Road Trip #4 Day 4 - The road home - brrrr....

August 20, 2012
Colorado USA

Well... after a great night's rest at the Hotel Eastin, we packed up and rolled out of Kremmling CO just after 8 am, bundled up because the skies were gray and threatening and the temp was struggling to get to 40 degrees.

We traveled Hwy 34 east to Granby, marveling at the skies and the lush, green terrain and surprised because we had forgotten about Byers Canyon. But really after a few miles, the only thing on our minds was a warm place to park for a while, lots of hot coffee and a big steaming breakfast. The Chuck Wagon Cafe was the place we chose mostly because it is the first stop and we know the food, while not fancy is always good. We ordered the works and lingered trying to let the day gain a little heat. Before leaving, we added another layer to our clothing.

We backtracked a bit out of Granby, deciding to travel Hwy 125 north through Rand and Walden rather than ride through Rocky Mountain National Park in inclement weather. It was cloudy, sometimes damp and very chilly for most of the ride. We saw geese headed south as we were mounting up. It's August for Pete's sake! It did not feel much like summer.

Along this stretch of road is Wilkerson Pass at the Continental Divide (elevation 9683). We fueled in Walden and rolled along familiar Hwy 14 dodging rain clouds through north park and down the Poudre Canyon. We were grateful there wasn't rain in the canyon as the burn scar is going to be prone to flash flooding, mud and rock slides for a long time to come. The waters ran black at the end of the canyon. Temps rose to near 60 degrees as we rode down the canyon, a welcome respite from the chill of the higher elevations. Woo Hoo! A heat wave!

We rolled in just after 2 pm, ready to shed damp clothes and warm up a bit. We rarely do so after a ride but today we had coffee instead of beer on the patio. Ha!

Slide show of today's ride = 132 photos

Alternate link to this slide show

What a great Vet Rally weekend! We cannot wait to do it again next year!

Today's Ride = 457.6 miles
This road trip = 765.4 miles
Total mileage on The Ride = 39453 s'miles!