Jeff's Motorcycle Trip to Colorado and Back

My Rig

One of the things I love about having moved to California nine years ago is that I am able to see my brother Jay on a regular basis. This is something I missed when Emily and I lived in the Netherlands and was going to miss when we hit the road in our Airstream. So prior to hitting the road with Emily, Jay and I decided to take a 2 week motorcycle tour. We selected a route through AZ, CO and UT which provided a nice assortment of roads, climates and sites. I did want to stop in Flagstaff to hike up Humphrey’s Peak and also visit three of the National Parks in Utah, I had not been to before: Capitol Reef, Canyonlands and Arches. We of course wanted to stop and visit Emily’s sister Paula’s family in Golden and had planned to go to a Samantha Fish concert in SLC.

Unfortunately Jay could not make the trip. I know he feels very badly about this because on my return he gave me a leather coat and sandals he said didn’t fit him, but I think he was mostly motivated by guilt. Anyway it was unfortunate we didn’t get to take the trip together, but there will be other opportunities.

Mt. San Jacinto 10,834 ft.

Stout Tasting at Idlewild Brew Pub

To warm up for the Humphrey’s Peak hike I decided to begin my trip in Idlewild, CA, where I planned to climb Mt San Jacinto. Idlewild was an advantage because of the altitude, with cooler temperatures more suitable for camping in June. I had hiked Mt San Jacinto last fall with my friend Carter. In that case we hiked from Palm Springs. The hike from there is known as Cactus to Clouds, with over 10,000 feet of elevation gain and 23 miles distance it is known as one of the top 10 hardest day hikes in the US. It was hard. The route from Idlewild had less elevation gain and was somewhat shorter, but it was still a long day. Idlewild itself is a fun town. I did go see Wonder Woman at a cute old theater and did enjoy the brewery (which isn’t open on Tuesday).

After 2 nights in Idlewild I was off to stay with Emily’s Aunt Pree in Scottsdale. When I got there it was 107 degrees, which is quite hot on a motorcycle, but not the hottest temperature I would see on this trip. Pree was a great host. I arrived to a nice spread of hors d'oeuvres and beer and then went to a nice Italian restaurant with her and her significant other Peck. Finally had a big breakfast before hitting the road the next morning.

Flagstaff still had snow!

I camped on the outskirts of Flagstaff. It was warm, but not too hot. This is where I learned not to pitch my tent broad side to the wind on gusty nights, and to bring the earplugs I wear riding into the tent to help sleep. I was also able to finish watching the first season of Sneaky Pete, which I recommend watching.

Humphrey's Peak

I first saw Humphrey’s Peak about 20 years ago when we were on a family vacation. It has been on my list of things to do since then. Humphrey’s Peak is not the longest hike, about 6 miles each way, but elevation is over 12,000 feet so air is fairly thin. It can also be extremely windy at the summit. I found this to be the case and felt I needed to hold on to boulders as I climbed the last hundred yards or so up the ridge to the summit. A guy who summited about the same time said he almost turned around after making within a hundred yards of the top. The trail also had many patches of snow, which wasn’t an issue ascending, but by late morning the snow had softened and was very slick on the decent.

Dolores, CO

                  

My next stop was Dolores, CO. Here I camped next to a river which was quite lovely. They warned me about the bugs, but compared to the flies Emily and I experienced in Mt Palomar State Park, these were nothing. I also met a young couple that planned to start a business “houses off the grid”. For now they are living in their tent in the wilderness with their dog.  I bought more chocolate chip cookies than I could eat that evening, so I gave them about half. The very nice woman at the visitor’s center recommended a Mexican restaurant for lunch/dinner, which turned out to be outstanding. There was also a brewery that looked like a lot of fun, but it was about 3 miles to my campground.  However, I had ridden my motorcycle in and I have a strict rule against drinking and riding.

The next day I rode to Telluride. Along the way I caught up to a group of motorcycles from South Dakota. I talked to one of the riders a bit while we waited our turn on a single lane section of road. At first I thought he said they were from North Dakota, but that didn’t make any sense because certainly there are not enough people living in ND to make a group that large. One of the best parts of traveling by motorcycle is the kinship with other motorcycle riders. People are always interested in where you came from and where you are going.

In Telluride I took the gondola to the top and hiked over to the mountain town, which is a ski town and void of all but a few people this time of year. Telluride itself was busier. The annual bluegrass festival started later in the week.

Ouray Brewery

Camping in Ouray

My next stop was Ouray, which was one of my favorite places to visit. First I learned my lesson and looked for a camp site close to the center of town. Fortunately they had such a place and it was a top notch facility. Here I was able to enjoy the beer at the Ouray Brewery, which interestingly did not have a great selection of beer, but did make an excellent burger. I learned this from a couple from Austin who have been full time RVers for the past three years. I talked to them for about 90 minutes and literally took notes.

Black Canyon along the way to Crested Butte
contains the highest cliff in Colorado.  

Mini Grand Canyon

Crested Butte was my favorite mountain town. This one hit the trifecta: distillery, lodging and mountain biking. There was no camping around Crested Butte, so based on the recommendation of another nice visitor center woman, I stayed at Christiana’s Lodge. A very nice couple had just purchased this place and it reminded me of something you would find in a European mountain town. Lots of wood inside, with a large fireplace and big, comfortable chairs and couches. I met a nice couple at breakfast who were traveling with their daughter. They were from Indiana and were terrified by some of the mountain roads their daughter was taking them on, but otherwise having a wonderful time.

Yum Rum!

Many of you know I am a fan of single malt scotches. In recent years, I have expanded my tastes to include bourbon (thanks to my daughter) and Japanese whiskeys. I decided to check out the distillery in Crested Butte, which produced three rums. I was very excited about the prospect of free tastings. Turns out rum can be very good straight. These were excellent. I even bought a bottle to bring to Emily’s sister. I am also on a mission to find the best old fashioned. The distillery made an old fashioned with rum and their own bitters. This was good, but Saiko Sushi in Coronado is still the best I’ve found, made with Japanese whiskey.

Crested Butte is known for downhill mountain biking. I thought I should give this a try, so I rented a bike and bought a lift ticket. It was extremely fun. I was the first person to ride the bike I rented, unfortunately I was also the first person to crash it. On my third run, I was going around a sweeping turn, thinking I should take a blue (harder) run the next time down and my tires washed out from under me and I went straight to the ground shoulder first. I bruised a couple ribs, which are still sore three weeks later, but I did take the blue run later that day.

Monarch Pass on the way to Salida

The highlight of my stay in Salida was my first experience staying in a hostel. Again the camp grounds were out of town and the weather was over 90 degrees, so a little cool. There is a lot more socializing in a hostel than camping by yourself. I met some interesting people, including one guy who completed the Appalachian Trail 3 years ago and the Pacific Coast Trail last year. He is currently working on another trail from Mexico to Canada. I also visited a local guitar builder and had a good discussion about his guitars and classes he offers to people wanting to learn to build guitars. I’m not sure there is enough room in the Airstream to do that.

Another long term goal of mine was to visit Pikes Peak. This was significant for me first because of the crazy car race they have up their every year. Then for the bicycle race that also takes place. I thought I might hike up, but after the two long hikes I’d already taken and not really recovered from yet, I decided not to do that. Instead I figured I should take a van up and a bicycle down. So I signed up with a tour group to do just that. We planned to start at the top, but ended up coming down a half mile or so. The wind was crazy up there and after going over some passes in high wind on my motorcycle, I was ok with the plan. In fact I talked to four riders on the top, who were not happy with their decision to ride up. Oh, the chocolate donuts they make on the mountain are excellent, although a little pricey ($3 each.) The ride down was a lot of fun, however, the tour leader metered our speed. I would have liked to have gone faster. Some of you are probably thinking that I didn’t learn my lesson in Crested Butte. 

Garden of the Gods

In front of Pike's Peak

On my way into Colorado Springs, I visited the Garden of the Gods. This is the most visited city park in the country. It is quite amazing, but with all the out of town crowds, it isn’t of much use to the people who live in the city.

In Golden I visited Scott and Paula (Emily’s sister), their children Chase and Carly, and their amazing dog Hallie. We all went on a hike in Boulder up Royal Arch, which turned out to be much steeper and harder than we expected. Hallie didn’t make it all the way and Scott selflessly (or maybe it was self-preservation) stayed with her while the rest of us completed the last section of the climb. It was a good workout and we enjoyed some good burgers afterword as a reward. I did learn that Boulder should be awarded recognition as a pet - unfriendly town. We saw plenty of signs that dogs are not allowed and recommending people leave their pets at home.

I have got to hand it to Scott and Paula for their parental planning capabilities. Not only are they effectively juggling all the camps and athletic activities of Chase and Carly, but they manage to have a good time as well. As an example they have Carly on a running team, which meets in a park conveniently located next to a brewery and mountain bike trail. While Carly was at practice, Chase was sent out to ride and we enjoyed a couple beers with their friends.

Remember the rum I bought in Crested Butte? Turns out Scott and Paula acquired a taste for Mai Tais on their recent trip to Hawaii. Scott made us all some excellent Mai Tais, perhaps as good as those served at Bali Hai in San Diego.

Delicate Arch

My next stop was Arches National Park in Utah. The remainder of my trip would be very hot, making camping unpleasant. I would like to thank my co-workers at Cymer for the hotel.com gift card they gave me when I left. It was much appreciated.

I did several short hikes in Arches. It was hot, but not too unpleasant. The highlight for me was Delicate Arch. I also came across a lizard that seemed to like posing for the guests. I passed him on my way down one of the trails and he was still there when I came back 30 minutes later. He didn’t seem to mind having his picture taken. 

Lizard Lizard

I stayed that night in Moab, which is another town I’ve wanted to visit for a long time. It was hot. Emily and I will probably stop there again on our way to Golden for Christmas. I would like to take one of the jeep or mountain bike tours when the weather is cooler.

Dead Horse Point State Park
on the way to St. George

From Moab, I had a long hot ride to St. George. Although people at my stops along the way commented on how hot it was, it wasn’t too bad until I got closer to St. George, which was around 114 degrees when I arrived. Outside St George, I passed an RV that had just gone up in flames. The front was completely engulfed. There were a number of people stopped helping the owners. One of whom was lying down away from the fire. The RV was on the other side of a 4 lane divided highway, but I still made sure I had a vehicle between me and the RV in case something exploded. I once had a car crash coming towards me on the other side of a cement barrier. There were several plastic bits that came flying through the air toward me, which I was lucky enough to avoid. I didn’t want anything like that to happen again.

It was just a short ride to my next destination in Las Vegas, but I wanted to leave early to beat as much heat as possible. It was interesting to experience temperature changes as I traveled. I was surprised that elevations and geography I thought should be cooler were actually hotter. The rocky mountain passes seemed to hold the heat better than the open desert. When I arrived in LV traffic was stop and go. It was only 9:00 am, but probably already 100 degrees. I believe it got close to 120 later in the day. I would recommend the Polo Towers. They are on the strip and reasonably priced, but best of all they let me have my room at 9:30 am.

Very Friendly Locals

I am not a fan of gambling, so I spent most of my time walking up and down the strip. I met some locals and spent a fair amount of time listening to a band at an outdoor bar. I tried some local beer and tried not to move too fast outdoors in the heat. It was a relaxing day with nothing officially on my agenda.

My next stop was Long Beach to visit my brother. Once I crossed the San Bernardino Mountains the weather cooled dramatically, but the haze from the pollution was the worst I’ve seen since moving to California. Jay has both a guitar room and drum room in his house. He recently refinished the floors and painted both. I helped him put the guitar room back together and was the first guest to stay in his drum room, which has a pull out couch for guests. We also played guitar/drums together, which was a lot of fun.

Jay also went with me to return my tent to REI. I had purchased a single person tent for this trip. I already had a 2 person tent, but I lent that to Isabelle for her river trip in Germany. You might think that very nice of me, but as it turns out a 10 year old tent does not retain its much needed water proofing. Unfortunately Isabelle spent a couple cold wet nights. I also realized a single person tent is very small and although it may be a good choice if you also have a 2 person tent, when said tent is no longer viable for wet weather, trading a single person tent for a two person tent seems a good idea. Here is to REI and their excellent return policy.

I arrived back in San Diego on June 23^rd. I picked up Sally, got Betty out of storage and setup at Los Coches RV Resort, with time to spare before picking up Emily at the airport.