Day 68: Saratoga, WY to Walden, CO; I'm In Colorado!

September 7, 2015

Notes:

1.) If you select the “Comment” link near the bottom of the page you can leave a message for me. I enjoy getting them.

2.) Climbing Today: 3,371 ft -- Total So Far; 160,670 ft

3.) Average Speed While Biking Today: 8.4 mph

4.) Mechanical Issues Today: none

5.) Miles Remaining to Canon City: about 243

6.) Miles Traveled to Date on This Half of the Journey: 1,757

7.) Money Found Today: $0.06

8.) Total Money Found: $1.10 (Will I find enough to buy a cup of coffee?)

9.) Current BAR (Bicycle Altitude Record): 9,584 Feet, Togwotee Pass

I was rolling early; so what else is new? If you want to see wildlife, you need to roll early. Let’s get some deer pics out of the way right up front. A mother dear had crossed the road, but her fawns couldn’t negotiate the fence on the other side and were calling to her to come back. She hesitated for a while because of my presence, then eventually ran back across and rejoined her fawns.

After Deciding I Wasn't A Threat, Mom Crossed the Road, Jumped the Fence, And They All Hightailed It The Other Way

And today I saw a lot of bucks;

Some Magnificient Bucks Out Early This Morning

When one of the herd decides it’s time to make a getaway, they tend to all go but at separate intervals. And that’s why it’s so dangerous when you see one deer cross the road in front of you while driving, as more may be following behind.

The Herd Decided To Flee, But Not All At Once

They Fled One at a Time, Forming A Long Row

I felt like taking a few sunrise photos today, so just deal with it, okay? You can just scroll through them quickly if you want.

How About a Couple Sunrise Pics? It Only Happens Once A Day And Most Folks Miss It

The road was wet, there were showers ahead of me, and the wind was blowing in my face a bit stronger than I had hoped.

Showers Were Falling Up Ahead, And All Around Me, But They Missed Me

Now would be a good time to stop for second breakfast, and that’s what I hoped to do at Riverside. Here’s the view approaching Riverside;

I was slowly climbing.

I Will Be Climbing For The Next 3.5 Days

I didn’t see any restaurants at Riverside, so I rolled into the adjoining town of Encampment, climbing 200 feet uphill to do so. When I inquired about a restaurant in Encampment, folks at a store there told me that the best restaurant was back in Riverside! If I had just continued on my route I would have encountered the Bear Trap restaurant as I was leaving town. Oh well; I’m sure my wife can relate to this particular idiosyncrasy of mine when it comes to directional incompetency. But I did roll back down the hill and found the Bear Trap as I was leaving Riverside and enjoyed a hearty second breakfast. Inside the restaurant, it was cold and folks were going back to their cars to retrieve jackets. It had been a cold day so far, but the effort of cycling had kept me warm. Until now, anyway. Once I settled down inside, I chilled down a bit myself. I didn’t want to leave the comfort of the restaurant, but I had 50 miles to go uphill before I get to sleep tonight. Child’s play.

When I was checking out and paying the bill, I asked the waitress if the restaurant was usually this busy. She said it was because of Labor Day; duh! I had forgotten about that. And that meant that I wouldn’t be able to mail the sockets home that I found 2 days ago, so I’ll have to carry them yet another day uphill. These “free” sockets were turning out to be more expensive than they’re worth.

Rolling on, it seemed that these folks were well stocked in hay.

Hay There! As Far As The Eye Can See Anyway

Somewhere up ahead is Colorado.

I was anxious to make it to the final state of this journey, but each mile demanded its own toll and you must take them one at a time. It was cloudy and occasionally I was getting some rain blowing in my face, but not too bad. I was feeling good after my second breakfast, and the labor was keeping me warm. At that moment in time, I was thinking that everyone in the world who wasn’t me was missing out, and I laughed out loud from that thought. Most folks wouldn’t understand. So Harvey and I rolled on, stopping occasionally to rest as needed.

There were rain clouds all around me, and I could see stringers hitting the ground in places, but none of them hit me.

Rain Clouds All Around, But I Only Got A Few Drops Now And Then

Here’s a nice big ranch spread I passed;

Today wasn’t supposed to be a particularly hard day, but there are steep climbs even on the “easy” days.

There Are Occasional Steep Climbs Even On "Easy" Days

It was beginning to look like Colorado now, and I was getting excited;

And I did eventually make it to Colorado.

I Made It! Deja Vu All Over Again, Colorado Was Where The First Half Of My Journey Ended

The Platte River system is an important source of water in Northern Colorado.

Not surprisingly, Northern Colorado is somewhat desolate and lonely in a way similar to southern Wyoming.

Not Surprising; Northern Colorado Looks A Lot Like Southern Wyoming

The timber industry plays a prominent economic role in Colorado as well. I thought this was a particularly large pile of sawdust, but I later learned that wasn’t so.

Wow - That's A Very Large Pile Of Sawdust

I eventually reached Walden, my destination for the night.

Hey now, maybe I’ll get lucky and get to photograph a moose! I did get lucky and added to the “found money” coffee fund as I found a rather badly beat-up nickel as I rolled into the town limits. I located the North Park Inn, checked in, and got busy doing laundry and cleaning myself as well. Then I barely had time to grab some food at the local café and get to bed. Cycle touring can demand a full day’s effort, and I did mine today. Good night everyone…

Today's ride: 70 miles (113 km)
Total: 4,054 miles (6,524 km)

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