Doin' it Daytona style: Day 30

I knew the day was going to be good, I could hear Harley's rolling down Main Street as I got out of bed. You know that Harley's only ride when its sunny and no rain, they dont want to have to clean their bikes. Sure enough the sun was shining and only a few clouds. I did the usual packing and gassed up and headed north out of Durango on Highway 550. I have ridden this road many times, but never on a bike. I lived in the area in 1991-1992, so this was going to be a treat. I took my time all day and stopped and shot pictures and video. The roads were mostly empty and I was lovin life. The mountains just out of Durango are the Needle Mountains on the east side of the 550, and the La Plata Mountians on the west side. Both sets of mountains were covered in snow on the top half, what a site in full sun. I rode over the Passes and stopped at a lot of areas and admired the breathtaking views, the Aspens were golden and other trees were changing color as well. I had the ride that I hoped I would. I fell in love with this area years ago, and it still amazes me every time I go through them. The Red mountain Pass is also a favorite of mine, the sheer cliff walls and the vertical drop offs are amazing. There are no guardrails in some areas so you get a real idea that any mistake, and you are gone for hundreds and hundreds of feet straight down. Its wild to be riding on a curvy road that is etched into the face of a solid rock cliff side. This road is a definite road to do, its full of corners and amazing views. If ya ask me the late fall in the cool air with the changing colors of the trees. That is the best time to do this ride. Make sure that you have good cold weather gear that you can add on, because there is a HUGE variation in temperature and altitude. Some of the upper elevations will see you passing the 11,000 foot mark, with views of other mountains shooting up to 14,000 foot. The ride is unforgettable, and if you make it to Colorado, please make every effort to do this road.
After the ride into Ouray the "Switzerland of America", I stopped for gas and to rest for a few minutes. The day was running past me and I had a long way to go, if I was going to turn at Ridgway and run the 62/145/141 to Grand Junction. I saddled up and made the turn onto highway 62, wow what a scene looking back onto the mountains that I just passed over. These mountains make you feel small, its amazing I tell ya. And when the sky is clear, it is the bluest skies that you have ever seen. These roads were some new, and some that I had driven before. I once took part of this road to Telluride. These are great roads too, damn I'm lucky! So I rolled down the 145/141 because a guy on TRAT recommended that I try it, and comment if it is the equivalent to the Dragon. Well.....no, not even close. These roads are fast sweepers, nothing like the tight curves of the Dragon. None the less this was a scenic road that gave me tons of pictures and excited spirited riding. There was one area that was covered in red sand as the previous couple days rain washed onto the road. That made for a few tense moments rounding some corners at speed. Once the road cleared up I came upon a nice photo opp., so I pulled over. There was a Jeep Cherokee with four English people. They saw the Triumph and started chatting me up about my bike and if I knew where it came from. HA HA HA, it was funny, like I had never heard of a Triumph, this is my 3rd ya know. I told them Hinkley and they carried on that they lived 10 minutes from the factory. They were a nice group of two older couples. They asked my name so they could write it down in their journals for the trip Stateside. I wished that I did the same after I left, or at least given them this blog page. I warned them to get off the road after dark because the area is bad for deer and elk after dark. They were going to Durango, they had a long way to go, and nightfall was only about one and a half hours away. I proceeded down the road to the small town that is owned by a dude from the Discovery Channel I think. It is in the middle of nowhere and all the buildings are adobe looking and everything ya need is in this one place. Its kinda a weird place, it just seems too fancy to be in the middle of nothingness. So I turned and burned down the 141 and made it to Grand Junction just after dark. It was an AWESOME day of riding, scenery, weather and temperature. Once in a lifetime stuff here people, make the effort and go....
I pulled into a motel 8 off the I-70 after I had eaten at a Taco Bell. I rode a total of about 275 miles for the day.

Here are the days pictures, enjoy, I did.

The Needle Mtns