From Durango to Steamboat: A self supported bikepacking adventure

Day 1 - July 7, 2020 Hell of a day today. 6000 ft of vert and about 20 miles has me completely exhausted. Pushing my bike for the last half had me talking to myself to help motivate! It was a grind to say the least but boy was it beautiful! Dad and John Shaw did the first part of the ride with me. We met Shaw at the trailhead at 6:30 after camping on the road above it. I enjoyed their company and said goodbye to them at the first high point. Then it was me alone… and the wilderness before me looked expansive. Into the great unknown I go!   I rode through the trees for a long while and finally ran into a guy we met earlier and gave him some Aquamira for his ride down. He was stoked on my trip and a nice dude. I continued on and got above treelike for this epic, but brutal ascent through scree with cliffs above and an incredible view of Durango and the plains below. It looked so far away. I was suffering by the time I got this climb and had been walking my bike for the last couple hour

Day 6 -  July 12, 2020 I am thoroughly exhausted. Today may have topped day one for getting worked. I biked for nine hours, did 70 miles, and almost 6000 feet of vertical. On the bright side I finished the whole La Garita Wilderness detour! It was mostly on dirt roads and was 99% rideable so it was different than any other day thus far, but I am just completely and entirely worn out. Not a normal day for a small town mountain biker with a backpack!! I woke up early and hit the road out of Lake City after a mediocre sleep due to some rowdy Texans. Slumgullion Pass was for breakfast and had me huffing and puffing for all 2500 ft of vertical. I finally topped out and sang loudly on my pleasant dirt road decent into a beautiful pasture and meadow with some awesome ranches that I wish I owned. Also, the fly fishing looked mental! I pedaled on through some flatland and some crazy rock formations until I started my next ascent up Los Pinos Pass, a gentle 1500 feet of vert, and began to si

Day 11 -  July 17, 2020 I left Buena Vista this morning around 7:30 after a much needed and food filled rest day. The dirt road out of town went along the east side of the Arkansas River and was really beautiful. I got to see some rapids (the Numbers) that I hope to kayak some day and a bunch of awesome car camping spots. There were also some bolted climbs on the side of the road that looked cool! I followed the dirt road as long as I could but had to get on the highway eventually which was still beautiful and followed the clear and powerful Arkansas River up the valley. I got back on the CDT/CT at the start of Twin Lakes and cruised the smooth and rolling single track along the lake with Mt Elbert, Rinker Peak, and Mt Belford standing tall in the background. I ascended through the lush pine forests and pristine aspen groves in the foothills of Mt Elbert and traversed north on some of the smoothest sub-treeline trail I have ridden so far. Enjoyable climbs and flying through the dow