Twin Lakes, Co to Salida, Co – 32 miles
So I decided to start the ride back toward Salida after climbing Elbert yesterday.
It started raining and I was feeling weak around Buena Vista, about half way to Salida. I stopped at a restaurant to grab some food, boost my energy, and start looking for somewhere to sleep. I wasn’t keen on setting up my tent in the rain, so I called someone on Warmshowers. His name was Matt also, and he said I could stay with them, no problem. He even offered to pick me up because it was starting to get dark and was still raining.
I got back on the bike after eating and rode most of the way to Salida until Matt met me in his truck with his son Ethan. They drove me back to their place where I was able to grab a shower and sleep in their camper. Much better option than a tent.
Salida, Co to Sapinero, Co – 65 miles
The next morning I was up by 630. Matt made some breakfast that was delicious and gave me the energy I needed for the day. He’s a physician in town and his wife, Leslie, does marketing for a bike touring company in Italy. It was already raining a bit and I knew it was going to be a chilly ride to the top of Monarch Pass.
Matt was heading into town, so he rode with me a short way and then gave me directions to take some side roads and avoid the busy highways.
I was pretty much climbing the whole morning. It was about 15 miles to the top of Monarch Pass and took me about 5 hours. It was cold and the rain didn’t help. I took my time and took plenty of breaks. Made it to the top at around 1.
I met a guy biking from a bluegrass festival in Cumberland, Maryland called DelFest to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival with his friend Jeff. To make it happen they had to ride around 2000 miles in 20 days! They are raising money for a charity called the Chase Your Dreams Foundation, a disability-oriented non-profit. Check em out here – https://www.facebook.com/thedeluride
We rode down the pass together, and it was AWESOME! Steep, wide open, downhill for miles. I maxed out at 50 mph again. Once at the bottom, the terrain opened up to a vast valley with a mountain stream running through it. Absolutely gorgeous. Eventually things started to dry out and a canyon started to rise around us.
We met Charlie’s friend Jeff about 40 miles outside of Montrose at a campground right near the damn that creates the Blue Mesa Reservoir. Jeff’s girlfriend, Caroline, was also there. She met them in Kansas and has been driving SAG for them since.
It was a beautiful night for camping. Nice and cool, good amount of stars out, and a lightening storm in the distance with no threat of it coming our direction. Colorado has surpassed all my expectations so far, what a beautiful state!
15 miles in 5 hours!?! Damn mountains.