June 27th - Monarch Crest Trail - Ponch Springs

On Tuesday morning at 7am, Rob and I met our shuttle driver in Poncha Springs, which is just outside of Salida. It was suggested that we ride early because of the daily afternoon thunderstorms. He took us to the top of Monarch Pass, which was at 11,312 feet and we would then climb for another hour before starting a mostly downhill ride.

At the top, we encountered snow and some amazing views! We kept checking over our shoulders, as the thunderheads were forming early. We managed to make it off a high ridge before the storm started cooking, but we didn't dodge the rain and the wind. We had intended to ride the Rainbow Trail on the way down (44 mile option), but due to weather we went with the Silver Creek Trail, which was around 35 miles. Another amazing, epic ride that we loved! This is a must-do ride if you're anywhere near Salida!

June 26th - Colorado Trail @ Junction Creek

On Monday we packed up our camp. We would have liked another week in Durango, as the area was rife with amazing trails, road rides, good restaurants, river playspots, etc. Before departing, we squeezed in one final ride on the Colorado Trail, starting at Junction Creek to Hoffheins Connection and back on the Colorado Trail. This was a favorite trail of ours for sure.

We then headed east on 160, passing through some small mountain towns. We stopped in Pagosa Springs to eat our tailgate lunch and check out the hot springs and whitewater park. Pagosa was a very cute town - next time we'd like to spend a day or two here exploring. In Pagosa we stopped at the Choke Cherry Tree shop, which was filled with jelly, jerkey, chocoloate, etc. Check out the photo of their sign. We've been enjoying Deer Droppings ever since we stopped by. ;)

June 25th - Mesa Verde National Park

Here are a few photos - more details to come about our visit!

June 24th - Horse Gulch Trails & Durango Whitewater Park

On Saturday we saw the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge train pass right behind our campsite. We didn't have time to take the train trip, but would love to do it next time we're in the area.

We decided to take it easy with a short ride at Horse Gulch. This trail system is blocks away from Durango's downtown and is filled with 40+ miles of singletrack. We were so jealous of the locals.

After riding, we went to a local coffee shop and over to Durango MTB Specialists to have Aimee's brakes checked out. Then we drove less than 2 miles to the Durango whitewater park where Rob played on the Animas River. He had to dodge the local college kids who were floating down the river on giant turtle and sea horse pool toys. After the play session, we drove to St. Columbia so Aimee could attend mass. Afterwards we hit the grocery store, cooked dinner at camp and did some laundry!

June 23rd - Hermosa Creek Trail - Durango

On Friday we arranged for a shuttle to Purgatory Ski area which is 8 miles from the start of the Hermosa Creek trail, making this a 31.5 mile ride. The first 4 miles involved a steep forest service road climb, the following 4 were rolling hills and the remainder was sweet singletrack that generally flowed downhill. There were three tough climbs at the end, but they were over soon enough. We enjoyed the beautiful views of the creek, alpine meadows and mountain vistas. Beautiful!

Later that day we drove out to Lake Vallecito with intentions to camp. We decided that the lake was too far from town, so we headed back to a campground closer to Durango. On the way, we got caught in a traffic jam caused by an enormous herd of sheep. These guys smelled awful and were quite vocal when we tried to drive through the chaos.

June 22nd - On to Durango

On Thursday morning, we packed up our gear and left Crested Butte. We hated to leave our little campsite at Lake Irwin, as it was so peaceful and pretty, but it was time to cover new ground. On our way out of town, we went for a road ride along the Taylor River in Almont which was beautiful. After the ride, we continued on through Gunnison to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison River National Park. The canyon was absoultely stunning - dark canyon walls that make Tallulah look tiny. The Gunnison River rages through this canyon and you could easily see the busy class V whitewater below. If you're ever in Colorado, this is a must-see.

After checking out the canyon we continued south to Durango, passing through Montrose, Silverton, and Ouray. Rob gets props for driving on US 550, it was the most scary road I've ever seen. Hairpin turns around the mountain and no guard rail! I had a hard time looking out the window.

We arrived in Durango around 9pm and decided to crash at a hotel instead of setting up camp in the dark.

June 21st - Summer Solstice

To celebrate the true beginning of summer, we decided to ride the 401 trail in Crested Butte. Alison told us this was her favorite trail, so we decided to check it out. Rob and I both agree, it was the coolest ride we've ever done. The trail began with a long, grueling 7 mile climb on forest service roads and tight singletrack dotted with snow patches. The following 7 miles contained the most epic singletrack we're ever seen. Wildflowers up to your hips, amazing views and ribbons of singletrack etched into the side of the mountain, and outstanding views.

After the ride we headed into CB to do some laundry and then headed back to Lake Irwin to have dinner. Post dinner, Rob went for a paddle on the Lake. A great day, indeed!

June 20th - Crested Butte & Gunnison

Today we decided to take it easy with an hour long mtb ride at one of the local trails in Crested Butte. You could reach this trail by riding right out of town - the locals do this one after work. We are jealous! Wild flowers, great climbs and views of Oh-be-Joyful Creek - which has some sick class V drops in it. Little Mark, this has your name written all over it. ;)

After riding we headed over to Gunnison to play at the whitewater park in town. Rob played until his arms fell off and I practiced ferrys and rolling in the eddy. Yow, I am rusty.

We finished the day with showers (we were stinky!) at the local hostel and dinner at Donita's.

June 19th - Lake Irwin & Dyke Trail

On Monday morning we decided not to travel anywhere by car. Instead, we had a nice breakfast, spent some time reading books, and then eventually got around to checking out the Dyke Trail, which ran right next to our campground. Thanks for the beta, Alison. The trail was really beautiful, despite the 8 mile climb back to camp. ;)

June 18th - Bear Creek to Methodist Mtn

On Sunday we ventured over to a famed trail in Salida - Bear Creek to Methodist Mountain. The trail began with 2.5 miles of climbing up a forest service road filled with loose rocks and tons of pot holes. The climbing was well worth the effort once we reached the 12 miles of sweet singletrack. We were so busy looking around, we only snapped a few photos.

After riding, we headed toward our next destination - Crested Butte. On the way, we stopped in Gunnison to check out the whitewater park.

June 16th & 17th - US Wildwater Nationals - Salida, CO

On June 15th & 16th, Rob competed at the US Wildwater Nationals on the Arkansas River. He had a very strong performance in both the sprint and the classic races, despite the high elevation in Salida. He took home the bronze medal. As you can imagine, I'm very, very proud of him!

June 14th - Paddling the Arkansas

On Wednesday, June 14th Todd and Charlotte Shollenberger drove over from Avon, CO to visit us. The Shollenbergers have been traveling the world for the past few years and have recently settled in Colorado. It was awesome catching up with our old paddling friends. They were kind enough to look after Aimee on the Arkansas River (Pinnacle Rock to Parkdale), as she was a bit rusty. It was a hot day - windy and in the 90s, but the water felt great!

Rob practiced the race course (both sprint and classic) in the morning and spent the afternoon running shuttle, taking photos and sneaking in a nap.

June 13th

Okay, so this post is out of order. We're new to this blog thing.

On Tuesday, we met up with some wildwater paddlers in downtown Salida. As we were setting up to run shuttle, we ran into Ruth Gordon who was our guide in Ottawa two years ago. Since then she has gone on to become the Canadian National Freestyle kayak champion. Go Ruth! It was great to catch up with her.

Rob ran the classic course and then worked on the sprint course. Around lunchtime, I wandered into Absolute Bikes to ask about group rides, etc. They told me to hurry up and get ready because there was a noon mtb ride leaving in 10 minutes. Picture steep singletrack comprised of cat litter and loose rocks the size of baseballs and softballs. This was after the painful 40 minute cat litter climb in the hot sun which made me totally ill. Let's just say the 3 guys on singlespeeds totally beat me up the climb by a long shot. I came close to throwing up. It was probably silly for me to go hammer without letting my body get used to the elevation and the crazy heat - we had only been in town for 20 hours. Between the new terrain and the elevation, I felt like I this was my first time on a bike. Thankfully the group took pity on me and waited at all the turns. I can't wait to adjust to this thin air. I felt like such a slow-poke on the ride.

June 12th - Garden of the Gods

Before arriving in Salida, we made a slight detour in Colorado Springs to visit Garden of the Gods. GoG contains red sandstone hogback formations, similar to the Red Rocks south of Denver. We had a good time walking around the park after sitting in the truck for what felt like forever!