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The Great Divide Ride: June 10 - 16, 2017

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Good deal Rich..


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Great_Divide_Mountain_Bike_Route.gif




The Great Divide, aka the Continental Divide, is a hydrological divide in the Rocky Mountains that creates an east/west watershed. On the west side of the divide all water ultimately drains to the Pacific Ocean. East of the divide all water drains to the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean.



Some years ago mountain bikers put together a path running from Canada to Mexico along the divide, 90% of which is composed of dirt roads. They call it the Continental Divide Ride or CDR for short. After the dual sport adventure community discovered the CDR it became a bucket list" ride for many, including me.



Well, it's time to check at least part of the "Continental Divide Ride" box.



I am organizing a five day Great Divide Ride that will cover the New Mexico and Colorado sections of the Continental Divide. The ride will begin in Silver City, New Mexico on Sunday, June 11, 2017 and end in Steamboat Springs, CO on Thursday evening, June 15, 2017.



Schedule



Saturday, June 10: Arrive in Silver City, NM.



Sunday, June 11: Silver City - Grants, NM, 267 miles.



Monday, June 12: Grants, NM - Espanola, NM, 217 miles.



Tuesday, June 13: Espanola, NM - Del Norte, CO, 242 miles



Wednesday, June 14: Del Norte, CO - Salida, CO, 156 miles



Thursday, June 15: Salida,CO - Steamboat Springs, CO - 248 miles



Friday, June 16: End of ride



Logistics



I think there are three ways riders can handle the logistics of this ride:



Supported Ride: Organize a group of friends and trailer together to Silver City, NM. Every day alternate who drives the truck/trailer that day to the end of that day's leg. Let's say you organize a group of four to do the Great Divide Ride. All four of you pile into a truck and pull a trailer with all your motorcycles to Silver City and the start of the ride. Each day a different person in your group drives your truck/trailer to the town located at the end of that day's route. This means you will ride three days and drive one day. A support truck/trailer means your bikes don't have to be loaded down with a weeks worth of clothes, gear, or camping equipment (for those who want to camp). It also means that if there is a bike problem or one of the riders has health/injury issues, then a support vehicle is available and the rest of the group can continue with the ride.



Half-supported Ride: Organize a group of friends and trailer together to Albuquerque, NM (or pick an alternate location). Leave your truck/trailer in Albuquerque and everyone rides to Silver City and the start of the event. Ride three days north along the divide, then peel off and ride two days along a different route back to Albuquerque. Trailer back home. This method means you have to carry all your gear on your bike but everyone in the group gets to ride every day.



Unsupported Ride: Ride your bike to Silver City. Ride north for five days. Ride back home or to wherever you are going after the rally ends.



Sleeping:



I'm planning on staying in a hotel every night. However, don't feel compelled to do the same. I believe there are ample camping opportunities along the divide but don't know any details. If your group is planning on staying in a hotel, make your reservations right now! You can always cancel your reservations if something happens. Note that there are very limited hotel options in Del Norte, CO but Alamoso is 31 miles east and has multiple hotel options.



Here are the hotels I'm planning on staying at each evening.



Silver City: Econo Lodge



Grants, NM: Comfort Inn



Espanola, NM: Days Inn



Del Norte, CO: Windsor Hotel



Salida, CO: Hampton Inn



Steamboat Springs, CO: Quality Inn & Suites



Fuel:



As best as I can tell, the longest reported distance between fuel stops is the 160 miles between San Lorenzo and Quemado, New Mexico. I recommend that you have a 200 mile range just to be safe. If you can't go that far with your stock gas tank either get a larger aftermarket tank or carry spare fuel in fuel bottles or a Rotopax.



Weather:



The weather should be moderate and rain is typically minimal during June. Expect lows in the 40s and highs in the 70s. There will likely be snow on the highest mountain passes and, if so, your team will have to select an alternate route.



Bike:



The CDR is not known as a difficult ride. Any size adventure bike should be able to make this ride with a properly prepared bike and a rider of average skills. Some of the difficult areas have moderate adventure bypasses and other areas have harder dirt bike routes for those who want more of a challenge.



Map and GPS



You can buy waterproof maps of the route from the Adventure Cycling Association. Note that I have not purchased these maps so I can't provide any detail about them.



Download the GPS files here in .gpx format. The blue line is the main route. The green line is the adventure bike bypasses. The red line is the alternate, harder dirt bike bypasses.



I recommend take the time to fully study the routes so that you know them well. Paper map backups are always a good thing, especially when your GPS breaks.



Registration - $20



The cost to attend is $20 and includes a free t-shirt to all riders who register before May 21, 2017. T-shirts will be given out at check-in on Saturday, July 10th at the Econo Lodge hotel in Silver City to registered riders. You must be attend the ride to receive a t-shirt (i.e. t-shirts will not be mailed to registered but non-attending riders).



How to register: Paypal $20 per person, name of each attendee, and t-shirt size for each attendee to rgibbens@austin.rr.com. Upon notification of payment I will send a confirmation email to you letting you know you are registered. If you don't receive an email from me then I did not get your registration.



Or you can send a check along with name & t-shirt size for each attendee to:

•Richard Gibbens

•12609 Red Bud Trail

•Buda, TX 78610



If you provide an email address with your registration I will email registration confirmation upon receipt of payment. If you don't get a confirmation email from me you should contact me to ensure I have received your registration.


Want to know more about the section of CDR we will be riding?

Snuggs0802 (Anthony) posted a most excellent ride report and photos from his 2016 ride of the New Mexico section of the CDR. It's a great read.
There are two comfort inn in grants. One in Santa Fe ave and the other one in west Maloney ave.

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There are two comfort inn in grants. One in Santa Fe ave and the other one in west Maloney ave.

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My bad the second one is in gallup. ?

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Looking for others who will be primarily camping . . . yesterday I spent time 'scouting' the route and to stay close to the daily destinations I've found these options:
Grants, NM (the Narrows, Joe Skeen Campground, and KOA Grants)
Espanola, NM (Albuqui Dam-Corps)
Del Norte, CO (Penitente Canyon)
Salida, CO (Hotel? didn't see much camping available here)
Steamboat Springs, CO (Steamboat Springs SP)

Looking for additional options from the camping folks (dieselriley, misterk, et al)
 
There is a campground on rabbit ears pass at Steamboat. Shouldn't be hard to find blm camping.


Go to freecampsites.net

Here are some camp sites around salida as an example

76fbf0739aac27f5583351d90630cd79.jpg



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At some of the rv parks, you can usually buy a shower for about 5 dollars! Mabie some of the guys in hotels will let us bum a shower every other day??

I prefer to sleep in my hammock in the woods than a hotel bed.


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Looking for others who will be primarily camping . . . yesterday I spent time 'scouting' the route and to stay close to the daily destinations I've found these options:
Grants, NM (the Narrows, Joe Skeen Campground, and KOA Grants)
Espanola, NM (Albuqui Dam-Corps)
Del Norte, CO (Penitente Canyon)
Salida, CO (Hotel? didn't see much camping available here)
Steamboat Springs, CO (Steamboat Springs SP)

Looking for additional options from the camping folks (dieselriley, misterk, et al)
ill sleep on the side of the rd if i have to..lol
 
I've done that too. Thanks for the info guys! I'll look into the free camping website and take a look at BLM camping. I've heard of it, but don't know how that works.


pretty simple, find a dirt road, find some trees, set up your tent or hammock. lol

Seriously, there are tons and tons of BLM camping areas.

I would like to camp within a few miles of each stopping town. Once we set up camp then run in to town, get some beverages to bring back to camp.

I will be eating Mountain House meals each night. So if the group wants to set up camp then run into town to eat, I can watch the camp.

I am still debating on bringing my tent as a back up?? I carry a 12' Kelty Noah Tarp and 2 poles, it can accommodate about 5 or 6 guys to sit under out of the rain.
 
pretty simple, find a dirt road, find some trees, set up your tent or hammock. lol

Seriously, there are tons and tons of BLM camping areas.

I would like to camp within a few miles of each stopping town. Once we set up camp then run in to town, get some beverages to bring back to camp.

I will be eating Mountain House meals each night. So if the group wants to set up camp then run into town to eat, I can watch the camp.

I am still debating on bringing my tent as a back up?? I carry a 12' Kelty Noah Tarp and 2 poles, it can accommodate about 5 or 6 guys to sit under out of the rain.[/QUOTE that's what I am planning for the most part ..
 
Well I thought I had a riding partner but he can't make it so I am still looking for someone to ride with. I have a honda 650xl. I plan on staying in a hotel. I live in Austin so if anyone nearby is interested let me know. jeffechols@gmail.com is best for me.
 
Guys, I have offered Trail Boss some local intel regarding snow pack and we are talking the end of March. As I have read through this thread, a couple of things stick out that I should mention, since I have ridden the CO CDT several times.

Bike: If you intend to 'stick to the trail' as much as possible, this is not a big bike ride. I personally own a 1200GS, 950 Adventure and WR426. The best bike for the CO CDT is my WR. Riding a big bike will force you to do a lot of bypass routes down on pavement, because parts of the CDT are really tough.

Dates: You guys have chosen June to ride the CDT. The good news is that you can ride it in June, but you will be missing all the high mountain passes. Most of the high passes in Colorado aren't punched through until after the 4th of July and a couple, the end of July. So far this year, we are having epic snow fall and the snow pack will be substantial in June. Just in the month of January, some areas have added 4-6 feet of snow and we still have three months of snows left at the high elevations, Feb-April.

But like I said, I will speak with Trail Boss the end of March to help with the route, based on what will likely be open.

This is an epic ride and NM will be nice to ride in June.
 
By the way, all your camping in Colorado will be on National Forest Service Land, not BLM (Bureau of Land Management). Any time I travel with a group, we simply disperse camp, staying away from the campgrounds. Pitching your tent, out in the wilds of the mountains, next to a running stream is hard to beat......and you don't have screaming kids and barking dogs and generators running. New Mexico has more BLM.

If you would like to see what some of the trail is like, watch these videos that I produced of the Colorado Adventure Motorcycle 1000 and the Quien Sabe Rides.

2013 CAM1k

2015 Quien Sabe Ride

2012 CAM1k
 
Something is up with the video links big John. Excited to see them. Wish I could go on that dream ride.

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Sorry for the false alarm. Tapatalk says they are unavailable but the website is good. I'll check them out.

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Is anyone continuing north after the planned ride? The conflicts with the D2D ride but to be frank I been to dawson and Ak. I rode the divide but that was on hardtop, this trip has my iterest but I would like to do it all the way to banff. anyone continuing on or have the gpx for the full route?
 
Big_John, what tires is the green KLR running? Great videos, btw. This is going to be a great ride indeed!

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Big_John, what tires is the green KLR running? Great videos, btw. This is going to be a great ride indeed!

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Kenda K760 Trackmaster Front and Kenda K270 Dual Sport Rear. They are fantastic mountain tires, with a bit of a 'Trials' look, but they leave a bit to be desired in heavy mud and sand. The tires where 'free' so I used them.

I rode that KLR, as it was given to me from Kawasaki Corporate to put the bike through the paces for a year and write up a full review. I was an actual "Factory Rider" for a year. It would not be my first pick for a CDT ride, but a darn good, over-all adventure bike.

Overwhelmingly, over the years, the D606 is the most popular tire for Backcountry Touring.
 
Any advice on what to pack for the trip. Beside your tool kit.or if somebody can make a list with suggestions.
Sorry this will be my first adventure ride but I am not new to off road.
Will be doing this with a KTM 500
 
Any advice on what to pack for the trip. Beside your tool kit.or if somebody can make a list with suggestions.
Sorry this will be my first adventure ride but I am not new to off road.
Will be doing this with a KTM 500


Lay out in your living room or garage everything you possibly can imagine that you will need for the trip.

Cooking Gear
Groceries
Camping Gear
Clothing
Mechanics Tools
Electronics/Camera/Video
First Aid/Survival

Then cut it in half..... 1/2 absolutely essential..... 1/2 want to have.

The essentials.....see if it will fit in your bags....and then you cut again.


The first 7 day backcountry trip I took.....30% of what I took I never used. I also learned that a bike that is 30lbs lighter than being packed to the gills is a flippin blessing.

On the CDT, you will always be purchasing gas every day, which puts you at a convenience store at the least, and in a town with several stores at the most. You can always buy food and you don't have to pack 10 days of food. I usually keep three days of food on my bike at the most.
 
Hey Guys,

I really want to make this ride as well. I plan on camping the whole way and taking an Arizona Utah way home. I am on a 1200GS and from recent experience my off-roading has a lot of room for improvement. I live in Austin.

Collin
 
Hey Guys,

I really want to make this ride as well. I plan on camping the whole way and taking an Arizona Utah way home. I am on a 1200GS and from recent experience my off-roading has a lot of room for improvement. I live in Austin.

Collin

Collin,

1st, don't beat yourself up
2nd, ride ride ride! Come to this RTE and DS loop ride.

http://www.twtex.com/forums/showthread.php?t=112991
 
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