Killing Time

We are currently running a day ahead of our itinerary. Somewhere back in New Mexico Chris had scheduled a ride that covered less than 100 miles. Maybe he was thinking of a circuitous route at the time - but in his defence it was 6 months ago and he is a senior citizen. In any case we travelled on a direct route and now have a day to spare.

We reviewed our itinerary and decided to take a few detours today. We decided to take a look at Black Canyon, west of Gunnison, Colorado before turning back east to Salida.
Black Canyon is so named because it is so deep, steep and narrow that it is hidden in shadows for much of the time. The road out there ran along the shore of Blue Mesa Lake formed by a dam at the entrance to the canyon.

The dam.
The road along the north rim was a spectacular ride. We stopped at a scenic overlook and walked to the best photography points.

We met another biker, Bill at the overlook and spent some time chatting with him about different motorbikes and journeys on two wheels.

From the overlook we rode on further up the road which climbed as it twisted to provide magnificent views over the San Juan Mountains. We eventually turned around and retraced our steps. This was no burden - rather, it was a joy as the road was a biker's dream.
These two riders helped us with a better map.

Back in Gunnison we stopped for lunch in the main street. Here we met Fred and Freda, a lovely couple travelling on their Harley Davidson. They recommended we eat at the W Cafe, and in particular to have the "special" (scrambled eggs, fries and toast) with a side of green chilli.
We took their photo and their advice. It was a great choice. We're determined to try some of these recipes back home.

After feeding the bike, we set off for Salida - not by the direct route, but via a loop south through Sagauche. The road initially followed a small river through a small canyon that in places was barely wide enough to accomodate the river and road at the same time. We crested North Pass at 10149 ft as we crossed the continetal divide for the nth time on this journey (we first crossed it - several times - up in Yellowstone NP, Wyoming).

Riding on, we saw dark clouds and rain off to our left. We stopped at Saguache for a break and coffee, hoping the rain would go away.

We rode off into a broad valley where for a time we were buffeted by strong winds.

We were glad to eventually arrive in Salida where we rode around the town and discovered the historic downtown area which was full of charm - and doing a lot better in tough times than some places we have seen. For the second time in two nights, and only the second time on this journey, we have checked into a motel owned by Polish people. They have a lovely dog, Sandy.

The Silver Thread Trail

When Chris woke this morning he heard the whistle of the Durango - Silverton historic steam train in the distance as it left town heading north. The sound of the train could be heard for some time - it must have passed close to our motel.

Our journey took a different direction. We headed east on US 160 past Chimney Rock and on to Pagosa Springs where we had brunch at the ElkhornCafe.

At the service station we saw this. It flies with a parachute; a powered parachute.

From there US 160 climbed into the San Juan Mountains.

The scenery was mesmerising and the road seductively beckoned to be ridden much faster than the speed limits permitted. We reached Wolf Creek Pass at 10,850 ft before we knew it, and stopped briefly at the top before setting off down the other side to the town of South Fork, where we met an old friend, the Rio Grande. It is a beautiful clear river in the mountains. It passes through yellow soils on the mexican border which changes its colour.

Turning northwest onto CO 149, our route took us up the valley of the Rio Grande to the delightful town of Creede, nestled at the south end of a narrow canyon. All these towns in the mountainous area are cool and pleasant, a stark contrast to the lower areas of the last few days.

We stopped here for coffee and some delicious Key Lime Pie at Ric's Grill. We were given a warning that the cold weather could set in within two weeks.

Continuing on 149, the road kept following the Rio Grande before striking off and upwards again, this time to Spring Creek Pass at 10898 ft. The higher we went the further Autumn had advanced. Many trees in the highest regions had completely lost their leaves already.

Our descent was shortlived and we were soon climbing again, this time to Shamgullion Pass. At 11361 ft it was the highest point of our journey today, and the third pass we crossed at over 10,000 ft. (You can't do that in Australia) Going down gave elevated views.

As we rode north to lake city the vegetation changed from high alpine to something similar to the New Mexico desert - bare hills with no vegetation except Rabbit Bush. The winds blew strongly and uninhibited across the high plains, buffetting our bike relentlessly. We looked for Powderhorn, our planned stop for the night, but saw nothing except a few straggling buildings and a sign pointing down a side rode to the Post Office.

Except for the occasional car you were quite alone on the way to Gunnison. The landscape changed.



We rode on to Gunnison where we found a comfortable motel, washed our clothes and purchased dinner at a local supermarket. Pumpkins are ready for Halloween.

Autumn leaves as we entered the town.

When we arrived back at the motel there were another 5 bikes there. We met Ernie, one of the riders who had travelled today from Las Vegas, Nevada on his Indian and was a bit saddle sore. We chatted for a while before settling down to dinner and blogging.

Four corners

A friendly rider on the way out of Farmington.

Wanda took some time to feed the pidgeons before we left Motel 6 in Farmington NM heading west initially for Shiprock, a town named after the rock formation that leaps abruptly out of the surrounding plain.

From there we continued west into Arizona and the tiny trading post town of Teec Nos Pos where we stopped for a drink. Here was evidence in someone's small back yard that some people grew their own vegetables in the desert. There was corn (now dry), melons etc.
There were also some long horned sheep in a pen.
As most of the landscape looks like this, it is a remarkable effort.
A few miles north from there we reached the Four Corners - the point where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arisona meet. This is the only place in the US where four states meet together, and so it has a unique mystique that attracts tourists like moths to a candle.
We posed for the obligatory photo with a hand and foot in each state, making sure not to have our buns pointing skyward at the same time, as some undignified visitors do.






There we met Werner and Heike who came from Switzerland, hired a Harley, and are touring for two months.They own a BMW back home, and offered to swap their Harley fo my BMW. The road from there continued into Colorado. We stopped at Cortez, the first major town and had lunch at the 'Once Upon a Sandwhich' cafe on the main street. It was very busy. When we emerged to get on our bike there was a parade approaching - something to do with a homecoming for the local football team - and the police were stopping traffic from using the main street, so we high-tailed it down a side street and east towards Mesa Verde.

Mesa Verde is the site of the largest cliff dwellings in the US. Our National Park pass meant we could visit th park without paying the entry fee applicable to casual visitors. The cliff dwellings were 20 miles from the entrance along a road that would justify the entry fee just to ride it, even if there were nothing at the end. It twisted and wound itself up onto the mesa in a series of torturous bends. Just when we thought we could go no higher the road started upwards again. The views were breathtaking.

We stopped at the visitor centre and booked a guided tour of the largest site, called Cliff Palace. Unfortunately we arrived too late to take any other tours of other sites. (Traveller's tip: if visiting Mesa Verde, allow at least a full day)

The Cliff Palace is magnificent, but the tour (which took up a whole hour) was mainly listening to commentary. When we did descend into the canyon to visit the ruins, we were only allowed to walk past them, and not through them as we did earlier at the Gila cliff dwellings.

We left the site fairly late, and had a 40 minute ride out of the park before turning east towards Durango, 36 miles away, our destination for the night. It became cooler as we ascended out of the desert into a pine forest. By the time we arrived there and found a motel it was almost dark.

Durango is an exciting town on a Friday night. There are cars, people and bright lights everywhere.

We walked two blocks to the nearest source of food - 'Munchies'. The decor and fittings were designed for the friendly teenagers that came in and out. The pizza was pretty damn good and bigger than we could eat.

Rock(et)ing along on the C&TSRR

Rated as one of the top 20 train rides in the worlf, the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad is America's longest (64 miles) and highest (11,500 ft) narrow guage railroad. It usually runs from Chama in New Mexico to Antonita in Colorado, but a fire damaged a trestle bridge last June and until it is repaired the trains can only run from Cumbres Pass to Antonito.

We had to be at the station in Chama at 8 am for the bus ride to Antonito. We set our alarms for 6:30, but were both wide awake well before then. We arrived at the station at 7 am and found the Boxcar Cafe open and serving breakfast.

After a bus ride to Antonito, which itself was a spectacular ride, we boarded our train for the trip up to Cumbres Pass. The train left on fairly flat ground and wound its way across the desert avoiding eroded drainage areas. Having a guage of only 3 ft. the train rocked along at the heady speed of 18-20 mph. The benefit of using a narrow guage is that the bends in the tracks can be tighter than for standard guage - which is helpful when laying tracks through mountainous terrain. What impressed us was that the entire 64 miles of track were laid in just 9 months - with nothing more than manual labour, mule carts and black powder. The train went up incredably high and teetered on cliff edges which had the most incredible views, made more beautiful by the golden aspens.

We soon crossed the Colorado-New Mexico border for the first of ten times and the train began its climb through hilly desert country up the 1% grade towards Cumbres Pass. Along the way we passed many interesting features of the landscape and the railroad, all pointed out and explained by Bob, our docent for the trip.

Pronghorn sheep scared off by the train.
The gold leaves were spectacular. Volcanic rock stood above the surroundings.
Although we had comfortable seats in a closed carriage, we spent much of the journey standing in the open car that allowed more expansive views.


The tracks wound their way inexorably up the mountains on the north side of El Rio de los Pinos (the river of the Pines) valley. As we entered the spectacular Toltec Gorge we were 600 feet above the river.


The train stopped at Osier where the Antonito bound train was already waiting on a siding. Here we were fed a hearty lunch, with a choice of meat loaf, turkey or soup and salad. We were not surprised to find the queue for turkey longer than the other two lines combined. The staff there have to serve several hundred people from two trains in a fairly short time. They did a magnificent job, and the food was really very good - and filling. Here we met Lyn and Chris from Dorset, England, having a great holiday. They are train enthusiasts and are riding a number of historic trains over here.
From Osier the train continued its relentless 1% climb. El Rio de los Pinos flows down the valley on a much steeper course and when we eventually crossed it the tracks were only a few feet above the crystal clear water.

After negotiating more tight 180 degree bends our train eventually reached Cumbres Pass at 11,500 feet.
At Cumbres Pass we had to catch a bus back to Chama, due to the fire damaged trestle.
Arrriving back at 3:30 pm, we immediately set off west for Farmington, our overnight stop. The 100 mile ride was into the lowering sun which was no fun. The landscape was now a contrast to the mountain area the train went through. We were now taking a ride through dry land with huge rocks and scrubland. Much of it was totally unpopulated. You felt alone.

It was nearly 6 pm by the time we booked ourselves into a motel. We wasted no time finding a supermarket to buy dinner. The sun was setting as we returned to our motel. Farmington is a tidy, clean, dry city set in a desert.


There is a large river through this area but no large trees except through one of the main streets. People eagerly wait for the cool of the evenings for social activities.

The days are really getting much shorter, and in general the days seem to be cooler. Being at altitude also takes the edge off the heat. It was 46 F when we left the motel (at 8000ft) this morning. It was pleasantly warm at Cumbres Pass, but by the time we reached Farmington - back down in the desert, it was 92 F.