Epic Ride to the Top of the Rockies

[elvis]

We took a ride to the Rockies and covered 8000+ km in August 2014.

Parks

1. Northern Cascades NP, WA
2. Lake Chelan SP, WA
3. Palouse Falls SP, WA
4. Craters of the Moon NP and Preserve, ID
5. Fossil Butte NM, WY
6. Flaming Gorge Natl Rec Area, UT
7. Dinosaur NM, Fossil Bone Quarry, UT
8. Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP, CO
9. Great Sand Dunes NP, CO
10. Garden of the Gods, CO
11. Rocky Mountain NP, CO

Roads, Towns, Notable Places, Etc.

1. Pullman, WA
2. Palouse, WA
3. Lewiston, ID
4. Montrose, CO
5. West Elk Loop Scenic Byway, CO
6. Alpine Loop Scenic Byway, CO
7. Gunnison, CO
8. Crested Butte, CO
9. Salida, CO
10. US Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs, CO
11. The Broadmoor Hotel, Colorado Springs, CO
12. Old Colorado City, CO
13. Gold Camp Road, CO
14. Cripple Creek, CO
15. Independence Pass, CO, 12,095 ft (3,687 m) on the Continental Divide
16. Aspen, CO
17. Glenwood Springs, CO
18. Granby, CO
19. Peak to Peak Scenic Byway, CO
20. Coors Beer Factory Tour, Golden, CO
21. Budweiser Beer Factory Tour, Ft. Collins, CO
22. Mount Evans, CO, 14,271 ft (4,350 m), highest paved road in North America.

[Silent Sam]

..your trip, Reminds me of that Hank Snow song..."I'v Been Everywhere"

[Rasta]

Elvis is alive!!

[schoeney]

Glad you had a good trip Elvis. Are the towns/parks listed in any particular order?

[elvis]

Hi everybody,

Silent Sam: Not quite everywhere, but we've been to some very nice places... Coors Factory was one of them (and we drank lots of Coors Banquet on that trip).

Rasta: I neglected the forums, have been working very hard, sometimes two jobs involving domestic and international trips.

Schoeney: The list is loosely sequential and probably incomplete. It was one the best trips on two wheels, the bikes ran great, it was flawless.

Cheers,

E.

[napom]

AWESOME!! You've given me quite a few places to look into adding to my ride to finish the lower 48 next year . . . Do you happen to have a ride map of this epic adventure??

[elvis]

Originally Posted by napom

AWESOME!! You've given me quite a few places to look into adding to my ride to finish the lower 48 next year . . . Do you happen to have a ride map of this epic adventure??

We use paper maps so I don't have a gps generated road map that I can share. However, our camera has a built-in gps and tags the photos with coordinates, I usually make these maps using the iPhoto app.

[Rasta]

Thanks for stopping by and saying Hi. Glad you enjoyed your trip!!

[Silent Sam]

.."Paper Maps" = Find a place, (tech & battery never fails).., Cooking/warmth, Fire Starter,...Toilet paper !

[napom]

I'm a fan of the book of Rand as well . . . just hoping to not have to google all the places you listed to see how much I'd need to alter my ride plan to hit them . . .

[wayfarer]

I am planning a co trip in the spring. Starting our ride in Alamos (just south of the dunes) going up to garden of the gods, up to Echo Lake on 103, through RMNP across trail ridge road, west and south to grand junction, down million dollar highway to durango, and east back to Alamosa.

Two real decision points that are giving me pause:
1) Do we go up Mt Evans? It would be afternoon by the time we got there and I hear weather is rough in the afternoon at the top. Really dont want to ride two wheels in the snow down a 14er.
2) Route from the west end of trail mountain road around Granby. From there to Grand junction is almost 300 miles. Really dont want to ride the interstate but know that it would be a very full day on the roads of the Rockies to travel 300 miles.

Anyone who has been there please offer advice. Are there other "dont miss" opportunities on this route?

[elvis]

Originally Posted by wayfarer

I am planning a co trip in the spring. Starting our ride in Alamos (just south of the dunes) going up to garden of the gods, up to Echo Lake on 103, through RMNP across trail ridge road, west and south to grand junction, down million dollar highway to durango, and east back to Alamosa.

Two real decision points that are giving me pause:
1) Do we go up Mt Evans? It would be afternoon by the time we got there and I hear weather is rough in the afternoon at the top. Really dont want to ride two wheels in the snow down a 14er.
2) Route from the west end of trail mountain road around Granby. From there to Grand junction is almost 300 miles. Really dont want to ride the interstate but know that it would be a very full day on the roads of the Rockies to travel 300 miles.

Anyone who has been there please offer advice. Are there other "dont miss" opportunities on this route?

Provided the road is open, I'd ride up Mt Evans.
I would also consider this: http://scenicbyways.info/byway/2120.html

We toured most of western CO in August 2014 and it was really cold for us (we had a brief snow and hail at RMNP) so cold that we had to stay in hotels or cabins (we normally camp). On another trip, it was also either July or August, we spent some time in Telluride, Silvertone, Million Dollar Hwy area, it was not terribly warm, either. In my opinion, Spring time would be too cold to ride in the mountains of Colorado.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy your trip.

[Jared]

Good to see your post, Elvis!

Next time you're in RMNP, feel free to get in touch. I'm 45 min east right on Hwy 34.

[wayfarer]

Originally Posted by elvis

Provided the road is open, I'd ride up Mt Evans.
I would also consider this: http://scenicbyways.info/byway/2120.html

We toured most of western CO in August 2014 and it was really cold for us (we had a brief snow and hail at RMNP) so cold that we had to stay in hotels or cabins (we normally camp). On another trip, it was also either July or August, we spent some time in Telluride, Silvertone, Million Dollar Hwy area, it was not terribly warm, either. In my opinion, Spring time would be too cold to ride in the mountains of Colorado.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy your trip.

Wow. I was concerned about the cold in June but didn't think it would have been an issue in August. I will share your info with our group. We are planning to camp about 1/2 the nights and stay in hotels the other half. I have camped in 19 degree temps but I took a truck to the campsite which means I could take all the blankets I wanted. Being on a bike things will be much more limited.

I appreciate your feedback.

[elvis]

Originally Posted by wayfarer

Wow. I was concerned about the cold in June but didn't think it would have been an issue in August. I will share your info with our group. We are planning to camp about 1/2 the nights and stay in hotels the other half. I have camped in 19 degree temps but I took a truck to the campsite which means I could take all the blankets I wanted. Being on a bike things will be much more limited.

I appreciate your feedback.

Well, you can see it for yourself at http://www.currentresults.com/Weathe...rature-may.php

You can change the month on the left.

To me it's not the daytime temps so much but it gets really cold at night and sleeping in a tent becomes problematic. Add elevation to the equation, one must be prepared.

Good luck and enjoy the mountains.