Reflections on the trip:
Well we have been on the "ride" for more than a month at this time. The ride has pushed us harder than I could have imagined at times, New Mexico was beautiful, but it was also brutal at times. Should we have started in the south and taken on the toughest stretch first? I'm not sure I could have ridden New Mexico in more heat or with the predicted rainy season where much of the "dirt" roads we rode would be impossible with moisture mixed into the dust, sand and clay. I think the only way to ride New Mexico would be fast and to ride it fast you'd ride the paved alternatives, which would keep you away from some of the beauty the state has to offer. I'm also not sure we could ride it fast as "fast" to me would be riding close to 100 miles a day, pushing hard so that the resupplies would be every other day vs. every 3 to 4 days.
We are now in Colorado, where so far the roads are 100% better than the roads in New Mexico, where water is available more frequently and where the terrain is more gentle. This has lead to us riding more miles in less time and letting us feel like we are making some progress to the north. We are accepting at this time that unless we can pick up our daily milage we won't be completing the whole Great Divide Route. Traveling as a family is the goal here, we all know that Maya could leave us and join any of the faster tourers and keep pace all day long if not set the pace, she is the speed and stamina of our "ride". Wiley is the man of incredible reserves and when we think he is done for the day he will pull form deep within and go for a good while longer, not bad for a eleven year old.
We have given the bike packing vs. the loaded touring we are doing "thing" a great deal of thought as we ride and have come up with that we wouldn't change a thing. Our older bodies like warm clothes/sleeping bags, the crazy creek chairs at night and in the morning. Hot food or drinks help us recharge and wake up. Yes we are slower and we work harder for our miles but at night we have tents, warm food, enough water, and we are comfortable. Our days of moving to stay warm, pushing our thirst, and hunger levels till our next "store" were pre kids and in our 20's and 30's.
We are now resting in Salida, CO which appears to be a little "paradise". Great food/pizza, a great bike shop, a river with a play spot in downtown.
Well we have been on the "ride" for more than a month at this time. The ride has pushed us harder than I could have imagined at times, New Mexico was beautiful, but it was also brutal at times. Should we have started in the south and taken on the toughest stretch first? I'm not sure I could have ridden New Mexico in more heat or with the predicted rainy season where much of the "dirt" roads we rode would be impossible with moisture mixed into the dust, sand and clay. I think the only way to ride New Mexico would be fast and to ride it fast you'd ride the paved alternatives, which would keep you away from some of the beauty the state has to offer. I'm also not sure we could ride it fast as "fast" to me would be riding close to 100 miles a day, pushing hard so that the resupplies would be every other day vs. every 3 to 4 days.
We are now in Colorado, where so far the roads are 100% better than the roads in New Mexico, where water is available more frequently and where the terrain is more gentle. This has lead to us riding more miles in less time and letting us feel like we are making some progress to the north. We are accepting at this time that unless we can pick up our daily milage we won't be completing the whole Great Divide Route. Traveling as a family is the goal here, we all know that Maya could leave us and join any of the faster tourers and keep pace all day long if not set the pace, she is the speed and stamina of our "ride". Wiley is the man of incredible reserves and when we think he is done for the day he will pull form deep within and go for a good while longer, not bad for a eleven year old.
We have given the bike packing vs. the loaded touring we are doing "thing" a great deal of thought as we ride and have come up with that we wouldn't change a thing. Our older bodies like warm clothes/sleeping bags, the crazy creek chairs at night and in the morning. Hot food or drinks help us recharge and wake up. Yes we are slower and we work harder for our miles but at night we have tents, warm food, enough water, and we are comfortable. Our days of moving to stay warm, pushing our thirst, and hunger levels till our next "store" were pre kids and in our 20's and 30's.
We are now resting in Salida, CO which appears to be a little "paradise". Great food/pizza, a great bike shop, a river with a play spot in downtown.
Day 29, 30 miles.
We left Del Norte after a good breakfast, a stop at the post office, and a trip into a very well stocked pharmacy. The Post office had multiple parts from our water pump company and we finally have a pump that works like it should,yippe!!!! We think that our "new" one was defective out of the box, cause the one of the box at the PO works like our old pumps and is easy to use. The pharmacy had all we needed for wound care as Wiley is still sporting some nasty looking abrasions.
The riding is easy and beautiful and we make camp early at a campground with a picnic table. A treat to cook off the ground and a table to eat around, a deck of cards brought a lot of laughter and enjoyment to all.
We left Del Norte after a good breakfast, a stop at the post office, and a trip into a very well stocked pharmacy. The Post office had multiple parts from our water pump company and we finally have a pump that works like it should,yippe!!!! We think that our "new" one was defective out of the box, cause the one of the box at the PO works like our old pumps and is easy to use. The pharmacy had all we needed for wound care as Wiley is still sporting some nasty looking abrasions.
The riding is easy and beautiful and we make camp early at a campground with a picnic table. A treat to cook off the ground and a table to eat around, a deck of cards brought a lot of laughter and enjoyment to all.
Day 30, 42 miles.
Another good day of riding with good roads, we climb two passes of over 10,00 feet and we cruised along climbing hills and descending the back sides. We climb back into the trees and then finish the day by dropping into the tree less high plains. We camp without shade, the first time since the deserts of Central New Mexico.
Day 31, 51 miles.
We get up and ride, hoping to have a good day and to climb a little bit of the pass that blocks us from Salida, CO our next rest day with our first bike shop since day 3 of our trip. We ride all day and by the end of the day we have dropped a couple thousand of feet and regained it all back by climbing to over 10000 feet on the 10,800 foot pass that is between us and Salida. We finally make camp next to a stream back in the trees and shade. It was a good day and long mileage and a good deal of up,, we are feeling our strength and abilities. As we finish dinner we meet our first Tour divide racer, Cjell Money, who trained for the ride by riding a bike from Costa Rico to the Race Start where he hoped on his custom "single" speed. I put single in "" as his bike had two cogs on the rear wheel, two more on the front wheel which he can switch out with his rear, and a two speed crank. Cjell had a great attitude and was leading the race from the south. 5 days and he had caught up with us. sleeping as little as 4 hours a night he was putting down over 150 miles a day. He rode a different route thru New Mexico as the Gila National Forest we rode thru had been closed due to wildfires.. Cjell was cooking along. We were amazed at how little he had on his bike and were surprised to hear he had a sleeping bag, tent, down coat and spare shirt in a "saddlebag" that the size of a bread bag. I don't think he had much insulation in bag. I get why he only slept a few hour a night, he was freezing! He left us by pulling a riding a wheelie up the road. May he race hard and far.
Day 32, 31 miles
We get up in the cold mountain air and pack up to ride our last few miles and to the "pass". With spectacular view we continue up an old railroad grade to the pass. Almost at the top we meet a neat father son combo on motorcycles. from Alabama they are cruising the roads of colorado and Utah on small dirt bikes, traveling in an ultralight fashion. This was their second summer of exploring, they stated their adventure the summer before when the son turned 16. We were able to converse as they were in the process of swapping out a flat tire, I'd didn't envy the tire irons or the amount of pumping they had to do to replace the tire. A short but nice conversation before we continued on our climb, leading into our dreams of doing the same when Wiley turns 16.
We top out and begin our decent toward Salida, ah down hill, we cruise and we fly and by lunch time we are in Salida in time for lunch. We have arrived on the eve of FIBARK, which is the oldest or one of the oldest river festivals in the the north america. We find a great bike shop for looking over the bikes which have left me scratching my head on a regular basis. I can tune the brakes on monday night and on tuesday they will be great but on Wednesday they will be rubbing and dragging again. and I find myself undoing my monday tune, no rhyme or reason. We then go out to lunch and inhale some of the best pizza we've ever had. We'll have more for dinner..
Off to the hotel, for a pool , showers and tv.
Another good day of riding with good roads, we climb two passes of over 10,00 feet and we cruised along climbing hills and descending the back sides. We climb back into the trees and then finish the day by dropping into the tree less high plains. We camp without shade, the first time since the deserts of Central New Mexico.
Day 31, 51 miles.
We get up and ride, hoping to have a good day and to climb a little bit of the pass that blocks us from Salida, CO our next rest day with our first bike shop since day 3 of our trip. We ride all day and by the end of the day we have dropped a couple thousand of feet and regained it all back by climbing to over 10000 feet on the 10,800 foot pass that is between us and Salida. We finally make camp next to a stream back in the trees and shade. It was a good day and long mileage and a good deal of up,, we are feeling our strength and abilities. As we finish dinner we meet our first Tour divide racer, Cjell Money, who trained for the ride by riding a bike from Costa Rico to the Race Start where he hoped on his custom "single" speed. I put single in "" as his bike had two cogs on the rear wheel, two more on the front wheel which he can switch out with his rear, and a two speed crank. Cjell had a great attitude and was leading the race from the south. 5 days and he had caught up with us. sleeping as little as 4 hours a night he was putting down over 150 miles a day. He rode a different route thru New Mexico as the Gila National Forest we rode thru had been closed due to wildfires.. Cjell was cooking along. We were amazed at how little he had on his bike and were surprised to hear he had a sleeping bag, tent, down coat and spare shirt in a "saddlebag" that the size of a bread bag. I don't think he had much insulation in bag. I get why he only slept a few hour a night, he was freezing! He left us by pulling a riding a wheelie up the road. May he race hard and far.
Day 32, 31 miles
We get up in the cold mountain air and pack up to ride our last few miles and to the "pass". With spectacular view we continue up an old railroad grade to the pass. Almost at the top we meet a neat father son combo on motorcycles. from Alabama they are cruising the roads of colorado and Utah on small dirt bikes, traveling in an ultralight fashion. This was their second summer of exploring, they stated their adventure the summer before when the son turned 16. We were able to converse as they were in the process of swapping out a flat tire, I'd didn't envy the tire irons or the amount of pumping they had to do to replace the tire. A short but nice conversation before we continued on our climb, leading into our dreams of doing the same when Wiley turns 16.
We top out and begin our decent toward Salida, ah down hill, we cruise and we fly and by lunch time we are in Salida in time for lunch. We have arrived on the eve of FIBARK, which is the oldest or one of the oldest river festivals in the the north america. We find a great bike shop for looking over the bikes which have left me scratching my head on a regular basis. I can tune the brakes on monday night and on tuesday they will be great but on Wednesday they will be rubbing and dragging again. and I find myself undoing my monday tune, no rhyme or reason. We then go out to lunch and inhale some of the best pizza we've ever had. We'll have more for dinner..
Off to the hotel, for a pool , showers and tv.