Today was a great day! Started out in Golden, Colorado (at
the Hampton Inn in West Golden).
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| Glenwood Canyon |
Free Hampton breakfast to start the day. Then off onto
I-70 West. Today’s 233 miles is all interstate. We start out with quite a bit
of construction. A bit worried about it being like that the entire way to Grand
Junction – views are nice (snow-capped mountains), but road sucks. And quite a
bit of traffic. We stop after a tunnel in Idaho Springs (first gold mine town)
and gas up. And construction ends!
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| Heading out of Golden on Interstate 70 |
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| First Tunnel of the Ride (we like tunnels) |
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| Can't read this sign in Idaho Springs, but it glittered and was fancy |
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| Ride along the river (I think Colorado) |
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| Chain Install Area (there are lots of them). According to the sign, you can stay for 30 minutes to put your chains on your tires. |
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| Snowcapped Mountains |
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| Glad we're not heading east (a few mile backup on 70) |
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| Tunnel! |
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| Inside a Tunnel! |
Nice riding to a rest area (just passing through Vail) before
we get to Glenwood Springs. At the rest area, there is a couple in a truck and camper
from Texas (McKinney). They’ve retired and are just on the road (this is their
small camper – they have an RV as well, that hauls the truck sometimes). They
are on their way to Ouray and Durango.
Then off to Glenwood Springs (through the White River
National Forest and Glenwood Canyon). According to Wikipedia, Glenwood Canyon
is: “widely considered one of the most scenic natural features on the Interstate Highway System of the
United States.” Tony and I agree. This ride is beautiful! It’s a 13-mile
stretch of interstate that passes through Glenwood Canyon with dramatic views
carved by the power of the Colorado River over three million years. The
interstate is between the towns of Dotsero and Glenwood Springs. According to
the Colorado Department of Transportation it has historically been a
treacherous route to drive (with flooding shutting it down), but the
award-winning highway construction (completed in 1992) was a pretty awesome
ride for us. And tunnels (we like tunnels)! We think we did the ride the best
way, East to West – you can see the West to East side below us, next to the
river, most of the time.
Stop in Glenwood Springs (more circles – Colorado loves
circles) and gas up. This town is a bit too touristy and crowded for us. Once
we leave, the ride to Grand Junction is completely different – and it gets hot
(I’m still wearing my leathers and full helmet). But parts are curvy and pretty
(and we keep crossing over the Colorado River – does it ever end?). And then
off in Clifton to get on Business 70 to head into Grand Junction (about 7
miles). It’s hot. Then to check in at the Hampton Inn (205 Main Street,
Grand Junction, CO 81501). We’re early, but they let us unload the bike and
park. And handed us a map with places to eat. We chose The Goat and Clover Tavern (https://goatandclover.com/ ), an “Irish
pub” because it was the closest. And it was a great choice. Burgers for both.
And the goat chips were tasty (think big fluffy fries).
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| Glenwood Springs |
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| Colorado River (again) |
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| Hampton Inn in Grand Junction (with outdoor pool) |
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| The Goat and Clover Tavern |
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| Burger on Marbled Rye with Goat Chips (and an IPA) |
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| The Hampton Inn has covered parking. Nice for Blackie for the stay. |
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| Our route (highest elevation was 11,394 ft.) |
Check in. It’s been nice to get in early. We head to the
pool. I like outdoor pools over indoor pools (nice to be outside and you don’t
get that overpowering chlorine smell). This one is salt water and we have it
all to ourselves! What a great way to end a ride day. Not too long, great
riding, and then rest up for tomorrow: Rim Rock Drive and then to Moab, Utah (we
are only about 30 miles to the Utah state line – cross that state off the ride
list next!).
Did we make it for Ice
Cream at Graff Dairy (https://graffdairyco.com/
). No. Did we make it to Teddy Morse’s Grand Junction Harley Davidson (https://gjharley.com/ ). No. Do we mind? No.
Great day.
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