Passes & Canyons Blog

Kudos to Ralf for laying out a really nice route. On the Sunday before Columbus Day a group of RMMRC riders went up in the hills to take advantage of a perfect fall day. Ralf not only picked a good route, he included one road that perhaps none of the rest of us had ever been on. I always love that.

We met out by C-470 and Ken Caryl Avenue and headed out under the highway and then around on Valley Road to reach Deer Creek Canyon. We ran up Deer Creek to where it ends at South Turkey Creek Road and went left, following that road around to where it meets US 285 at Conifer. We quickly got off 285 at Barkley Road to reach CR73, which runs north from Conifer to Evergreen.

I was hoping Ralf was planning to jog right/left and get onto Shadow Mountain Drive and take that nice route and he did. Shadow Mountain becomes Brook Forest Road and rejoins CR73 just south of Evergreen but Ralf had other ideas in mind. About halfway along Brook Forest we turned right onto Blue Creek Road and this was a new one for me and probably most or all of the others. Cool. I love being introduced to new roads.

Blue Creek ended up leading us back to CR73 just a little south of the Marshdale area where we headed east on North Turkey Creek Road, back to and under US 285 and onto South Turkey Creek Road not far from where we had hit it previously. This time we went north, past Tiny Town, and again met up with 285. Ralf pulled over.

The thing we needed to know here, he told us, was that we needed to get on 285 just for a moment and then turn left up Parmalee Gulch. So wait for a break in traffic and then immediately get to the left lane and prepare to turn. That was a good thing to make sure everyone understood.

So we headed up Parmalee Gulch, up and over to Kittredge, and then caught Bear Creek Road up to Evergreen. We went through the main town area and turned to go past the lake and then on up Upper Bear Creek Road past all the swanky homes to Witter Gulch Road. This is a favorite as it climbs steeply and is full of tight turns, leading up to where it meets the Squaw Pass Road.

At the Squaw Pass Road we turned west, over the pass and down past Echo Lake and eventually down to Idaho Springs. Time for lunch. Past time for lunch. We ate at Smokin’ Yards BBQ, which was a good place. New for me.

At lunch we talked intentions. Ralf had figured to take I-70 the short distance down to the Central City Parkway and then down to Black Hawk and over on the Peak-to-Peak Highway to go down Golden Gate Canyon. But one couple said they were just going to jump on I-70 and blast home, and I said I figured to get on old US 40 and take it back down. Then the other two women in the group, who had found they both live in Aurora, agreed they would head home together, which left only Ralf and Bruce to go the rest of the way on Ralf’s route.

That’s fine. We all had a good ride and a good day. See you all next time.

Biker Quote for Today

Petrol Sexual: Suck, squish, bang, blow.

I headed over on Wednesday to meet up with the other RMMRC members who were going riding but when I got there I only saw one bike in the parking lot. I pulled over by a woman on a Harley who I did not recognize and she said she hadn’t seen any other bikes. I took a slow turn around the lot and only spotted one more.

Back over by her, she said she was going inside to use the restroom. I parked and walked over and saw the regular cast of characters at an outdoor table. I joined them. There was Robert but he is moving to Panama in less than a week and has sold his bike. Roy was there but not on his bike. Bob was there but not on his bike.

When the Harley woman joined us there were four of us who were on our bikes: her and me plus another woman and a guy on a Concours who I had seen before but whose name I did not recall at that moment. Paula, Valerie, and Gene, respectively, as I know now.

What this meant was that none of the usual leaders were riding and none of us had a plan. Think fast.

I was the one who came up with a plan. I have previously discussed a recent ride the RMMRC took where we rode Kerr Gulch, Witter Gulch, and Shadow Mountain Drive. I had never been on two of those roads and had only been on the third one time. I had mapped out a plan for a ride to take Judy on, essentially doing much of that original ride in reverse. Let’s do this, I proposed.

No one else had any ideas so it was no surprise they agreed to follow me. We headed out toward Morrison, figuring to go up to Kittredge and catch Kerr Gulch Road there.

Now, first off, being in the lead is a responsibility. When you’re just following along you don’t have to do much other than pay attention to the guy in front of you and the guy behind. Leading, especially in the city, means constantly keeping an eye out that you don’t lose anyone off the back end. With traffic and stoplights that can be challenging. This is part of why most people don’t like to lead. But I volunteered for it today.

We passed through Morrison and just on the outskirts of town we hit a roadblock. The whole highway was closed. Dang! What the heck are they doing up there? I still don’t know but, as the GPS says, recalculating.

It occurred to me that we could go back toward Morrison and take the road that runs over to U.S. 285, take 285 to the Parmalee Gulch road, and then take the turn that carries you over to Kittredge. We headed that way with me leading and Paula behind me. We got separated from the other two by cars. At 285 we couldn’t see either of them so we pulled over. After a minute or two Gene came along and said Valerie decided to go home. OK, now there were just the three of us. A pretty small ride by RMMRC standards.

So we followed that route, ignored the sign in Kittredge that said local traffic only, and turned onto Kerr Gulch Road. Up to Evergreen Parkway, a short jog south to get on the road over Squaw Pass, and then a turn down Witter Gulch.

Nearing Evergreen from the back side I pulled into the lot at the Evergreen Golf Course. Everyone was glad to take a break and get off the bikes, and Gene was enthused at what we had just ridden. He said he has ridden his bicycle on Squaw Pass many times and never even noticed that turn-off down Witter Gulch. I wasn’t sure Paula was as enthused because I know from experience that all those really tight turns are work on a big, heavy bike.

I told them my ride had one more leg but if they were ready to head home we were just outside Evergreen. They were game for one more so we rode into town, took the right toward Conifer, and then I had to find the turn-off. Coming the other way you see the sign for Shadow Mountain Drive. Over here, however, the road has become something else and I couldn’t remember exactly what. I warned them I might make a wrong turn.

We got to Brook Forest Road and I turned but very quickly considered turning back, thinking I had goofed. But I reconsidered and kept on and after awhile the road became Black Mountain Road and finally Shadow Mountain Road. That brought us back to CO 73 just outside of Conifer and U.S. 285. Now we turn for home.

It was a heck of a nice ride. There was still a lot more fall color than I expected and it was a beautiful day. A beautiful day up in the hills, that is. Coming down into town the smoke from the forest fires was so bad you couldn’t even see downtown. I don’t even want to think about what this crap is doing to our lungs.

So Robert is leaving the country, and new leadership is going to need to step up for the RMMRC. I guess I’m going to have to do my share. I did pretty well this time.

/Biker Quote for Today

Why motorcycles are better than men: Motorcycles don’t need Viagra.

After rejoining U.S. 285 just near Conifer (see part one, “The Hills Are Full Of People“) we only stayed on it going west long enough to get off again just past Conifer at CO 73, which runs from Conifer north to Evergreen. After just a few miles we turned west on Shadow Mountain Drive, which is Jefferson County Road 78.

Now, I had been on that stretch between Conifer and Evergreen any number of times, and I had seen that turn-off and wondered where it went. I had it in the back of my mind to find out some day; well, today was that day.

Turns out this is a really nice road. It goes up, winds around a lot, and eventually comes out at Evergreen, although by the time it does it has morphed into Black Mountain Drive and then Black Forest Road. It rejoins CO 73 less than a mile from where you hit downtown Evergreen. And just as so many other roads we traveled this day, it demonstrated just how full of homes and people these hills are. So now I know.

At Evergreen we got on Evergreen Parkway north just a short way and then turned west on Stagecoach Boulevard. This winds its way up through the canyons, eventually reaching Witter Gulch Road. This is a very nice road that runs very steeply, with a lot of switchbacks, up to meet the Squaw Pass Road, CO 103.

I had only ever been on this road once before, on a different RMMRC ride, and that time we were going down. This time we were headed up, so it was very different. If you like tight twisties you need to go ride this road.

Here we turned east again, back down to where Squaw Pass Road meets Evergreen Parkway. Then we turned north.

In about two miles, going past Bergen Park, we came to Jefferson County Road 23, Kerr Gulch Road. This is the kind of road you’ll drive past forever without really even noticing. The only marking is a small sign that reads CR 23–there’s no indication where it goes.

Once again, this is a good road, not busy, quite scenic and it runs down to Kittredge, on Bear Creek Road, which runs up from Morrison to Evergreen. Who knew this was here? You’re even less likely to notice this road down at the Kittredge end. It’s a little east of the main part of town and looks just like any of the other roads that run off into the hills to the homes around there. For anyone heading up Bear Creek, looking to get over eventually to I-70, this is a terrific short-cut. But who even knew it was there? I sure didn’t.

From Kittredge we turned east toward town, and once we emerged from the canyon at Morrison it was time for everyone to split up and head their own ways home. This was a heck of fun day’s ride.

Biker Quote for Today

You know you’re a biker if anyone who doesn’t ride is just ‘OK.’