Day 1 - Salt Lake City to Moab, Utah. This was the worst day of the trip as we got a late start and it was oven baking hot in Southern Utah. We kept stopping to soak our bandanas (and my hair) and finally had to pull off in some tiny town and hang out at a truck stop for several hours in the heat of the day.
The best part of the first day ride was our scenic detour to come into Moab through a little-traveled canyon instead of the main turn off from Highway 6. Most of the way was winding roads right next to the river with gorgeous scenery. I took a ton of photos from the back of the bike but the pictures never do it complete justice. So worth the extra miles to see such gorgeous red rock scenery.
The ride that afternoon ended with a little nervousness as we found ourselves low on gas and no idea how far we were from Moab and the nearest gas station. We both admitted later that we could barely enjoy the ride where it was the best scenery because we kept strategically looking for where we could take shelter from the heat if we ran out of gas and thinking of who would stay with the bike and who would walk for gas. Nothing like the thrill of adventure to keep it real! Luckily we made it to town and the first gas station before running out of gas.
We ended the long and draining day with a fabulous dinner at a brewery where we got to catch up with an old friend who lives in the area and who we hadn't seen in several years - Crystal.
Day 2: Moab, Utah to Hotchkiss, Colorado via the La Sal mountains. This was a beautiful day to ride and so much grandeur to see. There is nothing like winding your way through mountain passes with the wind rushing past you.
We arrived in Hotchkiss and checked into our hotel early afternoon which gave us plenty of time to explore the town and see how different things were since Clint and his family had moved away. We got lucky when we stopped in where his closest friend from elementary school had lived and found out his parents still lived there and that he was also living on an adjacent property. It was fun to watch old friends rekindle friendships like the years in between had never happened. Clint also visited the house he lived in and talked to the new owners who were way cooler than I would have been if some stranger had shown up and wanted a tour of the place just because they had lived there thirty years ago. Small towns really are different like they say.
The next morning we had breakfast in a mom and pop cafe - our favorite - and ended up bantering with a couple of old farmers who reminded me of Clint's dad. Turned out our waitress was the older sister of his other close friend he remembers the most from elementary who was able to fill him in on all the town gossip he had missed. It was awesome.
Day 3 - Hotchiss, Colorado to Glenwood Springs, Colorado via another mountain pass with lots of memories for Clint. This was the route they used to take north to catch I-80 and then head west to Kansas when they would go visit their grandma as kids. Just when I thought the La Sal mountains were the prettiest things I'd seen, we went over the Rockies and it was beyond breathtaking. No wonder - we were weaving between National Parks.
When we got to Glenwood Springs we had a little while before we could check into our hotel. To kill some time we checked out the Harley dealership so Clint could sit on a few of his favorites and do a little window shopping and price comparisons. It's cheaper to buy a new Harley in Colorado than it is in Utah!
He found the one he likes the best... so far.
We got the 411 from a local on a great place to eat and had a nice Italian dinner before hitting the famous hot springs that the town is named for. If you've never heard of Glenwood Springs it is like a fancier Lava Hot Springs. There were tons of people speaking in European accents and the water was so relaxing. The prices were kind of outrageous but we both agreed it so worth it after the soak was over.
Day 4: Glenwood Springs, Colorado to Salt Lake City, Utah. This was the mother of all days but we knew it was going to be crazy when we were planning the trip. We basically took our time tooling around to see and do what we wanted on the first half then bee-lining it all the way back home on the final day. Where the previous days had us on the bike on slower roads for three or four hours, this day was an almost seven hour drive with no stops. Plus, we were heading back down to the lower desserts of Southern Utah and the heat of July that comes with it. So, we got up and were on the road before the sun came up trying to hopefully be home before the hottest part of the day. When we left it was so cold we had to wear our jackets and I was shivering in my little windbreaker until the sun rose over the mountains. It got warm fast and we stopped for brunch and to strip down to tank tops for the last leg. So worth getting up early for to be home before the oven baking heat of day one hit us again.
This is the coolest shot that I managed to capture. It takes me back to exactly how it felt riding on the bike behind the love of my life doing the love of his. We will definitely be doing more trips like this in the future!
No comments:
Post a Comment