Daniel's Colorado Motorcycle Adventure
A break at Hoosier Pass
I reserved a BMW GS 800 on the website about 4 months prior to our trip. I then gave them a call and let them know I would like to have a route planned. I worked with Michael Bilecki who had some questions around how many days we were riding, what kind of terrain we wanted ride, how long did we want to ride each day, and did we plan on camping or lodging. Here were my answers:
- Arrive mid-day Thursday and flying
back out Sunday
- Need to be in a town at the end of
each day so we could stay at a lodge
- stay off road as much as possible on
moderate terrain
- Ride 4-6 hours each day
- For this ride we wanted to stay north of
I-70 as much as possible
I have found getting away on a long weekend can make for an exciting vacation. I took a trip last July to Colorado with a friend to ride adventure motorcycles through some back roads. Yes, you need a motorcycle license for this trip, but you don’t need to own your own bike. This trip starts in Denver, so I fly from Houston from to Denver on a morning flight and arrive about 10AM. I am meeting my friend who rides up from Monument Co on his Honda Africa Twin at Colorado Motorcycle Adventure (www.coloradomotorcycleadventures.com). These guys are what make this trip happen. You can rent a variety of bikes from a Husqvarna 701 Enduro to a BMW 1200 RT. They can keep you on the dirt or pavement. Don’t worry if you are missing some hear. You can rent many accessories that include helmets, gloves, pants, jackets, and GPS. They not only provide bikes and gear, but they can help you plan your route. They are riders and they know all the best routes to get you around Colorado.
One of many views from the road
Day 1
I landed around 10AM and took a rideshare to their shop. I was on a bike and leaving Denver in less than hour. I rented a GPS, Jacket, and Helmet. The GPS was preloaded with our trip. They also provided a file in advance that my friend loaded on his GPS. Larry and I headed North to grab a lunch in downtown Boulder. From there we headed on roads and made it to some dirt on the Switzerland Trail which was a fun ride over a mountain. The rest of the ride was an easy paved ride into Estes Park where stayed at a nice small motel called the Blue Door Inn, where they had live music and a fire that we enjoyed after dinner.
Day 2
We knew on Day 2 the plan was to head from Estes Park to Steamboat and making our way through the Rocky Mountain National Park. We both like to get up early and this was good call. The park can get crowded with traffic, so we were on the bikes by 6:30 AM to enjoy the ride through the park with as few people as possible. This was a great call because the roads were clear, and we could easily cruise though the park and stop when we wanted. Keep in mind that mornings on a motorcycle in Colorado can be cold, so be prepared for all temperatures and weather in the summer, including those afternoon showers.
There are multiple places to pull off the road and enjoy some incredible views. I really enjoyed going over Trail Ridge Road which takes you up to 12,000 feet. As we were riding down from the peak, we rode past a large herd of elk bedding down close to road. We left the park and headed towards a small town, Grand Lake, where we got off-road after going through. It was great to get off pavement and ride Buffalo Pass. We enjoyed a nice descent into Steamboat just in time for lunch. We had been riding about 5 hours, so when we saw a taco joint on main street called Salt and Lime, we knew tacos and margaritas were waiting for us. After lunch we had to ride a couple of miles to our hotel. When we arrived in the parking lot, we noticed my buddy’s bike making a strange noise when he went over a speed bump. After further inspection we realized the rear axle nut was missing. We were so thankful nothing happened on the trail and we made it town but now we needed to figure what we were going to do next. It's was starting to look like one of us was going to back to Denver to get a trailer which would mean the end of the ride. However, there was a local dealership in town that ended up having the part we needed to fix it. They went above and beyond to send a guy to our hotel with the part and fix it on the spot. These guys were great and saved our trip!
The town of Steamboat is great to walk around with many shops on main street. We had booked a nice dinner in town at E3 Chophouse. I had also connected with an old college friend who happened to be on vacation in Steamboat at the same time. He was able to join us for dinner and we had great time catching up.
Day 3
We are heading to Breckenridge. We rode out of Steamboat early in the morning and rode through some farm land. We hit some back roads on our way to I70, but once we crossed over at Minturn we took some dirt roads heading towards Breckenridge. We came off this trail a few miles from Breckenridge and had to get on I70 for about 6 miles. This was not a fun part of the trip. I love riding motorcycles, but I prefer to be on the back road with minimal traffic. When we got to Breckenridge, we decided to head over to Keystone to try going up Webster Pass but by the time we arrived, the rain had started so we decided to head back. We checked into our room around 3 and got cleaned up and went for a walk around Breckenridge. This town has a very large main street area with lots food and shopping. Our favorite place for happy hour is Rita’s. They really do make the best margaritas in town. If you’re looking for late night snack don’t miss Crepes A La Cart. There is always a line, but they are worth it.
Day 4
We had a shorter day as we headed straight back to Monument so I could catch an early afternoon flight. The ride back starts out crossing over Hoosier Pass then heading out of the mountains as you ride through an amazing winding valley on CR-77. This was the coldest morning and we had to stop and add some layers. When you get Woodland Park you take a scenic route on Mount Herman Road. This road brings out on the top of the mountain that overlooks Monument. The ride down is a switch back gravel road with amazing views at most turns. We ended the ride in Monument at Larry’s house. We took a quick shower there and ate at La Casa Fiesta New Mexican restaurant before heading back to airport. This was a great trip with a lot of great riding packed into four days. Get out and plan your weekend
Daniel Thornton
Co-Founder
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