Colorado Motorcycle Vacation: Day Five Part One

Day five map
Click on image for larger view
The part in red is my "extra" stuff to Four Corners

This one was my longest day in the saddle by miles….about 350 altogether for me.

I missed my 6am leave time…I didn’t pull out until 7:30. My destination: Four Corners.

Everyone else decided to continue on the scheduled ride…no worries…I had to get to Four Corners. Of course, our lovely proprietor for the night was very clear on his opinion of Four Corners: There’s nothing out there AND I would have to pay to see it.

Yes, there is, it’s a marker and on the Scavenger Hunt list. I’m going.

As I’m backtracking back down to Cortez, I recall my incident of the previous day. I see the skid mark on the road and give thanks for a happy ending. Enough pondering; I put the incident behind me.

The desolate scenery...beautiful in its own right

On to Four Corners!! The ride was basically simple…mostly straight line riding! On my way out, I pass a casino…ahhh Scavenger Hunt item, so I pull in and take the shot. Hey, there are teepees over there…and I get that one too!!

Scavenger Hunt Item: Casino

Scavenger Hunt Item: Teepee

Once at Four Corners, I pay my $3.00 to get in and then ride down to the marker. The motel keeper was right...there isn’t much there. The marker and a whole lot of vendors selling jewelry. From what I understand, this area is extremely depressed, so I don’t mind about the $3.00. After all, the entry fee into Rocky Mountain National Park is $20.00 per four wheels!

Four Corners and the Harley
...and my shadow...
All pretty neat if you ask me!!

I did get the shot, thanks to another bunch of riders that pulled in behind me. He did the "goofy shot"... I did a bit of shopping as well…so that put me….very late getting out.

Look Ma! I get around...four states at the same time!!!

Since I am at Four Corners, I get the opportunity to get the “Welcome to (other state) sign”…Except for Utah...where did I miss that?? At any rate, I do snap the photo where I am in Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado all at the same time. I think it’s pretty neat! Not to mention more Scavenger Hunt items!! Getting the Colorado sign took some doing, as I had the privilege of riding on six inches of sand…ugh!! Not ideal conditions for a Harley. I managed it and got my motorcycle turned around to get the image….

My feet are in...uhhh..you figure it out!!

Welcome to Arizona!

Welcome to New Mexico!

Welcome to Colorful Colorado!

I double back to continue my journey for the day…I want to get to Telluride and meet up with the group. They have a stop there—lunch, sightseeing and the gondola ride….However, the ride is much too pretty to hurry, so I take my time and don’t sweat it. I had a serious Zen moment—the scenery, my motorcycle, very little traffic and the lovely music from Les Miserables…so I was enjoying the ride! Well, at least until I got pounded by rain!!

I meet the group as they are coming out of Telluride. I’m arriving, they are leaving. Thank goodness I was there last year so I didn’t miss too much (or so I think)!! I double back and then join the group. As we ride down, the sky once again clouds over. Part of the group pulls over for rain gear. I stop too. I am still in no hurry. Our destination is Pitkin—and we have to ride back to Montrose to Gunnison on Hwy 550 and then 50. The rain is hard but doesn’t last long. However, when I see the lightning…I pull off. I dislike lightning at all costs so I’m getting off the road. I pull into a gas station.

While I’m waiting the storm out, there are several other bikers doing the same, so I chat with them. Most are locals doing a long weekend ride and so we trade stories and just make general chit-chat. One gentleman, from Denver, was on a particularly gorgeous white Road King Custom….I can’t remember his name, but I darn well remember what he was riding!! We all talk about our destinations…his being Durango and mine being Pitkin.

“Where on earth is Pitkin and what is there” asks my Road King Custom rider. I showed him on the map—that’s about all I know!!

Storm moves on and so do I. Again, I am enjoying my ride and am in no particular hurry. As a matter of fact, I’ve gotten used to the five miles under the speed limit so I’m cruising down the road, scooting over to let cars pass. No worries….I’ll get to Pitkin soon enough.

Imagine my surprise as I get to Gunnison and find Ed waving at me. I caught up? LOL. Well, it seems that they’ve been doing their share of moseying down the road as well. Well, that and Tim lost part of his gear and went back for it. I mentioned that I was surprised to have caught them—to which Tim responded “well, you did drive like a bat out of *%$$, right”? Nope, I had some spots of speed, but mostly it was cruising around the speed limit!

On to Pitkin we go. That stop is a story in itself so I’ll leave it for tomorrow….there was a lot that happened in that short period of time!! I this rider gets her bike there and parks it….

Until tomorrow…..

Keep the Shiny Side Up!

~The Rainbow Wahine