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| Day 1 - Santa Clara, CA Day 2 - Lee Vining, CA Day 3 - Baker, CA Day 4 - Las Vegas, NV Day 5 - Las Vegas, NV Day 6 - Grand Canyon, AZ Day 7 - Durango, CO Day 8 - Glenwood, CO Day 9 - Highlands, CO Day 10 - Highlands, CO Day 11 - Estes Park, CO Day 12 - Craig, CO Day 13 - Jackson, WY Day 14 - Cody, WY Day 15 - Mammoth, WY Day 16 - Choteau, MT Day 17 - Kelispell, MT Day 18 - Sandpoint, ID Day 19 - Omak, WA Day 20 - Anacortes, WA Day 21 - Anacortes, WA Day 22 - Poulsbo, WA Day 23 - Poulsbo, WA Day 24 - Poulsbo, WA Day 25 - Astoria, OR Day 26 - Lincoln City, OR Day 27 - Bandon, OR Day 28 - Eureka, CA Day 29 - Anchor Bay, CA Day 30 - Martinez, CA FINAL THOUGHTS |
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This morning was a day to get computer “stuff” sent.
Because of that, we didn’t actually get on the road till slightly
after 9:00 a.m. and then started right off by going the wrong way
for about 5 miles. We discovered our error and no real harm was done.
Last night, we were afraid that we wouldn’t get a room but as we headed
out this morning, we had to laugh, since there, on the way out of
town, was motel after motel. I’m absolutely convinced we could have
found a room somewhere else. That’s all right it was a nice room.
I also enjoyed seeing a 1935 Airstream in the motel parking lot.
It’s kind of fun to think about how camping must have been in 1935
being pulled by 1935 cars with little horsepower and fewer good roads.
You have to admire the spunk of those who bought those first “travel
trailers.” (photos 1, 2, & 3)
As we leave Durango, we pass the local high school, which is filled with tents and firefighters camping out. There are handmade signs reading “Thank you firefighters” and “God bless our firefighters.” It was a stark reminder that the fires here came within 12 miles of this town. What a shame it would have been to lose such an interesting and historic town. Hwy. 550 started to climb now as this so-called, “million dollar” highway starts to strut its stuff. The mountains and valleys dominate this part of the state. One fine view after another greets us as we turn each corner. The Goldwing handles each grade and turn without complaint as we climb higher and higher into the San Juan Mountains, with views that cannot be captured fully on film or a memory chip (photos 4, 5, 6, 7, & 8). After meandering slowly up this mountainside for forth minutes, we finally reach the top of Coal Bank Pass at over 10,000 feet (photo 9). The ride down the other side was easier but with no less spectacular views (photos 10 & 11) and within a short period of time, we pull into Silverton. We are not the only motorcycle in Silverton, there are several parked along the main street in front of local cafes or bars and I can’t seem to find anyplace to park. I go on through town and stop right in the driveway of a fire station to take a picture of a historical building (photo 12). Linda says to me, “Don’t even think of parking here!” I tell her, “I’m just going to take a quick picture of that building.” “Ed, she says, that sign says, “Don’t even think of parking here” and sure enough, that’s what it said! Obviously, lots of tourists have tried to park in front of the firehouse, just like me. I moved my little self, right then and there.
We turn around and park alongside a green Goldwing and go into a local hotel/restaurant to grab some breakfast. Unfortunately, the buffet was a little weak and no one seemed to want to serve us anyway. There were about six other motorcyclists sitting at the bar drinking straight shots of Jack Daniel’s at 10:30 in the morning. These fellas were hardier bikers than yours truly. I think I could have joined them but Linda really cramps my style. After waiting at the buffet for a while with plates in our hands but no one to willing to serve us, about four of us decide to leave and find breakfast elsewhere. Linda and I end up at a local eatery down the street that serves “Funnel Cakes” which are kind of like Indian fry bread. The batter is poured out of a “funnel” into hot oil like you use to make donuts or French fries, and they deep fry this concoction that ends up looking like a deep fried rope. They are then coated with cinnamon and sugar or various combinations of jams or whatever else moves you. This little store also serves as the local paperback bookstore. Ain’t life great? Where in your typical mega-city would you find such a combination? (photos 13, & 14)
We leave Silverton, bound for Ouray. All of these towns were once silver bearing or mining towns in the 1800’s (photos 15 & 16) and so look like pages from a history book. The road to Ouray is winding and steep. There are several places with huge drop-offs and no guardrails, not for the faint of heart or those whose bike handling skills are less than desired. I had to laugh because after about 10 minutes of this, someone had written on the road in orange paint, by hand, “Steep Drop-off.” If you hadn’t figured it out by the time you saw this handwritten warning, you would be in deep trouble. Still, the views were worth the drive and I felt somewhat cheated since I had to pay close attention to the driving while Linda got to enjoy the full surrounding views (photos 17 & 18). The other part of this delemna is that on this part of the road, there is no place to pull off and take a picture. We leave Ouray behind and head on to Montrose, where we stop and have an iced tea at the local McDonalds. The temperature today has been all over the map. We started out at a comfortable 73 in Durango, and then as we climbed into the mountains, it dropped as low a 53. As we left Montrose behind it was 88 and eventually climbed to 91 by the time we got to Glenwood Springs, our destination for the day.
Because we want to reach Steve and Pegs house in Highlands Ranch by tomorrow, and because they are having severe thunderstorms East of us, we decide to make a run for Glenwood Springs, which is due North of us. To keep from going back west, we head for Delta and then take those little black lines on the map. They take us into the Gunnison National Forest and Mountains on Hwys. 92 to 133 to 82. We pass through the towns of Hotchkiss, Somerset, and Carbondale to Glenwood Springs. One of the last little towns on this trip was the old mining town of Somerset. The road actually split to pass on either side of some older homes built on the hillside. Of course, we had to slow way down since you are passing right through the heart of this little village. We pass a gentleman who looks older than the town he lives in and Linda waves as we are going by. That elderly gentleman almost broke his arm trying to wave back at the girl on the back of the bike. I don’t know who enjoyed the encounter more, Linda or the older gentleman.
We are almost there now, and as we pass the Paonia Reservoir I stop for the last pictures of the day (photos 19 & 20). As we enter Glenwood Springs, several raindrops hit our face shields and let us know to get off the bike or we will get you wet. We grab a Best Western, go get a great Mexican dinner, and call it a day. |
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