Finished !!

Got to the USA / Mexico border on Wednesday at 2:30pm
Wahooo :)

Quite cool to have finished, although it still hasn't really sunk in I think.
Had a cruisey final 100km's from a stealth camp south of Separ.
Flat riding with blue skies, nice wide open views of the surrounding desert and thankfully the MP3 was still charged up.
Jasper (Canada), over 5,000km's ago seems a long way, and a long time ago.

Its been a great ride, we've been very lucky with superb weather pretty much throughout, and I've been really lucky to have hooked up with with some great riding buddies.
From start to finish everyone we've met have been really helpful and we've met some fantastic people along the way.

Will update some more a bit later

Leaving the USA .....
and coming back
it was a bit breezey at the last Divivde crossing
and a bit quiet...

Silver City - two days to go ......

Got into Silver City yesterday on the back of a rain storm. Kind of ironic I think as you'd expect it to be hot and dry here around now. So the bikes got a bit of a wash down enroute (but had to be careful with them in the motel:), and then it fined up for the arvo.
SC is quite nice and we're having a day off (after five days on the go from Grants) to sort things out for the next two day to the border.

Have had some really diverse riding/scenery thru the Gila National forest region which has been a surprise and very cool.
Wide open vista's, canyons, Ponderosa forests, technical descents (esp at speed) and at times we'd have sworn we were in africa and expecting zebra's & giraffes.
The riding wasn't as hard as expected (although some of the canyons were a grind to get out of) and we'd balanced the mileage out pretty well at about 80km per day.

So just two days to go now, mostly flat and mostly on road :)
Approx 80km to get past Separ and then 120km all on road to the border.
A shuttle back to Silver city and maybe a margarita or two.
Would be rude not too.



Cuba - Grants (2 days)
Awesome.
Possibly two of the best days of the ride.
err, have I said the before?
First day out I headed off earlier so rode the day out front alone. Really nice. Cool and crisp in the morning then heated up later.
All desert riding, so sandy spots on the track that you had to push across at times, huge wide views of rock stacks, a bit more technical riding, dropping into and up out of aroya's (dry, river beds) and just open desert views. A few smallish climbs but basically seemed mostly flattish and fast (esp in the morning). Sweet.
Managed to twist my chain (out with the pliers and spanner again) and also took a dive in some sand (bar end now a bit wobbly).
More of the same the next morning then a bit more climbing later on before (eventually) descending to Grants. Came across a nice big snake across the road which Hywell almost fell onto :) as a bit too focussed on his ipod!
Not sure that we really needed it but then had another rest day as were doing the next six day section in five days (less food & water to carry).



Abiquiu - Polvedera Messa
Found that my rear tired was flat so fixed it while the others had brekky after a trip to Bodes in Geoff's truck (while the others rode:)
A shortish ride up Polvedera Messa which I found a bit tiring for some reason. May be that it was hotter, or maybe the extra 5 litres of water (10litres all up) we'd had to carry in leiu of there being nothing on the tops, or that fact that it was mostly uphill. Even had a wee dive off the bike in a sandy spot while weaving down a rocky patch. Either way, I was a bit shagged at the end but perked up with some soup, it seems to be the magic potion. Still, a nice campsite amongst the pines. Had a great lightening show later that night as well, but hardly any rain, which is a great combo.

Thought I'd go "Fly-less", until a few spot of rain around dinner time














Saturday 27 Aug, Polvedera Messa - Cuba
A dry tent as no rain after dinner despite the thunder & lightnening rolling around last night. Straight into more climbing as we weren't topped out at the cmampsite. Some nice rocky bits as well which although harder are more fun. Then more undulating riding prior to a great bit of technical descending which lasted a good while. BoB just seesm to take this stuff in his stride although he got a puncture at about the halfway mark while going uphill. Fixed, and onwards and eventually some good fast downhill sections to the highway.
A wicked road descent down Horseshoe canyon, with a new top speed of 74kmph, and eventually getting to Cuba (pronounced Koo-bar).
No campgrounds in Cuba so motelled it.
A long'ish day at 95km with a good mix of everything.

Abiquiu

24/9/08
Well, we're in Abiquiu, but had to detour to get here.
A few days ago we got 3/4's up Indianna Pass and got informed that the route past Summitville was closed due to pipelaying works. A bit pissed being an understatement.
So it was back down to Del Norte, stay another night there and detour on road via Pagosa and Charma. Don't worry, Wolf Pass into a head wind was plenty tough enough on top of the aborted Indianna Pass climb. In fact we're doing more km's and more climbing overall.

Tonight we're at the Abiquiu Inn (very nice) and tomorrow prob at a friend of Scotts a few miles away (there is no campsite in Abiquiu itself).
A rest day tomorrow as we've been doing some long rides and to get out of Abiquiu involves one of the harder climbs of the whole trip I gather. Time will tell.
Will update the last fews day etc tomorrow.

23/9/08 Pagosa Springs - Charma 92km (on road)
An undulating day on the road. Nice scenery but definitely prefer the off road.
The MP3 player was a good move.
Nice CG at Charma tho, and in by 3pm.


22/9/08 Del Norte - Pagosa Springs 95km (on road)
An easy 20km to South Fork, then turned into the wind for an uptulating warm-up prior to a big road climb over Wolf Pass with a strong head wind. An extra 3,000ft climbing for the route I guess and I was feeling it. Eventually topped out with another CD crossing and then a huge descent that required pedaling due to the strong headwind.


21/9/09 Del Norte - Del Norte (should have ended up past Indianna Pass)
A late'ish start due to tent drying then off for some uptulating road riding as a warm up to the big Indianna Pass. Then into low gear (well, maybe hitting 3rd occaisionally) and start the grind. A bit wet as well which cleared.
And then the news we didn't need.
A guy in a truck came down and told us that the road higher up was closed due to pipe laying works and that we couldn't get thru, doh! And we'd gotten 3/4's up to boot. So, after a bit of discussion we sped back down to Del Norte with the aim to detour on road to Abiquiu.
A real bummer as it was the biggest climb which we'd miss. Prob would have pushed on if by myself to see just how closed it really was (surely a bicycle could get thru!), but thats decision by committee I guess (time was also getting on, plus the weather wasn't too stable, and a rider had been turned back at the top the week before).



20/9/08 Ludder Creek - Del Norte
I got away first by myself which was quite nice, esp as it was a nice descent through a canyon and more aspens. Great way to start the day. Some tarmac and then an OK climb up to Carnero Pass past some nice rock formations etc. Topped out at 10,167ft then another nice descent. Had planned to camp somewhere after the descent but with nothing really suitable we decided to carry onto Del Norte. No probs and a good move. Chris and I just got there before the arvo rainstorm which caught some of the others. Yah for petrol stations I guess. Eventually got set up in the CG and the a speedy grocery shop (five days worth - think lite) and off for dinner at Boogies. A good day, plus we made up a day as that was two days worth of riding by the book.




19/9/08 Sargants - Ludder Creek
Nice not have to dry tents etc for a change. And a nice 20km road downhill as a warm up before easy undulating dirt road again. Am liking the Colorado dirt road conditions. An easy climb over Cochetopa Pass and along to the CG. The pump was not working but some RV'ers kindly gave us plenty so we didn't need to pump straight from the creek. Otherwise a nice CG amongst Apens.



18/9/08 Salida - Sargants
Decided against replacing my semi broken pedal after a bit of procrastination, and a $140 price tag. One side works OK so should be fine.
A short road section past Poncha Springs while my stomach wasn't feeling too flash. Then off road for 3,000ft climb. OK tho as it was again a railway gradient, and quite nice thru Aspens etc. But I really struggled for some reason and was glad to get to the top. Lunch and then another wicked fast descent to Sargants. Twice, my bear spray canister went flying out of its holder when going over some dips. We got a couple of Teepee's instead of our own tents. Quite nice for a change although still cool in the morning despite a gas fire going in the middle of the Teepee all night.

Salida 16/9/08

Tis a lovely day here in Salida, Blue sky, short 25km ride here (of which about 15km were a wicked downhill :), great bike shop (Absolute Bikes), nice campsite, coffee shops... I wanna stay.
An early start, I was off at the unheard of 7:50am as we're not bothering to dry tents (will do so in Salida) or do much for breakfast.
A short climb to a watershed and then a sweet descent to Salida. It just goes on and on and on...
Great views of some 14,000ft surrounding mountains as well.
So in Salida by 10am and sifting at Absolute Bikes with a coffee. My kinda day.


Badger Creek 15/9/08
Crisp frosty morning as per usual made better with a nice breakfast at the Depot.
Great undulating riding to Hartsel amongst huge scenery. Too much for a photo to really express. A butterscotch milkshake with lunch and then off for more of the same great riding & scenery.
Kate had our first crash of the trip (err, something about a small tornado... true) but otherwise more nice riding.
('stealth') Camped at/near Badger Creek although not so stealthy as there are no tree's around and we were just off the road. OK spot tho.
A long'ish day at 92km's but quite easy and makes for a short day to Salida which should give a good half rest day.


Como 14/9/08
Another frosty morning (a usual) so a bit slow to de-camp (dry tents) and then off to Frisco for brekky.
For some reason I found the (very) slightly uphill bike path to Breckenridge a bit hard. Maybe I need more than a breakfast bagel to get me going.
Breckenridge is a more substantial and even more glitzy ski town than Silverthorne. Would be nice to come back for a ski sometime.
Groceries for a few days and then off up Boreas Pass.
Awesome riding.
Nice easy gradient (as it was a narow gauge railway track), good surface and great scenery. Lunch at the top by some historic huts and above the snowline.
Then a great descent to Como. Chris and I almost made it to Como without pedalling, but we got stopped by a driver saying that Hat had had puncture. So I had a wee nap by the road while waiting.
Just 2km's later and in Como, found Scott's tent (and Scott) at the Como Depot hotel.
Its run by David (from Wales) and Moya (sp?) who were really nice to us. Free camping and use of the facilities (much appreciated). Then a great dinner (soup, chicken burritto, bread pudding and a nice Pilsner for me. yum) while Moir even did some laundry for us. How good is that!
These guys rock and this place needs a mention in the ACA/map notes (why would you want to camp up near the pass or at the school I don't know).
Another good day.

Silverthorne 13/9/08Nice crisp blue sky Sunday morning (and no tents to dry). Great day for a ride.
The three huge pancakes beat me, probably shouldn't have had the big cinnamon roll first I guess.
Nice rolling riding this morning on typically good surface (hard pack dirt) with nice wide open scenery. Even the climb to Ute Pass (9,574ft) was easy (and mostly road :). Great views from the top of the freshly dusted mountains. Then a wicked road descent to the highway. And more road to Silverthorne which seems to be a posh ski village. Nice campsite overlooking the lake tho. 90km's today but relatively easy.

Kremmling

A rest day / drying day in Kremmlings today as the rain etc has finally caught us.
Had a cool ride from Lynx Pass yesterday includng a 2,000ft descent to Radium and a wicked descent to Kremmlings (72kmph). On the same section some others in the crew were doing 10kmph into a huge squall! Managed to dodge thunder squalls till when we put up the tents, doh! Apart from the threatening weather the riding was quite good on a good surface.
Enchiladas for dinner, expect to have more of this as we get further south.

Radium is down there somewhere















Steamboat Springs - Lynx Pass
After a huge breakfast by Johnny's neigbour Barabara we headed off for Lynx pass. Initially a road section with some thunder/rain by nice and warm. Then off road but nice riding in great scenery. Got a bit tedious towards then end (should check my map better for expected distances I think) but got there in the end and was well shagged for it. But chook soup does wonders.



Slater Park - Steamboat Springs
An auspiscious start when the Bristols decided to make an early start, then went the wrong way. No worries as they caught us up at the Morrison Pass. Met some Bow shooters (BlackwidowBows.com I think) after Elk etc who gave us some coffee and let us fire off a few arrows (or is that bolts?), pretty cool. The ascent was only 6km but was a real push up to the pass, but an awesome descent (rocky & fast) to Clark for a late lunch. Prob the best store that we've come across I think.
Then into Steamboat along the road.
Got invited to camp on Johnny & Gigi's back lawn which was really appreciated. A really nice couple. Had a rest day there as well for laundry, groceries etc, and a nice Hot Pool session at night.
Great place.






















Aspen Valley - Slater Park CG
'Aspen alley' was quite nice despite the leaves still being on the tree's and not yet yellow. A very short section tho but worthy of some photo's.
Fast road section for 20km then back off road to the Slater park dispersed campsite.
Nice uptulating riding with plenty of small snakes (dead and alive) to weave around.


Rawlins - Aspen Valley
Boring road section then off road and steep on gravel, bit of a slog. After lunch it was just big tiring rollercoaster type riding. Nice to be into the Aspens tho as they make it nice and cool, as well as looking nice. Btw, each Aspen stand is actually sourced from a single 'tree'.

Rawlins, WY

A day off today here in Rawlins. Some tents need a bit of drying (due to frost/ice), and generally a re-charge after crossing the desert.
Pinedale - Rawlins is a 220mile stretch of desert with not much in it other than some Pronghorn antelope, wild horses, lots of sage bush and huge, wide open views, and not much water.
The first night into it at Little Sandy Creek we finally saw some clouds, lots of them in fact, along with strong winds, hail and snow. After a month of blue sky I guess that it had to break. A blessing in disguise I guess as we were well looked after by Mike Wade, wife & daughter who run a horse trekking operation there. It didn't take much convincing that the mess tent with wood burning stove was a better place to spend the day rather than up in the desert (NZ'ers, think Desert Rd mid winter).
Yet again, some really nice people.
My new tent was saying 'what storm?"
The next few days to Rawlins thru the desert were great . Awesome views, good fast riding on a great surface, and even a tail wind :)
Scott from Banff has joined us, at the A&M reservoir. He's been slowly catching us over the last month while hearing all about us as he's passed thru various towns.





















A&M Reservoir













Brrrr...

















Mike, Bobby, Emily and the crew














Our 'haven'...















Pinedale
A bit rushed as we got there after a 100km day and had to get groceries for the next four days. The central CG was a bit dodgy but way preferable to a 8mile one way off route ride to the other option.
But, finally, I got a new tent. Yaa.
A Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 from REI and delivered to the Pinedale A-Z Hardware/Bike shop (who also sent my tent home, cheers:). Half the weight of my Fairydown Assault, even more room, easier and faster to set up, and I think that I can set up / take down in the rain and stay dry'ish (time will tell).
Anyway, I'm a happy camper.

South Fork Fish Creek
A cruisey ride to Fish Creek from Brookes Lake. Knocked off Union Pass which wasn't too bad. First half great on a well formed dirt road, then bit harder on much looser gravel to the Divide Crossing. A big lunch at the Sawmill prior to the 'second half' probably made it a bit harder.
Anyway, enroute to Fish Creek we were invited to stay at the rangers station with Rob & Maria. Apparently there were plenty of bears in the are due to the cattle being ill and thus easier prey, such that they wanted us to be safe. As if we'd pass up such as request. So we had a great evening with them. Maria conjured up a nice Lassange for dinner and pancakes for brekky while Rob entertained us in his great 'Alabaham' style. Awesome!




















Brookes Lake













Yellowstone
Was a bit disappointing.
Basically a tourist trap with a some hot pools and a few Bison wandering around (Old Faithful epitomising things by being very lame). If you're into thermal activity then NZ is way better and I hear the Greenland even more so.
Still, good to kick back for a day or two.
Although hiring a car for a spin around the place was a good idea, we all felt much better riding thru on our bikes.
And we did get four more divide crossings.

West YellowStone

Have diverted thru Yellowstone Nat Park as of yesterday and are in West Yellowstone for a couple of days. Just chilling today and have hired a car for tomorrow for a quick blast around the park. Got a biggish day on Tuesday, to Grants which will be about 80km including 2x divide crossings over 8,000ft from about 6,500ft. On road so shouldn't be too bad.
Still struggling to remember what clouds look like....