Judy and I headed up for a fall ride on the Peak-to-Peak highway Saturday, and what a gorgeous day for a ride it was.

We were both really up for this because we haven’t gone for many rides together lately. In fact, it was becoming more and more clear to me that I hadn’t been doing any rides at all for enjoyment lately. I ride plenty, but it’s mostly for transportation. Time to have some fun.

There were only two problems: traffic and traffic.

We took off up I-25 to catch the 6th Avenue expressway west and out of town, but nearing Broadway the traffic was parked on the interstate. No problem, we’ll just jump off at Broadway and go north and catch 6th that way.

So we got to Alameda and I headed west again, hoping the highway would be clear at that point. We drew near and there was a traffic jam, so we turned north on Delaware, to 1st, to Santa Fe, with intentions of catching 8th west and onto 6th.

Guess again. There was construction on Santa Fe, narrowing traffic to one lane. We crept and crept and finally got past it, got to 8th, and got onto 6th. Only took 45 minutes. :>(

OK, so then it was great. We blew out 6th Avenue, curved around Golden onto CO 93, and then turned west on the road up Golden Gate Canyon. This is what motorcycling in Colorado is all about. Nice curves, towering rocks and cliffs, green forest . . . just sweet.

On up we climbed to where we hit the Peak-to-Peak, CO 119 at this point, and turned north.

It was definitely cooler up on the Peak-to-Peak than it was in town but we were dressed for it. The sun was shining, traffic was light, and there were a lot of motorcycles. Nice day.

We stopped in Nederland to stretch a bit and also to get some ice cream, but in the old part of town where we were we didn’t find it. No problem, Judy suggested we head down to Boulder and get ice cream there.

Boulder Canyon was a sweet ride, too, of course. This whole route is nice, and so close for an afternoon ride. We got to Boulder, headed for the Pearl Street Mall, and found that they have dedicated motorcycle parking right at Pearl Street. Couldn’t ask for better.

We got our ice cream and sat out doing some people watching. Boulder is not like so many other places. People watching here is definitely world class. Lots to see.

Then it was time to head on home and I figured to go down Broadway and take 93 back to Golden, rather than taking the Boulder Turnpike and having to deal with traffic in the center of Denver.

Guess again. We managed to time it perfectly to hit football traffic after the CU Buffs had just beaten Wyoming. All I can say is, working the clutch must really build up the muscles in my left arm. This mess made what we had run into in Denver look not nearly so bad.

Finally we got out of town and even then, 93 was choked with departing football fans. It was stop and go much of the way to Golden. We ended up back home about two hours later than that ride should have taken. A great day up in the mountains but oh man, the city just killed us.

Not to self: Stay away from Boulder on Saturday during the football season.

Recent from National Motorcycle Examiner
Pikes Peak Motomarathon rides southern Colorado

Biker Quote for Today

Helpful Hint: Traffic lights timed for 35mph are also timed for 70, 105, and 140!

I ran across this question on the Delphi motorcycle forum:

Ok, who is a good ride planner? We plan on being at the KOA in Estes Park in a couple of weeks. We have 3 day that we will be riding day trips out of there. Any recommendations? Not looking for a ton of miles, maybe 200-300 per day or less.

Thanks,

J.R.

I posted this reply:

JR–

From Estes Park you will definitely want to take the ride up over Trail Ridge Road. For a 200-mile ride you could go over Trail Ridge, then from Granby to Walden, then take Coloado 14 over Cameron Pass and down through Poudre Canyon to Fort Collins, and then south to Loveland and back up Big Thompson Canyon to Estes Park.

Beyond that you’re a bit limited. Unless you go over Trail Ridge again to go in other directions from Granby you’re faced with going back down to the plains or coming back at night over the same roads you left on.

You can go south out of Estes Park along the Peak to Peak Highway, to where you meet US 6, to Idaho Springs, up Squaw Pass, and to the top of Mount Evans. Then backtrack, more or less, or return over Trail Ridge.

Then for your third day you might consider going over Trail Ridge again, from Granby head to Kremmling and Steamboat Springs, over Rabbit Ears Pass. Then south on Colorado 131 either to Toponas and back over Gore Pass to Kremmling and backtrack. Or, continue south from Toponas to Wolcott and pick up I-70 and take it back over Vail Pass and get off at Silverthorne and take Loveland Pass to regain the interstate on the east side of the tunnel. Then back just east of Idaho Springs to get back on the Peak to Peak. But that runs close to 300 miles and a very long day. It’s tough from Estes Park because you’re really limited on where you can go from there.

Anyway, I hope that helps. You can find out a lot more about these roads on my website, www.motorcyclecolorado.com. Have fun.

I’m always happy to help. Anyone else looking for motorcycling information in Colorado, just write. I need to make note here, however, that because of the spam bastards I had to turn comments off on this blog. So to write, send your email to ken at motorcyclecolorado dot com.

I knew I didn’t have photos from Boulder Canyon yet but when I realized I didn’t have any from Coal Creek Canyon either that made it clear what I was going to do today. Headed up to Boulder on US 36 and then up Boulder Canyon on Colorado 119 to Nederland. Along the way, if you’re in the mood for a stop, you can pull over at Boulder Falls and hike up to the falls. Nearing Nederland you come upon Barker Dam, which forms the reservoir that is just downstream from the town.

A quick jaunt south on combined Colorado 119 and 72 and then they split. Highway 119 continues as the Peak-to-Peak Highway and 72 cuts back east toward Rocky Flats, down on the prairie. But first you pass through Pinecliffe and then climb steeply, with lots of tight switchbacks, to the crest at Wondervue. Over the top and then down you go through Coal Creek Canyon. Finally, bursting suddenly onto the flatlands, you see all of Denver laid out before you.

Of course I shot pictures. You can check them out on the Peak-to-Peak and Canyons page.

By the way, on the run I turned over 77,000 miles on my Honda. She just keeps on running.