Day 29

So as I crawled out of bed and peeked out of the window, I was rewarded with sunny skies and lots warmer temperatures. Sweet! I loaded up and went across the street to a store and bought some crackers and canned soups to put in the luggage in case I wanted to stop to eat somewhere remote or got stranded. So I blasted out of town and saw the same five deer standing in the same area as they were the other night. Its not fun hitting deer, in cars or on bikes. So I rolled down highway 64 going west in the direction of Pagosa Springs, Co. from the 64 I picked up the 84 north. Both of these roads are nice to ride with lots of views, I was lucky to have the trees changing colors. I pulled into the McD's in Pagosa and had a burger and used the time to warm up a little and scan the maps for roads to ride. I decided to just hit Bayfield and then take the back way into Durango. I stopped and shot pictures the whole day, what a great day, a little cold, but OK. When I made it to Bayfield I was stunned how much it has grown since I lived there in 1991. Wow time flies. So I got stuck in a sheep migration move from the high hills to their lower winter grounds. It was a flashback to 1991 when I had the same thing happen on the same road, almost in the same spot. I went by the old "A" frame cabin that I once rented while I lived in the area, again it was all different. I cruised around the old roads and just took in the sights and enjoyed the nice roads. I pulled into Durango and found a room, dropped off my things and drove around the old stomping grounds. Man had Durango grown in size. It was neat seeing the places after almost 17 years away. Durango is a great place to visit for anyone, it has tons of great things to do and see. There are the local mountains, rivers for rafting, kayaking, sailplanes, fishing, Mesa Verde National Park with the cliff dwellings. It is also famous for it s narrow gauge rail road that runs to Silverton. That is a awesome train ride, pay the extra money and sit in the parlor/caboose car. It has its own balcony and restroom and no kids are allowed as you also have a bar and bartender. Its a 3 hour trip one way, take it in the fall as the leaves are turning, its amazing. It is a great town, visit it if ya can, I highly recommend it. Plus its a great place to ride out and sample local roads from, there are some killer roads in the area, with views that are unmatched anywhere. So after I rode around shooting pics I cleaned up at the hotel and went to Denny's for some soup and salad. I ate and went to bed early as I knew the day ahead was going to be a long fun day with lots of stops for pictures. I was a wimp and only rode 175 miles for the day.

Here are some of the day's pictures.


A few wild Turkeys


More regular pictures