Help with rides around Denver

[haysenglehart]

My three cousins and I, along with our wives, are desending upon Denver late August for a week long motorcycle journey. We don't know where to go or what to see, only that we'd like to leave Denver and return 7 days later. We'd like to stay on back roads, two lane sweepers, as litttle interstate as possible. We need places to see, stay, eat, and places to drink, (responsibly of course), etc.

Any suggestions of where to go and stay, and especially which roads to take, will be greatly appreciated. I have my map out, my highlighter ready,,,:biker:

[Fred D]

Check out the maps for WeSTOC (http://www.stocrallies.com/westoc11/) for some ideas.

[Don-STOC237]

Make your trip a week or two later and head for WeSTOC!

Join a couple hundred of your ST-riding friends at the greatest rally in STOCdom.

www.stocrallies.com/westoc11 is the website.

If for some strange reason you are going to miss WeSTOC, (I don't know why anyone would), the Rides page on the website has complete maps and directions on 6 great rides out of Golden, which is a Denver suburb.

[Putt]

Seven days of crusing Colorado is gonna make you wish you had a month..
Any road West of the Front Range is great.. Heck, even Interstate 70
going West out of Denver is a nice ride.. You can spend 7 days riding
the roads within 150 miles of Denver, and that still leaves the REST of the
state....

Putt...

[Medicine Bear]

I particularly liked Estes Park. It's the gateway to Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park. It's not too far from Denver but you'll have to slab a little out of Denver. I'm sure there are alternate routes.

As others have said, stay a week and you'll wish you had a month. :)

Fred :03biker:

[Putt]

Several ways to get to RMNP, take US 6 to 119 then 72 to Estes Park
or US 6 West to US 40 to US 34 enter the park from the West entrance..
or thru Little Thompson Canyon, or Big Thompson or.. or... or...
So many roads.... So little time...

Putt..

I particularly liked Estes Park. It's the gateway to Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park. It's not too far from Denver but you'll have to slab a little out of Denver. I'm sure there are alternate routes.

As others have said, stay a week and you'll wish you had a month. :)

Fred :03biker:

[st_rider]

As others have mentioned - check out the rides poSTed on the WeSTOC site.

I think I poSTed this somewhere else, but if not:
IMHO (in no particular order)
The Good:
1) Highway 145 along the Dolores River from Dolores up
to Naturita and then 141 up to Gateway.
2) US 50 along the Arkansas from Texas Creek over to
Salida. It continues to be a great road all the way
to Montrose.
3) Highway 149 from South Fork up through Lake City
and on up to Blue Mesa.
4) Highway 92 (Black Mesa) from Blue Mesa up to
Hotchkiss. From there, either continue on up 133
towards Carbondale or swing to the West and hit 65 and
up over Grand Mesa.
5) I-70 through Glenwood Canyon.
6) Either Highway 7 or 36 from Lyons to Estes Park.
7) Highway 14 West from Ted's Place over to Waldon.
8) US 550 from Durango to Ridgeway.
9) Highway 67 from Woodland Park up to Pine Junction.
10) US 34 from Estes Park to Loveland (if in Loveland,
call me).

The Bad/Ugly:
1) The entire I-25 STretch from the Wyoming line to
Trinidad.
2) I-70 from Denver East to the Kansas line.
3) Virtually all roads East of I-25.

And finally - if there is any way you can swing it - I would suggeST you try to delay your trip about a week or so and attend WeSTOC XI!!!!

:)

[Clair]

+1 to what ST-Rider said.

Estes and RMNP are great roads even in the cage. Basically anything west if I-25 will be good for you and fun. Riding over Independence Pass is great too, and you crest over 12,000 feet. Basically, you won't go wrong, just make sure to note where you can get gas ... it can get rather sparse depending on where you are.

[EASt]

I'd throw in SR14, which curls north of RMNP.

However, I'd like to make a note of caution on my last experience in Colorado: Road upkeep in many areas (read higher altitudes) is spotty and unpredictable. I've never been in an area so littered with tar-snakes. One of the guys I was riding with low-sided a Triumph Trophy with less than 2,000 miles on it when he hit a stretch of the gooey stuff.

I put a short Quicktime video of SR14 on my website, here: CLICKY (http://www.tc.umn.edu/~stene004/Video.htm). You can see what I'm talking about... :shock:

[Putt]

14 up to Walden then back down on 125??
Or follow it to U.S. 40 at Rabbit Ears??

Putt...



I'd throw in SR14, which curls north of RMNP.

However, I'd like to make a note of caution on my last experience in Colorado: Road upkeep in many areas (read higher altitudes) is spotty and unpredictable. I've never been in an area so littered with tar-snakes. One of the guys I was riding with low-sided a Triumph Trophy with less than 2,000 miles on it when he hit a stretch of the gooey stuff.

I put a short Quicktime video of SR14 on my website, here: CLICKY (http://www.tc.umn.edu/%7Estene004/Video.htm). You can see what I'm talking about... :shock:

[EASt]

Our route looked something like this picture:
7215

[haysenglehart]

:D :D :D I KNEW you guys would come through for me! Ye Haw! My only regret is that I will not be able to attend WeSToc a week later. And I missed last years right here in California! Ok, I promise I'll try and make the next one.

I'm copying all the suggestions and will share with my group. Again, thanks for the help! Any more? As they say, it ain't over till the fat Harley sings!

[EASt]

As they say, it ain't over till the fat Harley sings!

Sings? You mean yells, right? :D

[Medicine Bear]

Sings? You mean yells, right? :D

Nah! It just sits there quietly going - "potato potato potato". :D

Fred :03biker:

[Putt]

Yeah, thats a nice ride ....

Putt...

Our route looked something like this picture:
7215

[EASt]

Yeah, thats a nice ride ....

Putt...

I had a blast riding it (even with the crash). However, I'll agree with all the previous comments, too: The west side of the mountains are better than the east. :bow1:

[number9]

Have a look at my planned route for this summer, might get some ideas.

http://community.webshots.com/album/487916865OzuYPe

[Britman]

http://www.motorcycleroads.us/co.html

[jimbemotumbo]

Noob here, still waiting to pull the string on an ST.

I agree with all the above, the Estes loop from Boulder/NW Denver, over trail ridge road to Grand Lake, and then on to Winter Park is beautiful. From there you can continue WNW to the Steamboat Springs area. Stop for a day or so to look around and hit the natural hot springs. The ride from Steamboat to the Flatops is spectacular as well and will eventually feed you back onto I70 where you can head south into Aspen, Leadville, etc. From there I would recommend 50 highway through Buena Vista or head a bit west to Gunnison (forgot the hiway number). Both ways will eventually take you south to the Alamosa / Durango stretch. From Alamosa, it's only a couple hours to Taos. Back to Denver via hiway 285.

Be prepared ... sometimes winter hits the high country in August. The passes are always capable of snow and hail, even in July, so plan accordingly.

Enjoy!