Mountain Bike Trip to Colorado and Utah via Arizona on the way

After getting back to Redlands at 5.30pm on Fri 2^nd Oct and after a pretty broken sleep I had to be driving at 6am the next day to pick Craig up from LAX at 7.30am for our ‘Boys’ MTB trip. After some organization and shopping we hit the road from my place in Redlands at 10am and drove all the way to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon (GC) getting there just in time to see the Sunset. We drove the I-40 through CA and AZ most of the way. At the turnoff north to the GC the woman at the gas station was moaning about the fireman who had lit fires to do a burn off. It was windy and she said they were stupid. We agreed. After driving through it on the way to Williams it didn’t seem to be under control. Sure enough on the news the next day was a raging out of control fire around the town of Williams, AZ.

The GC was as incredible as you can imagine. So much so that the pictures do it NO justice. The size is too big to comprehend. You can actually see the curve of the horizon in many of the pictures taken of the view across the GC. The sunset was incredible that evening. The views majestic and after such a long day the sleep was much needed. The next morning we arose early. In near freezing temperatures (The South Rim is 7000ft high) we biked along the rim to find a good lookout too watch the sunset. It was awesome though the lighting conditions made it difficult to get good pictures.

After breakfast we spent a few hours driving east along the South Rim to the final ‘Desert View Lookout’ checking out all the view points and getting different perspectives of this giant scar on the Earth’s surface. Next up was a pretty giant drive though the Arizona Desert to Kayenta for a late lunch before seeing Monument Valley. We hit numerous dust storms along the way. Vis was down to just 10s of meters. It was like being in a red blizzard except you could actually hear the paint of the car being blasted by the sand. In the 60mph winds we saw a number of tumbleweeds. It was pretty Wild West. Awesome.

Monument Valley was the Camry’s biggest challenge yet. With 2 bikes on the roof we ventured off onto the ‘4wd’s Only Recommended Tracks’ so we could have a good view of the monuments. In dust storms we got some incredible views though it meant a few big scrapes on the underside of the old beast. The rear window latch thing had broken so it keep sliding down in the roughness of monument valley. With the massive winds it meant the car filled with red dust. Enough so that it got into my camera and crippled it permanently. Bugger. I wanted a camera with a wider angle lens so now I had my reason. Once back on smooth roads electrical tape came to the rescue and the window though it could not be used never fell down again. The rest of this day was through some wild country in the South East corner of Utah to the Four Corners Monument which was closed just 15mins earlier. It’s the only place you can stand in four States at once. 1.5 hours or so from here and we were in Durango, Colorado. That evenings feed of hot wings and Fat Tire Beer went down very well.

The next day after hassling the guys at ‘Hassle Free Sports’ we headed out on the lovely multiuse trail next to the river running through Durango to the Horse Gulch Trails. Wow. What an introduction to biking on our trip. Some of the flowiest trails I have ridden. All made by MTBikers for MTBikers. Lots of variety and right in town. During our rip around out there Craig almost took someone out. After I recognized who it was we stopped and chatted. It was Todd Wells charging around on his proto Specialized Carbon 29er on his local trails. He is from Durango and it was awesome meeting one of the best Mountain Bikers in the world on his local trails.

On our last morning in Durango we were up early in the freezing temps and headed to the start of Dry Creek and the Colorado Trail. We rode 22 miles in pristine Alpine and sub alpine zones up to 9600ft. The climb in the thin air was worthwhile. The downhill ripped and again it was once of the best trails ever ridden. Flow, technical bits, wicked views and amazing autumn colors. Just look at the pics... So far Colorado is living up to all the good things I had heard. The drive that day got us to Gunnison in Central Colorado. The highlights of today’s drive were 3 high passes, 2 over 10000ft and one over 11000ft. Wow. What views and the highest I had ever driven. Some of the towns such as Silverton and Ouray were incredible. Another gem was seeing the “Black Canyon of the Gunnison Canyon National Park”. A deep cut in the Colorado Plateau. Pictures here due to the setting sun and stark environment were very difficult.

The next day was a big day too. All these days were big trying to fit in as much as possible. Craig and I were having a great time and it was time to pick Paul up in Denver who was flying in from Aussie. After a lovely 4hr drive from Gunnison we arrived in Central Denver with a few hours up our sleeves. We walked around the State Buildings and 16^th Street Mall. It was a lovely area actually and we had a very tasty lunch. I was quite impressed with Downtown Denver. After grabbing Paul from the airport it was straight to the massive bike shop (Wheatridge Cyclery) where he brought a brand new Enduro for a bit of a bargain. We were set. 1 Camry loaded to the hilt and three bikes clinging to the roof for dare life with trails to hit in Grand Junction, Fruita, Moab and Southern Utah in 10 days. 

NOTE TO THE NON COMPUTER PEOPLE– TO GET TO THE PICTURES LOOK ON THE ROUTE WE TOOK ON THE MAP AND CLICK ON THE CAMERA ICONS FOR PICTURES OF THAT AREA. CLICK ON THE LITTLE POPUP PICTURE TO BRING UP THE WHOLE COLLECTION.

View MTB Trip to Colorado & Utah, Oct 2009 in a larger map

After an evening in Boulder we hit the road in the first snows of the season on our way over the Rockies on following the I-70 to Grand Junction. This drive was sick. One of the most amazing roading engineering feats I have seen anywhere. Massive tunnels, a high pass and a stacked multilane highway through a 20mile long gorge. That afternoon the 3 of us rode together for the first time in many years on some incredible trails in a moonscape environment. They were technical and quite the introduction for the boys on loose, rocky, steep trails here in the States. It was called the ‘Tabeguache Trails’ or Lunch Loop Trails. They were just out of the town of Grand Junction and I loved them. That nights the meal at the Local Brewery went down very well indeed.

The 2^nd day in the Grand Junction area was my Birthday. Quite frankly I would be hard pressed to have better activities to do on my Bday. Riding was in Fruita today 12 miles down the road and WOW. The morning was spent driving around the Colorado Monument. A Protected area. Lovely views indeed. First up riding wise were the ’18 Road Trails’. They were smooth, fast and fun with some extreme hill climbs. Lots of ridge riding and we hit trails named Prime Cut, Chutes & Ladders, Perimeter, Western Zip, Frontside, Joes Run and Kessel Run.

After a late lunch to refuel we headed out to the famous Kokapelli Trails. They were all I imagined and more. Nothing has been even a little disappointing so far. We started on Horsethief Bench and finished on Mary’s Loop. Wow. So so good. Flow, technical stuff and incredible views. Yep it’s all getting repetitive. All this good riding I know. I don’t know how else to describe it anymore. If you are a mountain biker you need to get to Colorado. I will have to go back. It was a massive day. 60km of single-track. After a big dinner at the Rockslide Brewery I had the earliest night I can remember for a birthday. I was satisfied though :-)

Rose early so we could spend the morning hitting more trails at Kokapelli before the short drive into Utah to the mecca that is Moab. That morning we rode Lion’s Loop, Steve’s Loop and Mack Ridge. All awesome. That afternoon we drove through the Colorado Gorge via the back roads to Moab. We setup base for a few night at the downtown Ramada Hotel.

We spent 3 days riding in Moab including one afternoon exploring the nearby Arch’s National Park. I could go on forever but will let the pictures do the talking. We rode Slickrock Trails the first day and after Paul crashed we spent the afternoon getting his biking sorted. All I will say is I never knew I could ride up stuff that steep and was able to clear every climb there. I was well happy with myself and few others we saw cleared everything. You just need horsepower and balance and you are away. All the grip you will ever need is there. The 2^nd day we rode “The Whole Enchilada”. This was a shuttle run. We were dropped off in the La Sal Mountains at 10000ft. We then rode up to 11200ft. From here we spent hours riding mainly downhill back into Moab. All up that was a 40+ mile ride. It was technical, smooth, alpine, rocky and the best single day I have had on a mountain bike. It took in numerous trails including Porcupine Rim to finish. Go do it is all I can say.

The final day was spent at the Trails: Amasa’s Back, The Portal and the Sovereign Trails. All wicked as usual and really after 3 days we only scratched a deep scratch in the surface of the riding options in the Moab area. I’ll be back. The Portal Downhill was the most exposed trail I have ever seen and ridden. A signpost on it stated. “Dismount now. 3 people have fallen to their Death at this Point”

After viewing the 24hrs of Moab Race the night before we were back at the Slickrock Trails on our final morning in Moab. Paul was compelled to complete the loop after it defeated him the first time. That afternoon we had a big drive across Utah and down to the St George, Zion area. It was a lovely drive again across a big variety of terrain. So much to see and no time to see it as always. Such a big country.

We stayed in Springdale right on the gate into Zion National Park. The first day there we headed out to Gooseberry Mesa for the day. Wow. I was well impressed. It was very different than any trials we had yet done. Slow going and technical with a bit of slickrock, exposed track and some great views. We had heaps of fun here and though it had little flow or big downhill’s it was back to basics Mountain Biking. Not really going anywhere but going everywhere if you know what I mean. These trails are well worthy of their reputation.

Our last day in the Zion Area saw us up early yet again to look around the Zion National Park itself. A stunning place and a place I want to go back too and camp and hike. Lovely. Massive walls, great streams and very impressive views. We also saw some tiny dots on the massive walls. They we big wall climbers and I wished I had a much bigger zoom on the camera or atleast binoculars. On the 2500ft high walls they were almost impossible to spot. That afternoon was spent getting down to Las Vegas. For a night on the town. It was Paul and Craig’s first trip to Vegas and we had one raging night then left. The best way to do Vegas if you are there to booze. Anymore than 1 big night there and you get a bit over it. We saw the Cirque Show Zumanity at New York New York. It was good as was the Brazilian BBQ dinner and the fancy pants club at ‘The Wynn’ which included a 6 storey waterfall in the middle of the club and well over priced drinks of course.

After a short sleep in the shitty Hotel 8 we awoke hung-over and visited Hoover Dam before the 4hr drive across the barren desert back to my place in CA. Hoover Dam was impressive indeed. Very big and the Visitor Centre was worth its entry fee. What is more impressive is the massive 4 lane Bridge they are building across the gorge to link Nevada with Arizona. When completed 16000 cars will pass over it everyday. Sunday was a long day also. That morning I took Paul and Craig on the local trails I ride. It was ‘The Hellride’ comprising of the full length of Santa Ana River Trail Singletrack. They really enjoyed it and it was a fitting end to an incredible trip. MTB trips are the best way to spend time with mates and when they flew out that evening back to Aussie if it was not for Bridget arriving the next day and a next adventure to begin I would have been rather deflated.