Spoiling for California

[spoilsport]

The Plan: A 3k mile tour of CO, AZ, CA, AZ, and UT with my colleague and friend,Ford, mixing business with riding. For the last three years, we've kicked off the season with a big ride to our group's annual business conference. This year it moved from AZ to CA, adding miles to the trip. Got my '08 in February and have had a couple of shake down rides (clicky) and figured out I needed a new screen, seat, grounding harness, and power distribution. So, I set to work on getting those done before departure. Ended up installing a Sargent seat, V-stream screen, Brodie harness and a fuzeblock. Bike has just under 12k so did a service, too. Left Denver at 8:30 on Thursday morning to beautiful weather without Ford, who was suddenly grounded by his doctor. More on that later...

Passing through Grant I looked up on the hillside right next to me and saw these guys....

Big Horn Sheep

The view of South Park from Kenosha Pass on US285

Rolling into Buena Vista - Mt. Princeton under a blanket of fresh spring snow.

 

[spoilsport]

Once over Poncha Pass, I headed southwest toward Durango, crossing the Rio Grande at Del Norte.

The Rio Grande

This marker in the center of town commemorates its 25th anniversary which was celebrated on July 4, 1897.

Still quite a lot of snow at Wolf Creek Pass and some fresh snow in the trees on April 28th, but the road is in good shape.

Quite a lovely view awaits at the summit of Wolf Creek Pass.

Treasure Falls is worth a stop on the way down. It's roaring today.

This guy is looking for a hand out.

 

[spoilsport]

I spotted a picnic table and had a quick lunch consisting of carrots, crackers, salami, apple, and peanut butter. Then I was back on the road heading for Pagosa Springs.

Pagosa is renowned for it's hot springs which now have nice hotels built up around them. Looks like a great place to spend a day.

I'd enjoy that about now, but it's onward to Durango.

Got to Durango at about 4pm and checked in to the Durango Lodge. I've stayed there once before and really like it. It's downtown close to some great restaurants and shopping, right around the corner from the Durango and Silverton narrow gauge railway station. Had a great Mexican dinner at Tequilas and put a call in to Ford to see how his tests went. Unfortunately, what was supposed to be a simple stent was scrapped in favor of quintuple bypass surgery (what David Letterman had) now scheduled for the following day. mg: Packed in early for a good nights rest.

Durango & Silverton Train

 

[Crash Cash]

That train pic is SWEET. I'd *love* to ride a honest-to-god steam train, but just seeing one is cool enough.

 

[spoilsport]

Hit a nice weather window. The day before I departed, chain laws were in effect for the mountain passes. One day later and the roads were clear and the sun was out. My backup was to bomb down to Socorro, NM and cut across to AZ. Glad I didn't have to do that. This route is shorter and prettier.

Grabbed a free muffin and some cereal at the front desk and hit the road about 7AM. So far I'm loving the Sargent seat. Under it I have a 12v pump and a tire plug kit and some tools. The last time I rode through the Navajo Nation I had a flat, and the time after that I blew the clutch spline on my BMW R1100S, so I'm not taking any chances in my "Bermuda Triange" this time through. The kit should fix the tires and the FJR should fix the Beemer problem . Here's today's route:

durango to flagstaff

The slight northern detour takes me through Mexican Hat, one of my favorite desert towns, as well as through Monument Valley.

 

[Denver_FJR]

Nice ride. My fear when hitting the Colorado passes in spring is the hidden ice spots, or run-off that refreezes over night. Didn't sound like you hit anything like that though. Did you confirm road condition with CDOT before heading out or simply gauge it as you went?

 

[TomInPA]

Sweet! get the Monument Valley, skip the Grand Canyon and you are west bound and down on I-40 US66. So far I love your route. 285 south through Colorado, and picking up 160 westbound, it doesn't get better than that. I did the route in 2005, and would love to pick it up again soon. I had to do Grand Canyon, but I felt like a tourist.

What's next?

 

[spoilsport]

Nice ride. My fear when hitting the Colorado passes in spring is the hidden ice spots, or run-off that refreezes over night. Didn't sound like you hit anything like that though. Did you confirm road condition with CDOT before heading out or simply gauge it as you went?

[/quote

Good point. It's smart to be wary of Colorado roads. I ride the passes in the winter, too, and I've learned to be very cautious and be flexible in my route. I didn't expect to ride this route and didn't commit until the morning of departure and had two back up routes selected, one of which went southeast to Amarillo and avoided all passes. Despite the snow the previous day, the mountain high temps had been pretty warm the previous week and I figured that black ice was very unlikely - but possible. CDOT's road conditions web site and web cams indicated dry roads this morning. I was very lucky to catch a window of great weather.

 

[spoilsport]

Traveling south on 160. passing through Mancos, brought back memories of when I blew the clutch spline on the Beemer in Oct of '09. I was surprised to discover a competent wrench in the unlikely location of Mancos, CO, southwest of Durango. They did a great job repairing the transmission. Stop in and say hi, if you're passing through there. It's a nice little town, with a great bakery.

Basin Motorcycle Works - Mancos, CO

I took a hydration break at Bluff, UT. Tucked back off the hiway a few hundred yards is a great restaurant and trading post. It's not visible from the road, but you can't miss the sign!

Twin Rocks Trading Post and Cafe

 

[wheatonFJR]

I'm subscribed to this thread...man, your ride reports rock! :clapping:

I'll look at it in depth when I get back from Kali on the 30th...

 

[spoilsport]

I'm subscribed to this thread...man, your ride reports rock! :clapping:

I'll look at it in depth when I get back from Kali on the 30th...

Have a great ride, Wheaton. Sounds like you're in for a week of partying out there!

 

[Denver_FJR]

The view of South Park from Kenosha Pass on US285

Ha! The missus and I stayed in a nice B&B north of Fairplay two weekends ago, but it looked different then. While there a snow storm moved in and covered the area in few inches of white stuff. Was tempted to take the FJR but weather report was just too much, glad I didn't.

 

[spoilsport]

I really enjoy Mexican Hat. One day I'd like to arrange to overnight there. I'd stay at the San Juan Inn, which looks like a great place to hang out with a 6 pack of Corona. It's a small village of about 100 people on the banks of the San Juan river and is named after a rock formation that resembles a Mexican hat. There are four motels, a gas station and some restaurants and it's a put-in point for raft trips on the San Juan and not far away are the Valley of the Gods and Muley Point.

The Mexican Hat - 60 feet in diameter

The San Juan Inn

Wild Horse taking a drink

Entering the Navajo Nation

Monument Valley

 

[ynotride]

Very nice pictures and report :clapping: Wish my camera and the operator took pictures like that

 

[ynotride]

The Mexican Hat - 60 feet in diameter

A picture I took. I like yours better

 

[spoilsport]

Next stop is the Cameron Trading Post, Cameron, AZ. It is a real oasis in the middle of nowhere. Many of these so called trading posts are just convenience stores with a stucco facade, but Cameron is the real thing. It is situated on the banks of the Little Colorado and is a convenient rest stop for those on their way to the Grand Canyon (west) or Phoenix (south). When it was built, after a suspension bridge was put in over the Lil Colo, it attracted Navajo and Hopi Indian artisans who sold their wares to travelers passing through. That hasn't changed, as this place has some of the nicest (and most expensive) Indian crafts you'll find anywhere. The beautiful group of buildings includes a hotel, post office, trading post, and restaurant. Enough talk. I'm hungry!

Typical Building Construction in Cameron

Two big groups of riders were there when I stopped - a Harley group and a Goldwing group. Some Goldwing guys came over, admiring the FJR. They were on a day ride out of Prescott and came up just to have the Navajo Flatbread Taco. Apparently, this place is famous for them. Of course, I had to try one.

Navajo Flatbread Taco

Fantastic Dining Room

Check the price on this basket - and it's probably worth it!

The lodge, overlooking the river. The suspension bridge was built in 1911.

 

[Willie]

Lovin the RR and Pictures...makes me feel like I did the trip

Willie

 

[spoilsport]

I promised to say more about Ford. Well, he's my motorcycle god. If we were lucky, we had someone who taught us the ropes and he's the guy I listened to when I started riding. He steered me away from evil, and toward the path of righteousness - if you get my drift. He was on my mind all day. So, when I got to Flagstaff and called to check up on him, I was relieved to hear that his surgery was a success and he was resting in intensive care. :yahoo:

My riding buddy, Ford

His doc says it's OK for me to start razzing him again. If you want to help, send him a note and tell him to get off his lazy *** and get back on the bike...Email Ford

In Flagstaff, the wind was blowing so hard I couldn't talk on the cell phone to make a reservation for the night. I was really ready to be off the bike for the day. So, I just rode down US89/historic66 and checked into the first place that looked OK (which turned out to be across the street from some very active train tracks). When I finally got situated, I was so tired I just had an apple and some crackers for dinner and went right to bed. I was up at dawn the next morning, ate a Larabar and hit the road. No, not I40/US66, the road less traveled... 89A

 

[Bugnatr]

Nice report, fun read. The twin Rocks Trading Post brought back some good times from a few years back. I was with my riding bud Tom (he's been my Ford) so can relate to a good riding friend. Godspeed to Ford and hope he can ride with you soon.

I know all to well about the F*cking trains in Flagstaff every 20-40 minutes all night long :angry2: