Douglas Pass Deserves to Be on the Website
And here I thought I had all the good passes in the Colorado included on this Passes and Canyons website. Wrong. I just did Douglas Pass last week and it’s going to need to be added.
Update: I did, at long last, add this pass to the website. It only took about 13 months to make the time. Here’s the link: Douglas Pass
It’s not that I didn’t know this pass existed, because my buddy John rides that route periodically when the OFMC comes home through Dinosaur. John lives in Montrose so he splits off from the group in Dinosaur and heads down CO 139 home. He has told me there is a pass there but he never really impressed on me that this is a really nice pass.
So anyway, I was headed for the Salt Lake City area last week to cover the Bonneville Vintage GP and Concours and, although it was out of my way, I decided to check out this road. Yeah, I’m a little overdue. This was worth the extra miles. And I got photos and other information so I’ll be adding Douglas Pass to the website as soon as I can make the time.
One other note: I was also looking at Baxter Pass as a possible route but fortunately I had the chance to ask someone at a Colorado visitor center about it and we looked on the web. Baxter Pass runs sort of parallel to Douglas Pass, a little to the west, from Mack up to Vernal, UT, but it is a really bad road that even jeeps have trouble on. Just so you’ll know.
Update 9-24-12: I just got this note from Doug Bulkeley, saying “Just a note to tell you that Sept. 21, 2012, I came over Baxter Pass with a 34′ rv 5th trailer pulled by a 2012 Chevy 2500HD 4X4. Damn GPS said that was the quickest way. 5 hours later I disagree. I wouldn’t mind doing it again with an ATV and a camera. The only good thing was that it was dry. I may be working near Ridgway next summer. Oh, and by the way, I’m 70 years old.”
Recent from National Motorcycle Examiner
Beauty and history at vintage motorcycle Concours d’Elegance
Biker Quote for Today
I come from the era when you ride for an hour, and then you wrench for three hours, so the idea that you have a machine where you just ride, well, it’s not an alien concept, but I just feel I’m missing part of it.–Jay Leno
Tags: Douglas Pass
December 30th, 2009 at 12:34 am
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Nov-01-Mon-2004/news/25146766.html
CASE WITH LAS VEGAS TIES
Missing woman’s skull found in Colorado
A woman’s skull found in northwestern Colorado has been identified as that of a hotel owner missing since 1997.
A rancher discovered the skull on Oct. 2 near the summit of Douglas Pass in western Garfield County. Dental records were used to identify the remains as that of Sabrina Bebb-Jones, 31, who had been missing since Sept. 16, 1997.
Bebb-Jones and her husband, Marcus, owned the Hotel Melrose in Grand Junction. Her husband, who was then 34, told police his wife left the city with the couple’s then 3-year-old son after the couple argued.
He later told guests at the hotel he was headed to Las Vegas to look for Bebb-Jones, who grew up in the area.
The couple’s son was found alone in a Las Vegas motel room Sept. 21, 1997. The next day, Marcus Jones tried to kill himself, but survived.
He was granted conservatorship of Sabrina Bebb-Jones’ possessions in May 1998 and sold the hotel. He is reported to have moved back to his native England to be with his son and mother.
September 25th, 2010 at 6:21 pm
How can i subscribe to your blog … your articles are really good.
September 27th, 2010 at 8:13 pm
Go to the home page, http://motorcyclecolorado.com/blog/, and scroll down to the end of text in the right-hand column. You will see where it says “Register.” Click that and register. Thanks for your interest.