Bumming Around Colorado

[thumper]

Hey Chuck lets take a day off.

That's what I was thinking the next morning. We were somewhere around ten days into our trip, and I thought it would be great to stay in one place for a couple of days. Chuck said, "sure" but I could tell he was somewhat reluctant to spend an entire day just lounging. We headed towards Ouray and I called around and found us a cheap hostel just north in Ridgeway. I'd never stayed in a hostel before. What the heck? $53 for a double and they only had three rooms? Chuck, being the worldly traveler he is, explained it to me. I called back and found out we would be staying in the back of a mexican restaurant. Oh well, it was cheap and we headed that way. We got there around noon and the place was locked up and didn't open till 5pm. So we decided to ride into Ouray and check things out. We were still carrying all our gear and decided on something easy as in "Last Dollar Rd." I got a hold of a trail guide and this road was listed as a class 2. It was easy but also scenic and fast even on a loaded bike.

We took a break at one of the vistas and Chuck began to joke around about our Star Trail ride. We had been reminiscing about it over the past few days, and the further in memory it laid, the funnier it was. Now he's talking about pushing the envelope again. I agreed the last few days hadn't offered many challenges, but I wasn't gonna get dooped into some wild ride that he came up with.

I thought about it as he was yacking and swung my camera just a little. I told him, " Ya know Chuck if you really wanna push it, why don't you just run that bad *** XR right off that mound behind you, and I'll video the whole thing."

Now here's two good friends on a ride with different ideas on how the next few days should go. We were back in "pass country" and this would be Chuck's last big ride for at least a year. I could sense he was looking for trouble. I on the other hand was looking for a nice day of R&R. After all, I had a couple of months of wide open ride time waiting for me at home.

 

[thumper]

Day off? Nah, we just couldn't sit around all day.

After sleeping in a bit, I made my way out to the courtyard at the restaurant. Alrighty, what was I gonna do with the day off? Well I ain't sitting around here. This is kinda creepy staying in a restaurant. And I ain't going into Ouray and walking around with the tourist. Guess I'll see what Chuck is up to.

I went back to our hole, and Chuck was looking at the trail guide I had picked up. I told him I would rather be out riding and he said, " Well ya know there's Engineer Pass in this jeep guide and it's only rated as a 2 or 3." Hmmm, that would fit good for today. Lets go. Chuck looked at the map and routed his Zumo.



Both of us back on the same page, we charged off to the pass.

After some really fun riding, we came to a couple of forks. Chuck checked his Zumo then pointed the way. We stopped here to survey this little rock garden.

Okay so this really ain't squat, but it seemed a little out of place for a class 2 or 3.

Man it's beautiful around here.

After the next break, I took off before Chuck. I started picking up my pace and only slowed down here for a bit.

As I passed this point, I was thinking...class 2 or3? Wow!

Then came the rocks. Now I was really surprised to see this, but I was going for it anyways.

Up, up, and up. Just staying on the gas no matter what happens.

Well that's all good, but I was steadily losing momentum. The DRZ was chunking rocks all the way till I finally got hung up. Wow, class 2 or 3? Maybe Chuck and I should just leave our bikes here and catch a bus home?

Chuck saw me get hung up and stopped where he was.

Well crap! We looked up hill and saw nothing but more of the same. So we got the bikes turned around and limped off in total humiliation.

So down we went. Couple of goons that turned back on a class 3!

Stopped to soak my head. We started talking about our defeat and Chuck was messing with the Zumo. Course y'all know what he figured out. We were actually on the Poughkeepsie Gluch Trail. Rated as a 4 to 5 in the guide, it should only be approached from the east side. We were on the west.

Now, at least we had our dignity back!

 

[WoodButcher]

That's about where I failed heading up Poughkeepsie Gulch on my DRZ. 'cept is was running with snow melt. The water didn't really make it harder, but I ended up with wet feet.

 

[thumper]

Well it's good to hear that some others had experienced our ride on the Poughkeepsie Gluch Trail. Being a complete noob to Colorado, I had never heard of this trail before. It was a great ride and had we some more time, it would have been great to do a "take two" of our attempt. Yeah a "take two", that's where real memories are made. Your butt's been kicked, but your semi-collected, and you know what your up against. Then just crank on the throttle and go for it! Always so much more fun on a "take two".

 

[thumper]

Heading Home.

So we were off to Silver City and Cinnamon Pass which would eventually put us back on the CDR.

Chuck messing with the route.

And doing it again.

Which lead us on some great roads! But you really gotta watch ol' Chuck. Just when y'all gotta route all put together, he's gotta look for something even more screwed up!

And that put us on roads like this. We rode it for a mile or so, and it just kept looking more and more like a turnback.

"Hey Carlos, are you sure this is the way?"

It was funny watching Chuck get his overloaded XR turned around here.

We found a great place to camp. Calf Creek was at 8500' right on a stream. This was my favorite campsite. Truly amazing just how beautiful it was up there

It got extremely cold that night, way colder than any other on the trip . We were in a high canyon and the breeze kept moving all night.

Remember my brand new super mattress?

Well it dang near killed me that night. It had become so cold that I wrapped up in my survival blanket inside of my +40F bag with my ride jacket on, plus skivvies, and a sock hat. Even then it was warmer outside of my tent. Tough nite with little sleep. I was seriously gonna build a huge bonfire in the middle of the nite, but I waited till sunrise. Between the sun and my fire, I was happy again. Of course Chuck thought all this was just hilarious!

Keep rising and keep burning.

Fed some critters breakfast.

And we were off again to some great riding!

That night I was up for a room. So we ran into this local guy on a 250 Savage. That was funny, but he rode it very well. I was thinking..."gheez imagine what this guy would do on a dirt bike."

Anyways, he pointed us in the direction of this place. Now I normally don't complain much, but these folks got it figured out. They pretend to run a quaint fishing resort but in fact operate an amazingly cheap dive in a nice setting. It took everything I had to accept the fact that "they" expected "me" to pay $19 for a panfried ribeye and not to come barreling downstairs in the middle of the night when the owner and his son were cussing each other out in the lobby. Ya could of heard 'em a mile away.

"On the road again, just gotta get on that road again!"

 

[thumper]

The Conclusion. Dang it, I finally finished.

So we rode the CDR back down. A couple of weeks ago on the way up, we had passed this VW with the driver meandering nearby. Except it was parked on top of the hill and in running condition.

I approached it with concern, but Chuck was quick to point out that it hadn't been rolled, just vandalized. We wondered if it was the guy we saw or someone else.

After a break, we pushed on and came to our exit. A road which I auto routed us on a shortcut to town. This turned out to be a classic ending, and I was harassed for picking it. We had serious doubts that it actually went through, but after a few miles I spotted fresh jeep tracks. Overheated and starving, we were now home free.

The next night, we were treated to dinner by Chuck's in-laws.You can see their wariness in posing with him. Can't blame them for that. They're some great folks, and I enjoyed their hospitality.

My final thoughts on this fantastic journey in a bit.

 

[wanabeguru]

WOW!!!!!! Superb, and I'm not a dirt rider!

 

[mcrider]

Re: The Conclusion. Dang it, I finally finished.

So we rode the CDR back down. A couple of weeks ago on the way up, we had passed this VW with the driver meandering nearby. Except it was parked on top of the hill and in running condition.

I approached it with concern, but Chuck was quick to point out that it hadn't been rolled, just vandalized. We wondered if it was the guy we saw or someone else.

After a break, we pushed on and came to our exit. A road which I auto routed us on a shortcut to town. This turned out to be a classic ending, and I was harassed for picking it. We had serious doubts that it actually went through, but after a few miles I spotted fresh jeep tracks. Overheated and starving, we were now home free.

We came by this VW on 9/5/09, Day 3, of our CDR trip. It was in allot worse shape, the wheels were missing & the roof was on the head rests. My picture is missing in the camera, wish I could show the difference. We came up the rocky hill behind it in the rain & could not see a thing; we both had tinted shield/goggle.

Hoop dropped me of last night at 10:30. I will work on a ride report; we took eight days to do the CDR to Colorado & back by an eastern route.

Edit: We found the concrete section. That rock did look just like concrete with cracks & holes.

 

[thumper]

Looking forward to your report Chris. Ha, Ha about the slab section. I found it just long enough to become somewhat annoying.

 

[Hoop]

nice report. I took the Star Trail from the south end once. Fought it for a couple of hundred yards and then bailed out. That's just torture on a big bike.

 

[thumper]

That's just torture on a big bike.

Yeah, when we ran into the four riders coming towards us on 250s, Chuck and I knew we were screwed. I noticed the two older riders were on WRs that were very well set up for this trail, yet even they [ being the more experienced and leading] were covered in dirt from several different get offs. Still, we needed to push on since this was our only route back to camp.

 

[EnduroRdr]

Enjoyed the RR Tim, Especially all the great pictures.
Final thoughts?

 

[thumper]

Oh yeah. Almost forgot the most important part.

Final Thoughts. I think Chuck will agree for the most part.

The CDR [NM to Steamboat]...IMHO and being a noob, only about half of it is worth the time. As in NM and San Juan Mnts. , Calf Creek area, and the Pass Country. I realize this is a bicycle route, but for primo Dsing, I would give up the flatlands by Salida and anything north of Taylor Lake Area. Again only IMHO, the places "I" didn't care for were all in "big road country" It got worse just southwest of Steamboat when we made our own route back down. No matter what map we used...Roads of Co. included... way too many locked up roads, even in the NFs.

We put in 2000 miles in 14 days. When I go again, I'll stay in NM/San Juan Mts. for at least 3 days. The same goes for Ouray/Silver City area and the Taylor Lake Area. I'll probably still put in 2k, but it'll be running mountain roads out of these three base camps.

I'll definitely camp the whole time. Those really were the best times on this trip. I'll also have a better pack and be more prepared next time.

Pass Riding....I'll probably like it a little more when I actually re-jet my bike. Still I don't know. It just seemed like a waste of time to beat your way up, ride the shelf sections, deal with traffic, all to find another so you could get back on your side of the CD. Sure at least a couple are okay, but I'd much rather be blasting through the mountain roads doing water crossings, trails, and finding trouble.

I'm sure I know less about Colorado than any other rider who's been, and I'm sure we passed right by some great areas, but I think I'll use this approach on my next trip.

 

[Multisurface Rider]

Tim, great ride report.

I'm with you on the passes with the all the loose rocks, I wonder why am I doing this? There are great places to ride up there without do those tough passes. Can I do them, yes. Do I want or need to do them, no.

I am ready to go again and I just got back.

 

[thumper]

Can I do them, yes. Do I want or need to do them, no.

Ya know that's exactly what I told Chuck, but I didn't want to short change him.

Actually though, I did turn him down on Tin Cup Pass from the wrong side, seeings how we just got over Hancock from the wrong side. The wrong side isn't really that big of a deal unless your bike is jetted for sea level.We had heard at West Fest that Tin Cup was particularly nasty going up from that side, but Chuck sometimes has memory problems.

I wondered why we did everything from the wrong side? Plus "Star Trail" aka "pushing the envelope" was way wrong, and Chuck did all the navigating there too. Always messin' with that Zumo after we had already planned our route. I really began to think about this after Poughkeepsie Gluch. Again, Chuck was the shot caller and we were pushing it for sure. It seemed like all this might have been intentional.
Last Hurrah? Psycho? I really don't know.

Still it was all fun, but as in past rides, I had issues with trusting Chuck when he was holding all the cards.





























Can you blame me?

See ya on the next one ol' buddy!

 

[Motor 1]

Great ride report. And by the way....I am familiar with Chuck & his Zumo!

 

[Tourmeister]

Great report. However, is it just me or are many of the pics exposed oddly? I was seeing lots with very pinkish tints or the entire pic was so dark I could see very little of what was in the pic.

Regardless, it sure makes me want to get back up there for some riding!!

 

[thumper]

And by the way....I am familiar with Chuck & his Zumo!

HaHa, I enjoyed that report! Someday, we should all get together and do an ultimate ride between Tenn. and Tex.

Great report. However, is it just me or are many of the pics exposed oddly? I was seeing lots with very pinkish tints or the entire pic was so dark I could see very little of what was in the pic.

Chuck and his new camera.

 

[Motor 1]

Hey Thumper, just now saw this ! Any friend of Chuck's is more than welcome to come hang out here in Tallassee, Tn I could meet u guys halfway somewhere. Must be some neat back/dirt roads between here & Tx.

 

[miltonotto]

You guys crack me up.
Great report.