Day 8- Grand Lake to Dubois.

383 miles.

We left Rocky Mountain National Park early in the morning because we knew we had a long day ahead of us. At the entrance to the park is the Grand Lake Cemetery, where our grandmother is buried. We stopped there and planted some Columbine seeds. She died 14 years ago, but I still miss her dearly.
We headed north to Wyoming and followed a river for awhile, river roads are always super fun for me. Rudi's bike was finally handling well and he was blasting.
Once we got into southern Wyoming it started to get pretty windy and flat and Rudi was questioning why the hell we were there. Eventually the mountains appeared in the distance. We were planning on camping up in the mountains above Dubois, I was there last summer for a job and knew of a few awesome places. By the time we got into Dubois we were both pretty pooped and decided to get a hotel instead. It was my first shower and bed in 8 days, it felt great.



Our grandmother's grave.


Willow Creek Pass.


Mummified police.



Rand, CO.


Wyoming, USA.

Bug Report.
10/10
It was a fucking bug holocaust. I guess this explains why we've been getting eaten by Mosquitos so much, payback.

Day 7- Angel of Shavano Falls to Grand Lake

222 miles.

We packed up first thing and headed out on the road. Stopped for coffee and a bite to eat in Buena Vista and then continued through the mountains. We went through Leadville and Climax, which has the world's largest molybdenum mine, it also sits at 11,360'.
We stopped in Winter Park to ride the alpine slide. We used to go there as kids and it was still super fun. We continued into Grand Lake and stopped at the Post Office. Rudi had a pair of shocks sent to him from his shop in Santa Barbara because his were toast.
We went into the Park and got a spot at Timber Creek. It's a pretty shitty campground to be honest. It's just a big flat open space with no trees and the sites are super close to each other. We set up and rode into town and do laundry. We used to come here every summer until we were 14, our grandmother lived here and our great grandparents were pioneers in the town. Our great grandfather had a store that supplied the miners and was the postmaster. It is also the headwaters to the Colorado River, I bet all my pee as a kid has finally reached LA. Drink up. Not much had changed since the last time I was there.
We rode back to our campsite. I installed Rudi's shocks and he made dinner. We crashed out by 10.



Some alpine lake.



Moon dude.


Mountains.


Berthoud Pass.


Alpine slide.



Rudi, scared.



More alpine slide.



Zoooooooommm!!



Think of this when you drink tap water in LA.



Chomp.

Bug Report.
7/10
We hit a lot early in the morning, especially in the meadow outside of Leadville. Nothing to crazy though.

Day 6- Mesa Verde to Angel of Shavano Falls

287 miles.

We packed up our gear and Lazer's and brought her into Cortez. She has to wait a few more days before her clutch cable comes. Brian also headed on his own way.
Reaching Durango was a big deal for us. It's the start of going north finally. We took Highway 550 from Durango to Silverton. It is bike heaven there, twisties that make you think you're going in a circle. I loved every minute of it. Rudi is getting way better at riding these roads, I guess now is a good time to let everyone know his experience level. He bought his first bike in April, he's ridden mopeds with me years ago, but that's it. It's so awesome that he decided to do this trip with me after only riding for a couple months.
We hit a few more little passes and then finally hit the monster pass, Monarch Pass. It's the first part on our trip where we cross the Continental Divide and it's at 11,312'. The old Beemers did well and charged it.
We found a Forest Service road near Salinda, CO and decided to look for a place to camp. We scored huge, after passing the $15 campground and following the dirt road we found a perfect clearing next to a waterfall. A local driving by told us it's called Angel of Shavano Falls. Rudi made a ripping dinner and we crashed hard.

Bug Report.
9/10
Finally!!! Today was awesome, I'm covered in bugs. Big ones, little ones, juicy ones, butterflies, you name it.



Splat!!!!




Brian and his beast.



Me as a mule with Lazer and Rudi.



Butterfly.



The Rockies.



Road porn.



Monarch Pass.



A strip mine.



Angel of Shavano Falls.



Rudi at the falls.



Chef Rudi.



Blurry, but delicious.



Home for the night.

Day 5- Mesa Verde NP

51 miles.

Today was a chill day. Erik, Julie and Julie's family took off in the morning. So Rudi, Jessica and I cruised around the park and went into some of the cave dwellings. It's pretty amazing what the people who lived there 1000 years ago did.
In a parking lot I saw a huge, fully loaded BMW R1200GS with Alaska plates. Started talking to the guy and he's been on the road since last year and is traveling all around the Americas. His name is Brian Stanfill and he has a blog called www.hasadv.com. He was on his way to check out the cave dwellings, but we invited him to stay at our site.
The rest of the day was spent napping, taking a shower, updating my blog, and getting to know Brian. It was an excellent day.

Bug Report.
2/10
Weak day for the bugs. Sorry.







Spruce Tree House.



Spruce Tree House. 95% original.



Rudi in Balcony House.



The crew.



Inside a Kiva.



Balcony House.



Cliff Palace.



Roadtrip!!

Day 4- Natural Bridges NM to Mesa Verde.

204 miles.

We wake up and pack early in order to get to Mesa Verde by midday. We cruise around the park and view the natural bridges, they are pretty awesome. We stop in Bluff, UT for breakfast and gas and continue on our way.
About 30 miles down the road while going through Aneth, UT Jessica's clutch cable snaps. We find shade at the only gas station in town and she calls for a tow truck and arranges for a new cable at a shop on Cortez, CO. Problem is, they can't get it til at least Tuesday.
We wait with Jessica until the tow truck arrives, we found a rickety suspension bridge that goes over the chocolate milk looking river and I explore a bit of the buildings that appear to be old Reservation housing.
Once the tow truck arrives Rudi and I bounce out, make a quick stop at 4 Corners and onto Mesa Verde.
We unload at our site and head back to Cortez to get Jessica and her stuff. We eventually meet up with everyone and head to the campsite.



A natural bridge.



Yum.



Broke down in Aneth.



Aneth architecture.



Sketchy footbridge.



The other side of the chocolate river.



Safe side.



Old reservation housing.



Downtown Aneth, UT.



Colorado.



4 Corners.