Rocky
Mountain Ride
© Alan
Greer
, 2002
The old John Denver song kept going through my mind on
the flight from San Diego to Denver. Maybe it helped keep me
from being nervous about buying a motorcycle sight unseen. But
when I finally got to Ft. Collins and saw the bike for the first
time it erased all my apprehensions. It looked just like what a
seven year old motorcycle with 1942 miles on it should look
like.
The seller
suggested a route to avoid Denver for the ride back from Ft.
Collins, so the first night was spent in Estes Park. The ride
there was filled with the type of scenery that Colorado is
famous for, twisties following the routes of meandering streams
with mountains on both sides covered in green trees, very nice!
Day two
started out a bit cooler, with the temperature at 42 degrees as
I left the hotel. The original plan was to ride through Rocky
Mountain National Park, but a snow overnight caused a change in
route. Colorado
is a beautiful state, but the weather there must make for a
short riding season, snow in May? The alternate route had a few
sections at over 9000 feet and brought me out on I-70 near the
Eisenhower Tunnel. It's over 9000 feet in elevation. It was very
cold and windy, with blowing snow mixed in to keep it
interesting. The heated grips on the bike were a greatly
appreciated option. After the tunnel I stopped in Dillon to thaw
out and drink a gallon of coffee.
I crossed
into Utah on 70 and headed toward the Moab cutoff. The road
along state route 128 toward Moab follows the Red River Canyon,
and its like riding at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. It's not
to be missed if the opportunity ever presents itself.
Day three
started with plans of visiting several National Parks. The first
stop was Arches National Park and what I thought would be a
short visit ended up lasting several hours, with unreal vistas
presenting themselves at every mile in the park. I wanted to
get to Nevada that night so the late afternoon and early evening
was spent on a bun numbing run to Mesquite Nevada and a night at
the Virgin River Casino.
Day four
was going to be a short day, with the goal for that night being
Beatty, Nevada. A quick ride to Las Vegas, then north on Hwy 95
and I was in Beatty by early afternoon. Plenty of time for a
quick ride to the ghost town of Rhyolite, a mandatory stop
whenever I'm in the neighborhood. Then back to Beatty to my room
at the Exchange Club.
There are
several interesting small bars in the area. One is the hangout
for the drivers who desert test cars before they're put into
production. The walls are covered with items donated by the
different test teams and it's fun to check the stuff out while
enjoying a beer at the end of the day.
Day five
started early with a short ride into California and zigzagging
down the hill into Death Valley. The ride is fun with little
traffic and views at every bend. On the
Valley flood the first stop is Furnace Creek, with a quick visit
to the museum to see what's new, check the weather, and pay the
park entrance fee. My next stop was Dante's View, a twisty road
that winds to the top of a mountain range that offers a
spectacular view of Death Valley. Directly below is Badwater,
which at 287 feet below sea level is the lowest spot in the
United States.
While up at
Dante's View two other BMW riders rode in. Their bikes were only a
few years old and they both had over 40000 miles on them. They
wondered why there were only 3000 miles on my seven year old
bike. I asked for a break since I only had the bike four days!
Back down
into the Valley and a ride to Badwater, followed by a ride
across Artists Palette, my favorite road in Death Valley. It's a
one way road, only about seven miles long, but the swoops up and
down and the narrow passes make this a real fun slow speed road.
Afternoon was passing, so it was time to leave the Valley and
head for Ridgecrest for the night.
Day five
started with mixed emotions, glad to be heading home, but sorry
to have the ride ending. The 220 miles back to San Diego passed
quickly, and I introduced the new bike to the R90 sitting in the
garage. The trip home covered over 1400 miles in five days,
which wasn't much shy of what the original owner put on the bike
in seven years.
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