Colorado Trail - Day 5 Georgia ridge to Breckenridge

Colorado Trail - Day 5 Georgia ridge to Breckenridge

Segment - part of 6

Thurs Aug 30th, 2018

Start 11031
High pt  11850'
Lo pt.     9500
End Elv.  9600
Climbing ~1600?

Miles 24 ish
Total time 5:30
Ride time 3:40???

Slept in and had a leisurely break fast and break camp. No rush today, as it will be mostly downhill into Summit County after summiting Georgia Pass, and I want to enjoy and appreciate the alpine environment.
Dave the hiker is long gone when I push my bike to the trail from my campsite below.
The riding is technically easier than the previous 3 miles of climbing and not quite as steep, but rarified air pushing to nearly 12000 feet compensates for it. I soon start breaking out of the trees and approaching tree line proper. The air is clear today, and the views humbling in their gorgousness. South Park slowly is revealed as it stretches out below  me, while each turn if the crank brings Summit County's Ten Mile range closer.
I meet a CT thru hike heading to Denver, all smiles now that the last continental divide crossing is behind her.
I reach the high point, and I dwell and soak it all in.

The route goes well above the pass proper, and I think of the handful of times I have been at the pass in the past. The first was to summit Mt. Guyot with Steve and Glenda, the 2nd was a mountain bike explore from the Summit County side, and the most recent was a shake down trip with the trailer in prep for the GDR phase 1 2 years ago. Of those, I have never take the CT from the pass, so new trails forward!
I have a net 2200' of decent awaiting me. It starts off mild and flowy above tree line for a few miles and the descent starts in eanest. The trail transitons to much more techical as the rocky mountains earn their moniker. The Steed is handling it well, in fact may be more stable do to the lower load on the back. After a final tortuous mile of rock gardens, I cross the first branch of the Swan. Up and over a ridge I get to the middle fork of the Swan and meet up with Dave the hiker. I exit the CT as the next section is a long steep climb up west ridge, which I have done before. Riding down the road along Swan River and meet the CT again after exploring Muggins Gulch.
Yippee kyYea -  flowing and mostly smooth trail awaits right through to Horseshoe Gulch. A small climb on the last section that leads a good downhill and the final super tight switch backs  to Hwy 9. Finally, the bike path to the Broken Compass brewery to celebrate my completion the front range traverse.

This was 150 miles, about 50% single track, some quite challenging. It was a good test of the replacement bolts for  rear rack, which I had sheared 2 factory bolts a couple weeks earlier on the divide.
All and all, pleased with results, and I will do more, but maybe not all segments will be with a loaded bikepacking rig.

Colorado Trail - Day 4 Teepee campsite to Georgia ridge

Colorado Trail - Day 4 Teepee campsite to Georgia ridge

Segment  5 bike portion and part of 6

Wed Aug 29th, 2018

Start 9800
High pt  11031
Lo pt.     9600
End Elv.  11031
Climbing ~3200?

Miles 22.7
Total time 7:40
Ride time 4:40???

Got up to a cloudy morning, ate and broke camp. Started my day cruising down the road off of Rock Creek Ridge followed by a climb up to the Rock Creek trailhead, where I caught the CT once again. Then it was up the trail to Kenosha. Got some nice views into Lost Park, would be good to explore some time.
The leaves are turning early this year, I hear due to dry year we have had. While the aspen above are turning yellow, so be the fern undergrowth, its verdency fleeing along with long summer days, racing to autumn and winter beyond.
The riding is a mix of aspen groves, bristlecones, and open park land. The grasshoppers are abundant along the trail in the parkland and my approaching alights flocks in waves of flight
before me, my bike a prow in the ocean.

I reach Kenosha, score some water at the campground and await the arrival of lovely Glenda.
She arrives and we share lunch and company, restocking on food for the next 2 days to Breckenridge.
Then it the modest climb up from Kenosha and more great aspen groves, with pretty flowy and mostly smooth trail down to west Jefferson creek. I had contemplates camping here, at one of the FS campgrounds but is only 3 pm. It is 6 miles to Georgia pass, but the CT databook says there is water and camp sites about 3 miles in, so up up and away.
I cross the creek and meet a CT hiker Dave who is just starting to setup camp. We chat and he says he is setting up early as the next campsite and water are 6 miles away. I share with him my info from the d latest CT data book (camp sites and water at 6 AND 3 miles) and he decide to go further as well.
So up up up. The climbing starts immediately and is quite technical, with many a roots and rocks to navigate. It is mostly rideable, though there many, many occasions I have to push the bike around a rock or root when I pick a bad line, or cant get over. It is some hard riding these 3 miles, toughest bikepacking yet.
I also stop many many times just to catch  my breathe, hydrate,  and , yes, contemplate. But persistence prevails, and the grade relents a wee bit. I pass a mere trickle at close to the right odometer reading, I am hoping this is not the ."small stream with camping near by". No camping so I go on, but am eager to be done today too. Another wee trickle.of water, and there is cample 50 feet further. Well this has to be the camp spots, but is this the streem? I park my bike and hike on,  fortunately a sizeable stream 30 yards further.

Setup camp in the spruce grove, do my nightly rituals, contemplating the push up to Georgia Pass in the morn.

Colorado Trail - Day 2 S. Platte TH to Goose Creek CG

Colorado Trail - Day 2  S. Platte TH to Goose Creek CG
Segments 2 and 3, part of Lost Creek Wilderness detour for segment 4
Monday Aug 27th, 2018

Start 6117'
High pt  ~8400'
Lo pt.     6117'
End Elv.  7716'
Climbing ~5300? !!!

Miles 43.3
Total time 10:20
Ride time 7:45

Up and at 'em, the hikers are early birds and so am I today. I watch as the sun work it's magic, slowly painting the cliffs  above the Platte across the canyon as I break my fast and pack up.
The ride starts with a stiff climb of switch backs out of the valley. I cannot ride hardly any of these switch backs, so a hike a biking I will go. The trail soon enters the Buffalo Creek burn area from 20 some years ago. Some nice vistas, and the area seems to be revegitating. The trails are all pikes peak granite like around Colorado Springs, and sometimes it is loose. I have a few uphill stretches that are too steep and loose to ride, but not many.
The dry segment 2 gives way to segment 3, where the CT is the anchor trail for the Buffalo Creek mtb trail system. The CT here is sweet riding, passing near the edifice of Little Scraggy Peak and its granite domes peak through the trees.
I now get to start the long 72 mile road detour around the Lost Creek wilderness area.
I soon reach Wellington Lake, and the private CG there, where I replenish my water. The gravel detour tackles some steep pitches, perhaps more challenging as I have already put in 20 miles of singletrack. My goal is Goose Creek CG where I know they have a well. The route travels mostly through the Hayman burn area, the denuded landscapes give great views of the granites knobs and domes, as well as the mosaic of groves the eluded the flames. One can spot large groves of young aspen sprinkled here and there. There are several long steep climbs between me and camp, and I am starting to have doubts, and also fret about water.
I push on and make it along day.
Surveying the camp ground, ther are a pair of bike packers and they invite me to share the campsite. They are Peter  and Adam from Oakland CA. As we chat about life the trial, no bikes and gear, it happens that Peter has made some of his bike gear, and it looks strong.

Colorado Trail - Day 1 Waterton to S. Platte TH

Colorado Trail - Day 1 Waterton to S. Platte TH
Sunday Aug 26th, 2018

Start 5522
High pt  7517
Lo pt.     5522
End Elv.  6117
Climbing ~3000?

Miles 16.9
Total time 5:30
Ride time 3:00?

Well, my original plan to ride from Breck to Grand Junction or Moab via the Flattops  and the Grand Mesa was shut down due to fires, so I have decided to try the Colorado Trail from Denver to Breckenridge. So I will start in the mile high city  and hopefully end at my place in Breckenridge, yet another mile higher.
If successful, I will crest the continental divide at Georgia Pass at 11,875' before descending into Summit County.

The trail begins where the mountains finally release the South Platte River from its grips to meander more on the great plains.
The first several miles are classic front range canyons, dry ecosystem where the sun shine the most, with the trees in more sheltered crevices, and valleys. Popular trail on the old road bed following the Platte upstream, perfect for making good time on the bike
After nearly 7 miles, the single track begins in earnest. This is the test for Dan and his steed (or a boy and his dog). Will this rig and rider be able to negoitiate the CT? Basically, this whole ride is higher than the highest points I hit in MT; will my lungs and legs deal? Still a bit gun shy from the rack bolts shearing in Montana just a few weeks ago, though I have a couple of hundred miles on the replacements.
 Fortunately the trail is smooth and flowy, even quite a few of the many switchbacks are rideable.
I soon gain the first local maxima and the trail is turning rougher. There are a few places I need to hike a bike. Once I start following Bear Creek, it is unrideable for long stretches. I remind myself I choose to do this 1/2 mile of joy. I do note that this is one of the steeper sections and it does relent after I leave a mile of the stream bed (no water tho).
Much more rideable now, and more switchbacks,  up up up. Most I ride and slowly crank toward the high point of the day, good views of the Buffalo Creek burn area.
Good traversing trail out to another ridge end as lightning and thunder assert themselves into my planning.
 I quickly descend a handful of switchbacks to get off the ridge before I stop and hide from the rain (2nd time today). As is the Colorado way, the rain passes in 15 minutes or so and I am back on my descent to the Platte, where I plan on camping to night.

I did meet 7 or 8 other bike packers today.  Most were using the under the sest bag system but a dad and son had fat bikes with both rear and front panniers.

Setting up camp, met Chris and Greg from San Antonio doing CT segments, and there are several other through hikers.

Phase 2 - Colorado Segment = Fires

I have planned 3 ~2 weeks bikepacking segments, the next on the list is Colorado River Rambling from Breckenridge to Grand Junction or Moab.
Unfortunately, there are 3 fires affecting my route, with one closing my route completely in the Flattops (Cabin Lake Fire), and the other two having forest closures right upto the roads of the route on the way to the Flattops (Sugarloaf and Silver Creek fires).
While I could find a less interesting way around the closure, it removes one of the primary reasons for the route since I would not be able to visit the Flattops, and I am not all that encouraged to ride close to a couple of fires due to smoke and their unpredictable nature, so I am forgoing this segment.
I am back in town, taking care of repairs, and re-evaluating biking options.
I may do some smaller bikepacking trips or just hit some bigger rides here in Colorado before heading out to Utah in September.

GDR2-DAY 12 Strawberry Creek to Narrows CG

GDR2-DAY 12  Strawberry Creek to Narrows CG
Saturday Aug 18th, 2018

Start 9000
High pt  9000
Lo pt.     7650
End Elv.  7900
Climbing ~3000'?

Miles 44.7
Total time 5:30
Ride time 4:41

Any how, it rained a fair bit my last night of camping in the emptiness, first rain of the trip. While welcome and helping to keep the road dust down, did require some extra dry out time. In the morning it is much cooler and humid, while yesterday was the postcard perfect weather. It warms up enough for shorts sleeves while bustling about packing up camp and the start of riding, but soon I  need to stop and change into long sleeves as clouds move in and the downhill nature keeps my speed up. As I travel slowly downward ever more deeper into the embrace of Green River watershed, the gnarly peaks of the Wind River range start to peek through a gaps in the smaller foothills toward the headwaters of the mighty Green. They look jagged and still hold large snowfields, some which are sure to be glaciers. They grow shy as I travel further down into the Greens embrace. It is rolling country, sage parkland interspersed with groves of aspen and pine, with forests blanketing the shoulders of the low mountains cradling the Green.
The descent to the Green get more serious; the road had been deteriorating for several miles, which means I get to play dodge ball with ever the increasing potholes; I mostly win, the the every larger potholes score to good points along the way too. I'm still a bit hinky about the rack, and feel I could let her rip more and stay control, but the rack holds me back. The descent abandons the forest road potholes for ruts and rocks for a couple of miles of a steeper descent to a larger tributary of the Green, and mixes it up with the potholes for miles along the river. I final cross the Green proper, just a mile or two to Whiskey Grove CG, where I restarted my fire interrupted ride 2 years ago.
I pull into the campground, Tired but satisfied that I have connected the dots of my border to border ride. Huzzah
I check to see if Glenda is camping here. No Glenda, yet I take a leisurely lunch.
Success makes my dry bagel a treat, instead of just more fuel! I savor the moment and meaning of reaching this spot, listening to the water massage my ears and mind as the Green tumbles though the riffles just below.

But riding is not done. I have refueled but not yet found Glenda nor reached the brewpub at Pinedale, so I remount my steed and ride on. Only a couple of miles of gravel left and then pavement most of the way down to Pinedale. I've ridden this before and the Remini ng 30 miles net downhill should be doable. About another dozen miles in, I find the orange cones that is Glendas sign she is camping up at New Fork Lake. The note says only 6 miles of gravel to go ;-).
Grind up that road, with a few intermittent thunder showers, brings me to the aspen filled Narrows CG, and the end of this bikepacking journey. I welcome the R&R with Glenda, and the craft beer later that evening, but need to start preparing for the next adventure!

GDR2 2018 - Total 474 miles, 12 days
GDR1 2016 - Approximately 2500 miles, 54 days

Nearly 3000 miles, inclusive of alternatives, detours such as to Abiquiu & Grants NM, trail riding with friends, and other various meanders.
I shlepped all of my shhhh-tuff for all but 2 days; super steep Fleecer Ridge descent in MT (still couldn't manage to ride the whole descent) and the lonesome single track option into Silver City, NM.
I rode solo  sans support about 50 percent of the days.
I took 4 documented route alternatives; the easier route from WY to Steamboat Lake; the paved Gore Pass to Hwy 9 into Kremmling, rather back road route through Radium;  I still hope to get those main routes in the future.sinc ether are in the neighborhood.
I also rode single track into Silver City NM, and the El Malpais Chain of Craters alternative, but had to loop back to Grants for repairs, so got main route there too.
While I met lots of younger riders on the rout, I was by no means the wizen elder, there were plenty of grey beards, as who has the time to take a couple of months to ride? Linda, who I met this year hinted that she was at least 65, and Terry, who I met by Grand Teton was doing a coast to coast road trip at 78! Nor were all of the riders built like elite endurance athletes.
While.many were though riders nearly as many were doing parts. It is all doable with some prep and training. It is not a race, and we can each ride it with our own unique elan.

Get on out there
&
Ride on

Dan T

GDR2- DAY 11 Togwotee Pass to Strawberry Creek

GDR2- DAY 11 Togwotee Pass to Strawberry Creek
Friday Aug 17th, 2018

Start 9658
High pt  9750
Lo pt.     4700
End Elv. 
Climbing ~3000'?

Miles 51.0
Total time 8:30
Ride time 6:45

Today I start the last 70+ mile section remaining to finish the US portion of The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route.
I had made it to Togwotee Pass in Wyoming 2 years ago on a smoke filled day with route being closed about 15 miles further on due to the Lava Mountain fire. Today I start at the top of Togwotee and of course get  the obligatory top of the pass photo. But just couple of hundred yards further is another Togwotee Pass sign, with a little higher elevation, so I get a selfie  there.
This pass feeds 3 great river systems; The Green/Colorado, the Snake/Columbia, and Wind River/Platte/Missouri.
I turn off the highway a quarter mile down the pass at a crowd of folks watching a grizzly foraging between the highway and my back road. Cool to see. It's downhill on rutted road so I take it easy, and also am scanning the opening below for wildlife; no more grizzlies,  but do scout a deer.
The road winds around to the Brooks Lake basin, and the fantastic Pinnacles mountains. They are my company for 4 or 5 miles, getting see their many aspects. I will see them at a distance at many points during my climb up to Union Pass
Exit the forest and zip down Hwy 287 to the turn off and begin a 4 mile climb, the first of several on the way to Union Pass. I spy a sign that no biker want to see, fresh road work and grading. This often makes the surface very soft and pedaling harder.
Once summiting, the roller coaster road goes in and out of drainages, some pretty, others less so.
Anothe 4 mile climb to the high point, at 9700 feet, yet Union Pass and my final Continental Divide crossing is still miles away and lower at 9200 feet.
The downhill miles go quickly in vast and open country.
I rustle up a golden eagle who does not care for my passing as it wings to a higher perch.
I pass through Union pass, an uneventful place, and find a place to camp a few miles later.

Along the way, I meet Jasper from LA. He started at Calgary, and was riding a Salsa Fargo. While he had been on the route for some weeks, this was day 3 on the Salsa, as he basically broke the frame in his older trek full suspension bike, in the hopping burg of Lima Montana (never heard of it, I'm not surprised!). Trek was no help despite the claim of lifetime warranty. He got rescued by a friendly relative and scored the Salsa rig in Victor Idaho, which is a funky outdoorsy town (with 2 breweries) on the ID side of Teton Pass. Puts my rack bolt issues into perspective