Colorado Springs and Shocks

We love the way pets are allowed to stay in some motels. Owners are of course expected to be responsible. This one is a big fluffy pup. He goes to work with his owner every day.We have our bike booked in for a 24,000 miles service tomorrow in Colorado Springs, which is not very far from Salida, so we were looking forward to a fairly easy day. Leaving at 9:30, we headed east into the rising sun and soon found ourselves riding down the Arkansas River gorge, with train tracks shadowing us on the opposite side of the river. Riding in bright sunshine one second and in deep shadows of the hills the next is not the most relaxing riding.

The bright sun and dark shadows of early morning riding.

We stopped at a diner in Cotopaxi for breakfast. The morning light improved as we followed the river.
All rivers seem to have a road and railway following them most of the way.

Riding on, we were looking for our firsrt distraction of the day, the Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge.

This is the highest suspension bridge in the US, at 955 ft from the deck to the river below. From 1929 to 2003 it was the highest bridge in rthe world. it was never intended as a transportation route, but rather a tourist attraction. When we got there, we saw signs indicating it cost $25 per person to get anywhere near the bridge. We only wished to see the gorge and did not want to spend the whole day there so we explored some nearby views and rode off.

As we approached Canon City we found the second attraction we were looking for: Skyline Drive. This is a one lane, one way strip of road featured in our ride guide that runs for 1.5 miles along a ridge with 800 ft drop-offs on each side of the road.

When we arrived we found the entry gated closed off, and the nearby diner deserted. Disappointed, we rode through Canon City and turned north for Colorado Springs. We stopped on the way into town to check the address of the BMW dealer. (When we booked our bike for the service the service manager was thoughtful enought to let us know they were at a different address to that shown in our GPS.) By chance we stopped at Mollica's Italian market, and took the opportunity to buy some gourmet ham and cheese for dinner.

We found the BMW dealer without too much backtracking. Best of all, there was a good motel nearby. Extended StayAmerica has units with kitchenettes. This is ideal for the long term traveller. We booked ourselves in and went shopping for some extra items for dinner. Safeway is a great store with plenty of choices.