TO SAY YESTERDAY WAS AN INTERESTING DAY WOULD BE A BIG UNDERSTATEMENT!
WE LEFT LOVELAND RIGHT ON SCHEDULE. RIGHT INTO ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK. JUST GORGEOUS. IF YOU EVER GET A CHANCE TO GO, DO IT! MY FAVORITE PART IS THE VERY FIRST PART WHICH REALLY IN NOT EVEN PART OF THE OFFICIAL PARK….”BIG THOMAS CANYON.” YOU ARE LITERALLY RIDING RIGHT DOWN IN THE CANYON SURROUNDED BY AWE INSPIRING SCENERY AND RUSHING RIVER!
STILL LOTS OF SNOW LEFT ON THE GROUND AS WE ASCEND TO THE HIGHER ALTITUDES. I THINK THE SUMMIT WAS ALMOST 13,000′. IT GOT A LITTLE CHILLY, BUT THEN AGAIN…..STUBBORN ME REFUSED TO STOP AND PUT A JACKET ON. I WILL ADMIT I DID TURN ON MY HEATED GRIPS!
I HAVE SOME VERY GOOD VIDEO I WILL TRY TO GET EDITED AND ADDED ASAP!
I HAD TO LAUGH, HERB THOUGHT THAT WAS MT EVANS! JUST BECAUSE WE WERE ABOVE THE TREE LINE AND HOW COLD IT WAS. I TOLD HIM THIS WAS A “STARTER” MOUNTAIN COMPARED TO MT EVANS!
WE DEPARTED RMNP AND HEADED TOWARD MT EVANS. THAT IS WHEN THE WEATHER CHANGED! IT WENT FROM SUNNY TO RAIN. PLUS THE TEMP DROPPED FROM ABOUT 70 TO 45! THAT IS WHEN THE HAIL STARTED GOING UP THE MOUNTAIN. THERE WAS NO TURNING AROUND! LOTS OF HAIRPIN TURNS AND HAIL! PERFECT RIDING!
WE FINALLY DESCENDED OFF THAT MOUNTAIN. I CHECKED THE WEATHER AND DUE TO A STORM SITTING ON TOP OF MT EVANS AND WITH THE HIGH BEING ONLY 43 FORECASTED, WE HAD TO BYPASS THAT RIDE.
ON OVER TO LOVELAND PASS TOWARD A BASIN AND BRECKENRIDGE WE WENT. I HAD LEARNED OF LOVELAND PASS FROM MY FRIEND LYNNE A FEW YEARS AGO…..I COULD SEE RAIN RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME AND DECIDED TO JUMP ON THE LOVELAND PASS AND HEAD TOWARD BLUE SKY. IT WAS CHILLY SO WE STOPPED AND LEATHERED UP! GET YOUR MINDS OUT OF THE GUTTER! NOT THAT KIND OF LEATHERED UP! JACKETS AND GLOVES!
HALF WAY UP THE MOUNTAIN IT STARTED RAINING AGAIN. TEMP DROPPED TO 45. THEN THE RAIN TURNED TO HAIL AGAIN. TEMP DROPPED TO LOW 40’S. NEXT THING I KNOW, MY WHOLE WINDSHIELD IS COVERED IN SNOW! WE ARE CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF A SUMMER SNOW STORM. THAT LASTED ABOUT 20 MINS. THEN BACK TO HAIL AND THEN BACK TO RAIN. WHERE THE HELL IS THAT GLOBAL WARM MR. GORE?
ON TO BRECKENRIDGE AND SOME HOT CHOCOLATE TO WARM UP. ONE MORE BIG PASS TO GO BEFORE DROPPING DOWN TOWARD PONCHO SPRINGS. YEP, YOU GOT IT…..ONE MORE HAIL STORM AND ONE MORE SNOW STORM!
YESTERDAY WAS NOT FOR THE LIGHT OF HEART RIDER! WAS GLAD TO GET TO PONCHO SPRINGS, CO. GREAT LODGING. OWNED BY A POLISH WOMAN. SPOTLESS AND NICE. ROCKY MOUNTAIN LODGE. WOULD STAY HERE AGAIN FOR SURE! JUST WENT TO GET MY COFFEE AND SHE CAME OUT TO MAKE IT FOR ME! (SEE, YOU WOMEN COULD LEARN SOMETHING!!) =-)
TWO GERMAN’S FROM FRANKFURT ARE STAYING HERE AS WELL. THEY FLEW OVER AND RENTED BIKES IN DENVER FOR EIGHT DAYS. BOTH ARE IN THERE 70’S! I LOVE IT. IT TAKES ONE ABOUT 5 MINS TO GET HIS LEG OVER THE SEAT, AFTER THAT HE IS GOOD TO GO!
OK, TIME TO SADDLE UP AND RIDE TO DURANGO, CO VIA WOLFCREEK PASS. IT’S OVER 14,000! PRAY FOR NO HAIL OR SNOW TODAY!
UNTIL NEXT TIME:
It's not how long he takes to get his leg over the seat, it's how long he takes to get his leg over…………………………..