Stymied

The weather has turned very hot (upper 90's) for the past few days and will continue to be hot for the rest of our stay here in Colorado Springs.  This weekend we get a break.  Saturday's high is predicted to be in the low seventies.  We are planning to do something, but haven't quite decided what yet.

Next week the temp is supposed to be in the low 90's.  I'm not sure we can work in any hiking, but perhaps we can fit in some touring in the mornings before it gets too warm.  We have one ride and a couple of historical places that we hope to visit before we leave next Thursday.

Meanwhile, Duane continues to get in a few pickleball games in the mornings while I do whatever floats my boat.

 In the afternoons we either do our do our chores or just hole up through the heat of the day, and have pity for the people who have to boondock in the parking lot with no hookups. 

 As is the case in most rv parks recently, the COS  (local speak for Colorado Springs) Elks is  nearly full with long term people who never leave.   There are 13 spots here.  There are ten rigs in the parking lot waiting for a spot.

Keeping cool at home today.

Louise and Duane

Top And Bottom

Wandering around the top of Pikes Peak I remembered two things.  One was that I had forgotten to put water into the bike saddlebag.  When we're out on the bike I'm usually careful to take lots of breaks to stretch and rehydrate.  It's very easy to get dehydrated on the bike, especially for old people like us.  The other thing was that we should get a drink and move slowly.  High altitudes can cause altitude sickness within a very short time.  Symptoms include headaches and jaw pain, dizziness, muscle and body aches, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, swollen hands, legs and feet, rapid heartbeat, and shortness of breath.  Duane and I usually get mild headaches.  

That said, people were enjoying themselves browsing the gift shop, marveling at the views, and even hiking around.  We took our time too before we started back down.  

Going up on a bike is harder than going down.  Riders have to watch for cars stopped in the middle of the road or taking the center line around curves, both of which can force them to lay down their bikes on the road, or get too close to the edge .  On sharp uphill turns they have to manipulate the throttle, the clutch and the rear brake simultaneously and be aware of any strong breeze or wind while trying not to be distracted by any spectacular scenery.  On the way down riders only have to set the clutch and finesse the brake.  Also downhill the views open up more in front of the road and riders can enjoy the scenery without looking to the side as much.  On a bike wherever you're looking is where the bike's going to go. 

Back down at the subalpine treeline--11000+'

We repassed miles fencing and porta pots in areas where spectators watched the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb last week.  The first Hill Climb took place in 1916 with a winning time of 20:55.60 minutes.  In 1984 the first European racers took part.  In 2002 the City of Colorado Springs began to pave the highway to prevent further gravel erosion.  2012 was the first time the race was run on all asphalt and the first motorcycle made the run in less than 10 minutes.  Today the track runs 12.42 miles over 156 turns and climbs 4720 ft. from the start at Miles 7 (at the level of the reservoirs) on the Pikes Peak Highway to the finish at 14,110 on grades averaging 7.2%.  Last week an electric car broke the latest time record with a winning time of 7:57.148 minutes.

Our trip up took about 1/2 hour.

There aren't a lot of viewpoint pull offs on the road, but this one was worth the stop.  

 At the bottom again at Cascade, we enjoyed a glimpse of Fountain Creek.

To finish our anniversary celebration, we treated ourselves to pizza.  On a whim we picked this place because it was close to the Elks Club.  It was unassuming outside 

and in.  The pizza was excellent, just the way we like it with thin crust, very little sauce, tasty toppings, and plenty of cheese.

In addition to wonderfully twisty roads and spectacular scenery, we saw several bicycle riders.  I wondered how they kept going in the higher altitudes.

We were wildlife deprived.  We saw only a single marmot.

In this pic I noticed that black spot.  I thought it was a bird way out there.  What do you think?

We have another week here and a few more sights to see.

Louise and Duane

PS.  I zoomed way in on that black spot.  I'm pretty sure it's a butterfly!

Way Up There!

26 years ago we were getting married in Duane's back yard with horses looking over the fence.  Today we were far, far away from that life, flying the Eagle through the beautiful red rock canyon on our way to

the highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains in North America and the highest point we've been on land--Pikes Peak, which tops out at 14,115' above sea level.

The city of Colorado Springs maintains the road as a toll road.  We paid $15 per person for the privilege of riding the road.

The only way to go was up and up we went,

 and up 

and up 

and up!

Guess who was hugging the center line here!

Our first view of the top.  Parking is limited, so that sometimes only motorcycles are allowed to ride all the way to the top. The large building houses a gift shop and small cafe and eating area.

When we left Colorado Springs the temp was 84.  When we arrived at the summit the temp was low to mid 50's.  I was comfy in my sweatshirt.  Duane was too warm with his leather jacket on and too chilly with it off.

Looking out from here we can see

Continuing left looking in a complete circle as we walked around the building we saw:

 where the Cog Train reaches the Summit ,

  

Manitou Springs and Colorado Springs

a view of Crystal Reservoir,

and South and North Catamount Reservoirs.

Tomorrow--down again.

Louise and Duane

Fun Stuff

When we visited the Harley Store the other day we took time to tour their little bike museum.  I always like to see the original style motor bikes.

On American Pickers, Mike Wolfe is always looking for knuckle head bikes.  The knobs on the head (just under the gas tank) make this a knuckle head.

No knobs here--this one's a pan head.

This army bike is well equipped.

Huh?

" All originals"  are rare.

 Harleys in the Royal Gorge parking lot.

At the end was a Slingshot--two wheels in front, one in back, with side-by-side seats.

Seen in the Elks parking lot.

The best ride of all.

Tomorrow the Eagle flies again.

Louise and Duane

Circling The Peak

Today we made a 150 mile loop ride around Pike's Peak.  From Colorado Springs we hopped I25 for a short ride south  to US 87 then CO 115.  Our goal today was to enjoy the weather, the scenery, and the ride. We get a lot of our rides from Roadrunner Motorcycle magazine. I can down load the gps map from the web site and then transfer them to the gps on the bike.

115 took us to US 50 for the southern leg of the ride.  Just outside Can(y)on  City we diverted to Skyline Dr.  for a ride across that hogback ridge up there.

View of 50 from the ridge.  Duane just loved the way the road dropped off--NOT!

This ride may have been a bit nerve-wracking for Duane, but it was worth it.  It is one way, so there is no problem with hogging the middle of the road.  

This view shows the way we came with US 50 on the left.

Opposite view.  50 is now on the right, Canyon City is spread out on the left.  We came up the right side of the hill, and will snake down the left side back to Canyon City, then complete the circle on 50.  Duane and the bike are on the right in the pull-off.

A few miles down the road we diverted again to get a view of Royal Gorge.  We parked and walked to the Visitor Center where we discovered that  Canyon City has made this into a tourist attraction.  We were unable to walk out on the bridge (on the left) to view the gorge 

because we were unwilling to pay.  We were directed back up through the parking lot 

to this free viewing platform.  This is the best view of the gorge.  It goes down a lot further with the Arkansas River at the bottom.

After that disappointment we had no other plan than to enjoy the next 40 miles of scenic highways 9, 11 and 1 to Cripple Creek, and perhaps enjoy some lunch if someplace presented itself.

As I mentioned earlier, we were riding around Pikes Peak and were able to get glimpses of it from time to time as in the pic below.

The ride was wonderfully scenic and fun to ride.

Cripple Creek was another disappointment.  We cruised the main drag for someplace to eat and found only large casinos.  We didn't bother to look further, but kept riding.

Up we went to a view point above the town.  In the distance we could see the Spanish Peaks, then the Sangre De Christo range, both of which we briefly visited last month when we were visiting New Mexico. 

Next to them is the Sawach Range, seen through Pancha Pass.  Millions of years ago when volcanic activity formed this area, the Arkansas and Colorado Rivers both flowed in the same direction.  When the activity ceased, the Arkansas River had been diverted to run east. 

At the pass is a view of (I think) Poncha Peak.

That's our road over there. 

As we were approaching our turn onto CO 67 we were surprised when this mule deer suddenly jumped onto the road in front of us and ran across the road.

She went right up into the trees.  Can you see her?  Look between the two trees.  Her head and ears are just visible.

In the town of Divide we finally stopped for a bite in this tiny little bbq place.  They were out of pulled pork and their prices were dear, but we finally settled for a brisket and a chicken sandwich and a can of diet Coke--a total of $21.00!  Ouch!

By this time we were only a few miles (relatively speaking) from home.  In Woodland Park we had a view of Pike's Peak's north face with a bit of snow showing, and picked up US 24.

We were back in traffic again, but we enjoyed our ride through the red rock canyon between Manitou Springs and home.

Even with our minor disappointments, the ride was still beautiful and fun.

A day off tomorrow.

Louise and Duane