Day 33: Kremmling to Breckenridge - 71 miles
I slowly packed up and then made my way into town to get breakfast. I ended up at the Moose Lodge restaurant where I ordered two 'Moose Sized' pancakes. They were the largest pancakes I have ever had, about 1.5 x the size of a typical dinner plate. I only managed to eat one and a half of them. The restaurant was very busy and the poor waitress was run off her feet trying to service her tables. The kitchen was also very busy, and I had to send back one of the pancakes since it was uncooked. In fact, quite a few times during the trip I've had undercooked pancakes, but this was too much with runny batter coming out when I cut the food.
After breakfast I called my parents in Toronto to check in. My mother is "worried sick" which is better than two years ago when she didn't sleep for two months. I try to assuage her fears by calling regularly. My father is following the trip through the web site so at least someone is reading my journal!
The wind was picking up by the time I headed out of town, but fortunately it turned into a quasi-tail wind. I cycled south on Highway 9 -- the direct route to Silverthorne -- a short distance out of town and then turned east onto an unsealed road. I was quite pleased by this for although it made for more effort cycling, there was too much traffic on Highway 9 for my liking.
The road ascended gradually towards the mountains and I passed a number of farms, but even more desert. Eventually I reached the reservoir where I had to turn into the wind. It was very hard work. The area has had a drought for three years and the reservoir was half empty. Pretty scarey if this continues. It seems that one of the biggest limitations to development is the availability of water.
As I reached the end of the reservoir I saw three cyclists with bob trailers ahead of me. Company! I cycled on and soon caught up with Rebecca, Paul and Pascal who are shown below. Rebecca and Pascal were from Switzerland; Paul from Virginia. All have recently completed university and were doing the continental divide trip to celebrate.
We shared experiences on the trip and like Sean and I, they had had their ups and downs but were pleased to have done the trip. Paul had the worst experience, dropping his bike during a steep descent which bent his wheels, wiped out his derailleur, and caused other sundry damage. That was on a section which we didn't cycle because I had broken my rack. We were all pleased at the weight loss since starting -- and the ability to eat as much as we want. Rebecca commented how much she was missing european bread, and that she was fed up with having oatmeal every morning for breakfast.
Paul and I cycled ahead of Rebecca and Pascal and we chatted about our experiences and America. Paul had recently finished his studies as an environmentalist at Virginia Tech which is where my conference is being held in October so he as familiar with the 'Smart Road' that I will be running some tests on.
My cell phone rang so I stopped while the others cycled on. Lis was calling from NZ to find out what gear she could leave behind (she was bringing some equipment for the conference and was overloaded). It was one of the few times that she has been able to get hold of me as more often than not I've been out of cell phone reception.
I eventually rejoined the others and we commenced the steep climb up to Ute pass. Paul and I soon outpaced the others and after much huffing and puffing we made it to the top where the photo below was taken. At 9,524' it was mighty hard work to get there, but the views were magnificent with the mountains all around us.
On the way up we passed a molymdium mine which was quite the eye sore. They had a huge mine tailings pond which had the most un-natural colour. I found out later that due to the geology of the area it takes 10 years for the water to percolate through by which time it is no longer polluted. However, visually it was terrible.
Rebecca and Pascal joined us and I bade them farewell as I needed to make tracks. I was hoping to get to Breckenridge that evening and had further to go. One of the big plusses of climbing up a mountain is the downhill run, even though they are very fleeting compared with the time it takes to get to the top. It was a great run down to the valley with a winding road and the mountains all around (see below). The only problem was that I was subjected to a strong headwind which meant that rather than coasting at 30 mph I was peddling to travel 15 mph. Life is very unfair at times.
The road ended at Highway 9 and so I had about 15 miles of busy road from there until Silverthorne. For the first part of the trip there was a wide shoulder which was great as the traffic was fairly heavy. However, I then hit a construction zone which lasted about 9 miles. That was pretty tough as not only was the surface non-existent, but it was narrow and I often had to cycle on the 'shoulder' which was really nothing more than loose earth. At least the traffic came through in waves so when I heard traffic coming I went over to the side and let them pass before having the road to myself.
When I reached the Silverthorne city limits there was a wide bicycle/ski path so I had a great cycle into town. I was famished and couldn't wait to find somewhere to eat. The first place I found was Wendy's so I went in to see what they could do for vegetarians. Not much. I ended up with some french fries and two baked potatoes. Lots of carbohydrates at least.
It was 17:00 and I still had another 20 miles to go so I made my way out and after passing under the Interstate headed uphill towards the dam and the cycle path that would take me to Breckenridge. As I was looking at my map to check my directions a cyclist came up and asked if she could help. Jill was out to test a bicycle and was cycling in the same direction so we cycled together. She was a lot faster than I was but I did my best to keep up with her, and generally succeeded.
Jill was a massage therapist who had lived in Breckenridge and was now working near Silverthorne. It was great to have her along since she knew the route very well and was able to advise me what was coming up. There were a few places like Frisco where there was a potential to get lost, but she guided me through with confidence. A Christian, we had a great wide ranging conversation on life and religion. She was also a climber and had done Dinali in Alaska. She asked about climbing Mt Cook and was very interested in NZ. Eventually she had to turn back so I gave her my card and told her to look me up if she ever gets down NZ way. Her photo is below.
It was a further 8 miles to Breckenridge and I was mighty tired. This was my third day in a row doing about 70 miles and it was beginning to wear on me. The bicycle path continued all the way to town so it was great not to have to worry about motorists. In fact, I was impressed by the large number of people who used the path. It was no surprise, circling the reservoir and passing through forests it was a gem to ride on.
When I got to Breckenridge I was amazed at the number of people walking around given that it was 20:00 on a cold evening. It transpired that there was an Oktoberfest celebration on and they were returning from the festivities. This of course meant that all the accommodation was booked out, which was a bit depressing as I had been looking forward to a hot shower/bath. As I walked my bike up the main street past people in various stages of inebriation a fellow came over and chatted with me. He had always wanted to do something like this. He wished me luck finding a place to sleep; he was sleeping in his car in a parking lot.
I was still hungry and found a pasta restaurant -- more carbohydrates! It was very full so I offered to sit at the bar with the other riff raff. They made me a great pasta and vegetable dish which I thoroughly enjoyed. My neighbours saw me perk up when they passed a disparaging comment on a "Fundamentalist Baptist" friend of theirs who didn't smoke, swear or drink. They asked for my view and I said that I generally managed at least two of those without any problems; and usually all three.
Rose, Taylor and Tyler were locals and Tyler (the male) had liberally indulged in the Oktoberfest activities. He was a road engineer with the Colorado DOT and when he heard that I was in the same business we were instantly long lost friends in the way that one can only be with someone who is fairly drunk. He also had a NZ connection wherein a branch of his family used to run a ferry between Wellington and Picton, as well as hunting whales.
Rose was intrigued as to how health and Christianity combined so we entered into a long discussion on that. She had lived in Utah and had seen things from the Mormon perspective, although judging by the amount of wine she was drinking she was not a follower.
Taylor worked as a lawyer invovled with water rights and it was very interesting hearing about the legal situation vis-a-vis water rights. It seems that while most places ensure that those with access to water have a right to use it, in the west there is a rule of 'first come first serve' (I forget the technical term she used). This means that an established and old community like Denver has a 'right' to a disproportionate share of the water over newer communities. Even old communities which have not exercised their rights are losing them to Denver. Taylor worked for a non-profit organisation supporting local governments to try and ensure that water is fairly shared and husbanded.
I commented that I had been surprised at the lack of conservation when it comes to water, even though we are in a desert. For example, in NZ most, if not all, new toilets are dual flush where there is a half flush for urinating; a full flush when required. I have yet to see such a device in my travels, and Taylor had never heard of it. I guess that it is just a commentary on the limited acceptance of the need for conservation here in the USA. One only needs to look at the preponderence of huge off road vehicles in places like LA where they are used to drive to the shops.
It was getting late so I took leave of everyone and after refilling my waterbottles headed out into the cold. It was going to be a cold night and I needed to find somewhere to sleep. I decided to cycle out of town towards Boreas pass and pitch my tent in the first suitable place. When I turned onto my road I noticed the local ice rink on the corner with a huge parking lot. This had potential ... I cycled to the far corner and there was a trail through the bush. This was getting better. After pushing my bike over a small bridge I found a small clearing and that was it. I quickly pitched my tent -- it was COLD -- and dived into my sleeping bag without even taking off my clothes. I was going to need all those layers for sure.