole from the internet to illustrate what I'm talking about:
My point is this: Mount Evans is not your typical tourist attraction. Both rider and machine are challenged on this ride. The altitude affects the rider much like it does the motorcycle: thin air makes both struggle a bit. And then when you add a steep, rough road with a high crown and very few guardrails, the rider's slow-speed control of the motorcycle is put to the ultimate test. And then when you consider the "don't look down" factor as well, one learns that riding Mount Evans is truly an accomplishment.
For example, if a rider gets a little wobbly and miscues a clutch/brake/throttle combination on a slow, tight U-turn in a parking lot, he might drop the bike on the pavement (which is bad enough!) Now put that slow, tight U-turn on a steep mountain road with oncoming traffic and no guardrails and the rider becomes keenly aware of the possible extreme consequences.
Oh yeah...and did I mention that our bikes were fully-loaded with all our luggage? Add top-heaviness to the above.....end rant.
Now back to our story....
We had a few exciting moments along the way, but we all made it to the top. Keep in mind that this was a Saturday afternoon with a lot of vehicle traffic. There were a lot of big "dually" pickups coming down on Mount Evans Road, probably because people dropped their campers and drove the tow vehicle. When we made it to the parking lot at the summit, we celebrated our success. But someone (me) reminded everyone that we still had to get back down the mountain. We decided that we weren't in THAT big of a hurry, so we wandered around the summit and took a lot of pictures.
I'm really glad that I can share this accomplishment with my friends and my Dad.
Mike hates being in pictures. I convinced him to pose for this photo because he earned it.
Notice that our jackets are zipped. It was 39 degrees!
If you look carefully, you can see the road we traveled to get to the summit.
Bruce and Steve read the altitude sickness warning sign and thought, "this sign should have posted at the BOTTOM of the mountain!"
Parking was tight at the summit.
We made it to the top, but we still have to ride back down.
Parking was so scarce that cars were parked along the road leading to the parking lot.
This was a visitor's center until it was destroyed by a storm in 1979. It was decided to leave the walls standng to serve as a windbreak for visitors to the summit.
A family of mountain goats drew a lot of attention!
Eventually, we had to face the inevitable: we must ride back down the mountain. I don't know how long it took us to climb Mount Evans, but the downhill trip took 35 minutes. And we all agreed the downhill trip was easier than the climb. Once we were down the mountain, we headed to the gas station for fuel, drinks and a post-Mount Evans debrief. Now was the time for high-fives!
Some more photos from the summit of Mount Evans:
After fueling the bikes (and ourselves), we officially began the journey home. We got on I-70 east at 5 pm and enjoyed a nice relaxing ride through Denver...NOT. When it comes to the most harrowing moments of the trip, I pick these three:
1. Mount Evans Road:: 14 miles and 7,000 feet of elevation changes, with multiple switchbacks and lots of loose rock and sand
2. US 550, The Million Dollar Highway: 71 miles and 165 turns, many of which are low speed and at 7% grade
3. I-70: 40 miles though the heart of Denver.
Actually, I put I-70 as the most dangerous leg of the trip. Even though it was 5 pm on a Saturday, it was jammed with cell phone-jabbering idiots, safe and ignorant in their cars. At least on Mount Evans and US 550, most everyone we encountered was on the same page, being careful and looking out for others. Maybe we all need "I Survived I-70 Through Denver" t-shirts!
We rode east on I-70 all the way to Hays, Kansas where we had rooms reserved at the Hampton Inn. It was a long day, and we rolled into the hotel parking lot in Hays a little after midnight. And since it was only midnight (Ha!), we headed for the neighboring IHOP for some breakfast.
Today's mileage: 512 miles and about 16 hours on-and-off the bike. It was a full day.
As a bonus, here's a video I found on Youtube of a guy riding a motorcycle up Mount Evans. He's wearing a helmet-mounted video camera. Mute the audio!
And here's one shot from a Gold Wing rider's perspective as he descends Mount Evans. Much better soundtrack...Donovan's "There is a Mountain." It was the inspiration for the Allman Brothers' "Mountain Jam."
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