I am sitting on a happily worn couch, with a quilt over my lap, 'cause it's a bit chilly in the mountains, in a century old rail station that has been turned into the signature building for a camp that rents cabins to tourists. The sun has started to rise but the mountains out our window are still in covered in shade, waiting warm their surface so that the spring cycle of flowers and food can continue anew, just like it did over a hundred years ago when this cabin was a spanking new rail terminal (likely serving a mining town) and the million years before, when mother earth was doing it's thing, building and eroding mountains and shaping the land into the playground for 5 guys on bikes. I realize that this is a selfish thought but it sets the stage to try and explain what we experienced in today's ride.
My limited vocabulary or business and computer terms cannot begin to describe what we experienced in this Colorado ride. Photos cannot reproduce the images that flooded our brains because technology cannot capture the panoramas and emotion that ten eyes in motion observed this day. Combine the wide variety of landscapes that make up the aging mountain range that is the stage for our adventure, with the wide open sensory input that can only be experienced on a motorcycle, on a bright and sunny day, with just enough clouds to give the sky some character. Sprinkle the varying scent of wild forest, snow melting on mountain peaks, pine forests, and one starts to get an inkling of our experience.
To understand our experience, one needs to understand the stage for this grand adventure. The rockies in this area are middle aged. that means that the peaks have risen and are well in their erosion process. The mountains are somewhat rounded because their original exteriors have eroded into layers of pebble and stone through wind, water and gravity. Rivers have formed to carry off the meltwater from the thick snow pack and in their process, cut valleys and created plateaus, and everything in between. Many of the roads, follow old abandoned rail lines that followed the rivers through the valleys. It is here where we cut across steep canyons, where there is mountain above, with warning signs and barriers to protect the little humans from "falling rocks" as they succumb to wind, water and gravity. On these roads, we need to be warned and protected from the forces that shaped this incredible area. In the canyons, the water cuts deep - one has heard water described as the universal solvent, a hypothesis that is proven her in majestic splendour.
The rivers run fast here and depending on the hardness of the surrounding rock, create sculptures of a variety and randomness that require years of university study to classify. For us, it creates eye popping vistas. River home are incredibly popular here and the homes have impressive entrance roads that often need to cross cross the river over a custom bridge, but all twist up a hill to get to a safe spot that will not be swept away in one of the massive spring floods that occasionally rush through here. The tell tale is the river debris that can sit 50 feet up the canyon wall - can't imagine the volume of water required to accomplish that.
From the rivers, we climb up switch backs to the notch between mountains. These paved roads were once horse paths and followed the only way to navigate to the different towns. One wonders that motivated the early settlers to build the paths and the suffering they experience while discovering and developing the paths. At this time of the year, the tops of mountains are still covered in snow. The air temperatures are no less than 6C but we did switch to cold weather clothing while at the top. A lot of riding is done at 10,000 feet or more. The ride up is all about enjoying each curve and avoiding the drop-offs while gawking at the scenery. The many signs advising us to avoid wildlife advertise mountain goats, elk, deer and cattle. When we reach the top, a sign advertises our altitude and the name of the original explorer that this pass is dedicated to. At the peak, on the other side, the geology changes, and we are rewarded with another spectacular vista, completely different than the one that engulfed us on the ride up. We pause to marvel, and press on, eager to absorb the sights and smells that this part of God's creation has served up for us.
The mountain plains can be at high altitude or in valley levels. In each one, a river dominates the scene with bushes, trees and grasses that have fought to establish their existence in what can be a hostile world. One one of these rides, we learned what caused the apparent "snow" that we saw during the night drive to Colorado springs. It's flowers. There are fields covered in these small white flowers, so dense, that it looks like snow. I guess that they have a small window to flower in the spring, and they saved their show - just for us.
Enjoying nature drives our activity on this ride. We don't go fast because we want to enjoy the canvas that each ares presents to us and we are afraid we'll miss the details. We don't go fast because herds of deer or elk cross the highways. We stop frequently to hydrate because the dry mountain air parches the mouth. Having said that, the variety of roads provides all the technical one could ever want. We don't ride fast because pods of po-po are everywhere - perhaps it's just memorial week end - but they were active.
Tom has been scheming for the next ride and we are starting to prepare our gear. He gets this gleeful look on his face, claps his hand and announces "Gentlemen (he uses that phrase generously), we have a fantastic ride ahead of us" and we just smile inside, knowing that we'll be tired this evening, but satisfied in ways that only a bike tour can provide.
I can't explain why we do this adventuring, but when in the midst, one can't imaging why someone would sit on a beach or visit an artificial theme park. One doesn't need to visit foreign lands to find adventure. North America can dish out more than a lifetime worth - if you seek it out. And with that, we start the next day's adventure.
My limited vocabulary or business and computer terms cannot begin to describe what we experienced in this Colorado ride. Photos cannot reproduce the images that flooded our brains because technology cannot capture the panoramas and emotion that ten eyes in motion observed this day. Combine the wide variety of landscapes that make up the aging mountain range that is the stage for our adventure, with the wide open sensory input that can only be experienced on a motorcycle, on a bright and sunny day, with just enough clouds to give the sky some character. Sprinkle the varying scent of wild forest, snow melting on mountain peaks, pine forests, and one starts to get an inkling of our experience.
To understand our experience, one needs to understand the stage for this grand adventure. The rockies in this area are middle aged. that means that the peaks have risen and are well in their erosion process. The mountains are somewhat rounded because their original exteriors have eroded into layers of pebble and stone through wind, water and gravity. Rivers have formed to carry off the meltwater from the thick snow pack and in their process, cut valleys and created plateaus, and everything in between. Many of the roads, follow old abandoned rail lines that followed the rivers through the valleys. It is here where we cut across steep canyons, where there is mountain above, with warning signs and barriers to protect the little humans from "falling rocks" as they succumb to wind, water and gravity. On these roads, we need to be warned and protected from the forces that shaped this incredible area. In the canyons, the water cuts deep - one has heard water described as the universal solvent, a hypothesis that is proven her in majestic splendour.
The rivers run fast here and depending on the hardness of the surrounding rock, create sculptures of a variety and randomness that require years of university study to classify. For us, it creates eye popping vistas. River home are incredibly popular here and the homes have impressive entrance roads that often need to cross cross the river over a custom bridge, but all twist up a hill to get to a safe spot that will not be swept away in one of the massive spring floods that occasionally rush through here. The tell tale is the river debris that can sit 50 feet up the canyon wall - can't imagine the volume of water required to accomplish that.
From the rivers, we climb up switch backs to the notch between mountains. These paved roads were once horse paths and followed the only way to navigate to the different towns. One wonders that motivated the early settlers to build the paths and the suffering they experience while discovering and developing the paths. At this time of the year, the tops of mountains are still covered in snow. The air temperatures are no less than 6C but we did switch to cold weather clothing while at the top. A lot of riding is done at 10,000 feet or more. The ride up is all about enjoying each curve and avoiding the drop-offs while gawking at the scenery. The many signs advising us to avoid wildlife advertise mountain goats, elk, deer and cattle. When we reach the top, a sign advertises our altitude and the name of the original explorer that this pass is dedicated to. At the peak, on the other side, the geology changes, and we are rewarded with another spectacular vista, completely different than the one that engulfed us on the ride up. We pause to marvel, and press on, eager to absorb the sights and smells that this part of God's creation has served up for us.
The mountain plains can be at high altitude or in valley levels. In each one, a river dominates the scene with bushes, trees and grasses that have fought to establish their existence in what can be a hostile world. One one of these rides, we learned what caused the apparent "snow" that we saw during the night drive to Colorado springs. It's flowers. There are fields covered in these small white flowers, so dense, that it looks like snow. I guess that they have a small window to flower in the spring, and they saved their show - just for us.
Enjoying nature drives our activity on this ride. We don't go fast because we want to enjoy the canvas that each ares presents to us and we are afraid we'll miss the details. We don't go fast because herds of deer or elk cross the highways. We stop frequently to hydrate because the dry mountain air parches the mouth. Having said that, the variety of roads provides all the technical one could ever want. We don't ride fast because pods of po-po are everywhere - perhaps it's just memorial week end - but they were active.
Tom has been scheming for the next ride and we are starting to prepare our gear. He gets this gleeful look on his face, claps his hand and announces "Gentlemen (he uses that phrase generously), we have a fantastic ride ahead of us" and we just smile inside, knowing that we'll be tired this evening, but satisfied in ways that only a bike tour can provide.
I can't explain why we do this adventuring, but when in the midst, one can't imaging why someone would sit on a beach or visit an artificial theme park. One doesn't need to visit foreign lands to find adventure. North America can dish out more than a lifetime worth - if you seek it out. And with that, we start the next day's adventure.
Keep the stories coming Mike. Looking forward to some pics. Say hello to all the boys and tell Tom I certainly hope it was not him that went helmetless. ;)
ReplyDelete" Why we do this adventuring? " you ask.
ReplyDeleteI can think of one reason:
" The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page." St.Augustine