Leg 1: Durango to Lake City

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 hours at least. When I finally got over the pass the trail flattened out and descended making for a brief but rewarding ride with an incredible view of the high jagged mountains ahead. This descent made me excited for what is to come and I arrived at Taylor Lake, a beautiful saddle lake right at treeline with some killer views. I set up camp here right next to the lake in a sheltered little spot and then took a noody dip and washed my clothes in the lake. I also called the parents to check in because I somehow have service up here. I’ve enjoyed just relaxing this afternoon and drinking and eating a lot to try and prepare for tomorrow. If I make it to Blackhawk pass earlyish (gonna leave at 6:30 again) then I will continue to Cascade Creek and camp there. I think it’s like 35 miles so that could be a long shot. But much less elevation tomorrow which will be nice. Could be super tech though which would make the going slow anyway.

Today was such an all time weather day, I can only hope for more like it. I know I will be dreaming about this day when I’m getting destroyed by a monsoon storm in a few days or a week or more... who knows but gotta love when the weather gods have mercy on you!

Crazy to think this will be my life for the next 20 some odd days. Going to be some hard work but I have a strong feeling it will all be worth it. These are beautiful mountains and I feel grateful to have the opportunity to experience their awesomeness, terrifying power, diverse ecosystem, and humbling wisdom. I hope to maintain this perspective throughout this trip and remember how lucky I am to be out here! Even when it sucks, which it will, but right now I’m feeling pretty good!

 Day 2 - July 8, 2020

Today kicked my ass too, but it was filled with more mileage (30+) and some epic riding. It started off with a solid hikeabike from camp that led to an early morning ride along Indian Ridge. Holy shit that was a shockingly beautiful section of trail and it was mostly rideable on the downhill! Indian Ridge is a ridge above treeline that has views of incredible mountains on both sides and sheer drops on either side of the trail. Definitely puckered me up on one part. I finished the ridge and started a super smooth and enjoyable descent to around 10000 feet. The water source I was hoping to use was pretty nasty and shallow so I scooped some water with a leaf into my bottle and continued on. The next 10 miles was mostly below treeline and went fast with smooth ups and downs and not much elevation gain, but no water so I was dehydrated by the time I got to the next creek and ate a lunch of a Clif bar, salami, and some trail mix.

Funny how much of a factor elevation gain is on a bike. I go five times faster on flat than up and ten times faster on down than up! So the mileage I am able to do has everything to do with elevation gain/loss, so far at least. I continued to Blackhawk Pass and was losing energy during the 1200 vertical hikeabike but pushed through and found astounding views at the top, followed by a kick ass descent to a stream where I refilled water. I saw probably 20 people today which was unexpected. I met a few and briefly and they were really nice. I finished the day with some ups and downs and some incredible views of the high ranges to the north. Near Hermosa Peak there is a meadow that just absolutely blew my mind. It was so pristine and untouched I can hardly describe it. Hundreds of Columbines peeked up from the skree as they rolled into the grass, and the silence was only broken by the songs of birds and the gentle burbling creek running off the snowdrifts above.

I had a hard time not staying there for the night and started second guessing my urgency on this trip. I have been doing a lot of miles and I hope I’m not going too fast! I know a few days after I return I will long for this great wilderness and solitude, even as I get swarmed by mosquitos right now. This said, I have a loooong way to go and the weather is as nice as it will be all trip so I need to take advantage and move while I can. I definitely take time to look around and appreciate the beauty and tranquility of this place, it’s hard to ignore even when I am in mileage mode.

I rolled down to a beautiful alpine lake (a little murky though) and set up camp here. Bugs are pretty bad but after a yummy dinner and perfect weather I am feeling satisfied and content. It is the first time I have felt this comfortable mentally, but it’s only day two! Tomorrow, I’ll ride near Engineer mountain and most likely sleep in Silverton. Bike is running well and has a new name: Lucky. 

Day 3 - July 9, 2020

This morning started out early and I took my time getting organized and making breakfast in my beautiful campsite by the pond. I left camp around 7:30 and started what turned out to be a mellow ascent that was almost entirely rideable!!! Once I got above treeline the clarity of the morning hit me like a hot cup of coffee and the views just kept growing in magnificence as I neared the pass. I cruised on smooth single track with some hikeabike, stopping every five minutes to admire the morning view and enjoy the lively sounds of coyotes just over the hill. I also stopped to watch a mule deer enjoying some grass and the morning light. In other animal sightings, I saw a mountain goat munching near my tent last night and a ptarmigan and it’s chicks scurry across the trail later today!

 At the pass I saw my first look at Engineer Mountain and the surrounding peaks. Truly an indescribable view that stopped me dead in my tracks. I descended on smooth flowy trails and then some techy, ass-blasting trails to the bottom of the second ascent. This pass was a grind to get to the top (1500 vert) but the descent after it was so insane. It had some snow patches but just smooth high alpine flow-riding and this meant it was mostly downhill all the way to Silverton! The views from here were up there with the best of the trip, but that’s the thing... I’ve experienced more mind blowing views in the past three days than I know what to do with!

Descending through the high alpine tundra was something I’ll never forget. The trail got pretty technical and took a toll on me and my bike for about eight miles and then got smooth again for the final descent, 2000 vertical straight to Silverton (some of which was on a highway which was new and strange to me). I got to town around 1:30 and bought a motel room for the night so I’ll be dry and ready for the big elevation days ahead! I’m hoping to make it to Lake City in two days due to weather but anything can happen on the Continental Divide Trail!

After meeting people on the trail, I’m starting to feel like a mixture of a backpacker and a bike packer with my "thrown together" setup. Today for example, I met a dude with NO BACKPACK heading to Durango. That’s a much shorter trip, but what I would do to not have a backpack. I suppose I just need to get used to it and stop complaining. This is my rig and it’s worked so far! I’m just a backpacker with a bike... or maybe a biker with a backpack and bags... not sure yet but I definitely don’t feel like a pro bikepacker yet. But what matters most out here isn't the gear you have, its the act of doing it! Being willing to surrender to the highs and lows of the adventure is what makes this so special and you don't need a ton of money and gear to do that, you just need to go!

Day 4 - July 10, 2020 

While I haven’t had even close to a bad weather day, this one might have been the best yet. There aren’t too many days I’ve overheated above 13,000 feet. If there was a day for the weather to be perfect, today was the one!

After grabbing breakfast at the motel lobby I hopped on my bike around 7:30 and started up the road to Stoney Pass. It was a chilly but beautiful ride passed old mining ruins and shadowed, dewy morning valleys until I hit the dirt road up to the pass. After 2500 vert, a healthy breakfast serving of hikeabike, and a lot of ATV people looking at me weird I made it to the top around 10:30. The views were fantastic, as expected. I continued down to meet the CDT/CT and met some backpackers from Durango who knew the Shaw’s.

From the time I left treeline on Stoney Pass, I didn’t see another tree until I got to camp here 20 miles later. It was a seriously exposed day and I felt like I was alone on another planet as I biked and hiked through the endless Colorado alpine tundra. Around 11:30 I broke my chain. This was a bummer because I have never fixed a chain before, but I knew I have the tools so I figured I would just keep going and fix it at camp because it might take a while to figure out. A couple hours later I ran into the day biker I had met earlier and he helped me fix it and we talked for a while. Super nice guy. It really was almost eerie how exposed that country was today. I felt like a fish out of water and a sense of impending doom, then, “SNAP”, broken chain. That was a tough moment but it could’ve been sooo much worse. I didn’t drop below 12,000 feet all day. Humans aren’t meant to survive in places like this, not many life forms can! But thanks to the nice weather, I did and enjoyed the awesome trail and raw, magnificent country.

 

With my chain fixed my mojo was back strong and I muscled past Cataract Lake and over my last pass of the day (there were 7 or 8). I coasted down through some technical downhill and found this perfect campsite where I am now. The views are amazing and the sunset was magical. I got here at 4:30ish and just relaxed, cooked, read, took in the views, listened to more coyotes, meditated, took some pictures and video, and reflected in what feels like the best place in the world. There’s nowhere I would rather be right now than alone under the stars in the great and powerful San Juan’s of Colorado. Endlessly grateful!!

I definitely have been moving so fast mentally that I haven’t had the chance to be present and remember why I am doing this. I am doing this to:

1. Live simply for an extended period of time.
2. Challenge myself to be entirely independent and become a better man.
3. Experience this vast wilderness so close to my home and ride sick trails on my bike.
4. Reflect on my life and think about how I want to live the rest of it.
5. Become more confident in myself and learn more about myself (introspect)
6. And of course sharpen up my wilderness skills!

Day 5 - July 11, 2020

Woke up this morning with the sun warming my sleeping bag and the birds greeting the beautiful blue sky with their songs. I packed up camp and began the ascent to the Colorado Trail High Point which was only about a 1500 feet of vertical because I started so high, but it still had me working hard! I was able to ride part of it but walked the majority. At the top I rested and enjoyed the view and even got a picture next to the sign thanks to a nice backpacker from Gunnison.

The rest of the ride on the divide was filled with some very technical sections, some flowy high alpine tundra riding, and a herd of three bull elk and two cow elk running across the massive flat tops (bottom right of the picture below). Such majestic creatures, I watched them for as long as I could.

 

I cranked out several more miles of high alpine ridge riding and dropped down to the spot that Scott wrote about finding a killer downhill alternate route so I went looking for it. I bushwhacked for about 15 minutes and was feeling pretty hopeless. The thought of hiking my bike back up to the divide didn’t sound too good. Suddenly, after some curses and a few trees slapping me in the face, I found a rough trail with some logs cut on it. I checked my GPS for some extra confidence and committed to the alternate descent into Lake City, and boy am I glad I did! The trail just got better and better as I dropped down. It must have been seven miles and 2500 feet of vertical. The trail was smooth and flowy towards the bottom through the aspen sections, and techy and fun like creek side through the pines and skree. It was an absolute screamer and one of the longest continuously fun single track downhill rides I have had the pleasure of riding.

It dumped me out on a road that took me past Lake San Cristobal which was beautiful and then straight into Lake City where I checked into the Silverspur motel. After some laundry in the sink and a shower, I went to a nice old guy named John’s garage/bike shop to buy new quick links and wash my bike in his yard. Then I ate a bunch of food, restocked on groceries, and ate more food. Lake City is a cool little town with a major tourist problem, but the economy is definitely better off because of it. Worth it? Not in my opinion. Better to be poor in paradise than less poor in paradise overrun by disrespectful tourists... I’m sure some are good people, they sure can be annoying though. Tomorrow should be a true suffer fest of a day riding mostly roads in the heat and I’m going to get started bright and early! At least I have a bed to sleep in tonight!