Kris and Andy Bartol outside the office of the Hotchkiss Inn.

OK, you’re forgiven if your first reaction is to wonder, “Now, where the heck is Hotchkiss?” Just so you’ll know, Hotchkiss is just west of Paonia as you come off of McClure Pass and just 20 miles east of Delta.

If you know the area at all that should tell you, Hotchkiss is in the middle of some pretty nice country. And as we found out this weekend, it makes a good base of operations for some terrific riding. Which is where the Hotchkiss Inn comes in.

I’ll make note right up front that Kris and Andy Bartol, the proprietors of the Hotchkiss Inn, are advertisers on this website. Whenever possible, I like to become personally acquainted with my advertisers so it was just natural that Judy and I would go spend a weekend at the Hotchkiss Inn. Plus, that allows me to add my up-close-and-personal comments about a place on the site.

Of course the Hotchkiss Inn is biker friendly; that goes without saying. They wouldn’t be listed on the site if they weren’t. Beyond that, our first impression was strongly favorable. We pulled up to a clean and tidy, obviously well-cared-for establishment, and there on the sideboard in the office was cheese and crackers with a choice of wines to greet arrivals. Now, Kris told me later that they don’t set the food and wine out every night, just the nights when they have a bunch of new arrivals coming in, but it was a very nice touch.

Our room held a pleasant surprise in store: It was a two-bed room but there was only one bed. The rest was increased living space with a table and three chairs. Judy and I only need one bed, and this is certainly true of a lot of travelers. Why not get rid of the second bed in some rooms, keep them in some rooms, and turn that extra space into something nice? That’s what they’ve done. And Kris tells me the plan eventually is to add a small couch in these rooms.

It’s all a little at a time. Kris and Andy just took over the Hotchkiss Inn in June of 2011 and there was a lot to be done. You can’t do it all at once but they’re chipping away. Of course one of the first orders of business was to put in really nice, new beds. The pillow-top bed we slept on was very nice. And what’s more important than the bed when you’re deciding on a motel?

The rooms have coffee pots and microwaves but there is also an included continental breakfast in the office. Coffee, yogurt, and a banana will just about do me but they also had rolls, hot and cold cereal, orange juice, and other selections. If you want a cafe type of meal, there is a cafe right across the street.

We are not television watchers but there are also new flat-screen TVs in all the rooms. Unlike us, you might turn yours on.

And what is there to do from Hotchkiss? Well, for starters, there is the Grand Mesa. That’s always a nice ride along CO 65 on any bike, and if you don’t mind some gravel there are even more possibilities. I have a terrific one, in fact, to tell you about soon, but not today. Just keep Land’s End Road in mind.

Of course there’s the ride over McClure Pass down to Carbondale, and from there you can go to Aspen. And on from Aspen if you wish, over Independence Pass.

Another option is to take CO 92 down through Crawford and along the north rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnision. That’s a gorgeous ride. Or run down to Ouray and up over Red Mountain Pass. Or go back past Paonia and take Kebler Pass into Crested Butte and down to Gunnison. Of course, if you did that you could loop back to Hotchkiss on 92 along the Black Canyon.

The point is, there’s a lot of great riding out there and Hotchkiss is a nice place to ride out from and back to for a couple days. And we do recommend the Hotchkiss Inn. So. Just some ideas to kick around.

Recent from National Motorcycle Examiner
Motorcycle thefts decline 6 percent in 2011

Biker Quote for Today

So we rip along with nary a care in the world, no traffic, great roads and it’s E-M-P-T-Y!!!