CAÑON CITY, COLORADO
DAY 9 (UNOFFICIAL) – RIDE THE ROCKIES
Last year the Day 6 route on Ride the Rockies was to be Salida to Cañon City across Royal Gorge. However, there was a major fire burning and we were rerouted.
I extended my stay this year for a day to ride the missing portion from last year. Ideally, I could ride point to point from Colotaxi to Cañon City. But I couldn’t pull that off logistically so I did the next best thing. I rode backward to the gorge loop.
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| Royal Gorge Train |
Last year we were looking at a mostly downhill ride to Cañon City from Salida so I knew I’d be riding uphill today until I turned around. And I started with a seven mile climb.
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| Arkansas River from US 50 |
I passed one entrance for the Royal Gorge Bridge. I kept riding and crossed the Arkansas River. There I saw the second entrance with the sign “Bridge Closed Will Reopen.” I stopped at a rafting company and asked if the sign was real. The young lady assured me it was and directed me back three miles, uphill, to the visitor center.
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| Sorry Folks. America’s Favorite Family Bridge is Closed for Maintenance |
Arriving at the visitor center it appeared to be a restaurant. I saw a waitress. I didn’t ask anyone for help. I just decided to ride as far as to the gorge as I could ride.
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| Fire Damage from 2013 Fire |
It’s a gorge. My first thought was that I would ride downhill from the summit I had just crested. And the road went downhill at first. But then I was climbing again. A lot. And it made sense. The bridge is at the top of the gorge.
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I saw a closed Gorge Railroad. Also a couple of other boarded up businesses. At the end of pavement was a dirt road to a picnic area. Straight ahead the road looked like it might go to a bridge. But it was fenced off. So I rode on dirt.
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| Dirt Leading to Picnic Area and Overlook |
Arriving at the picnic area I saw rocks and dirt and a 1,000′ cliff. I carefully maneuvered my way down the rocks to a vantage point to see the gorge and bridge. We were high up. We were far away. It was windy. I was wearing cycling cleats.
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| The Bridge and Gorge from Far Far Away |
Today was important to honor Jamie Roberts. Her name was on my calf and I made sure I would get here. No matter what.
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| Overlooking the Gorge and Honoring Jamie |
It was windy. Again. There was a headwind out and a tailwind back. The bike rolled back towards Cañon City. I hit 49 mph but was very uncomfortable trying to push it higher. It was three days since I checked or added air to my tires and I did not have a pump. I thought the tires felt low and I wasn’t sure if an under-inflated tire was in danger of overheating and popping. The wind shifted and I was really afraid of pushing it. Riding is fun but I must keep it safe. (Like 49 mph is safe but 50 mph is dangerous.)
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| Looking Downstream at the Arkansas River |
I didn’t ride across the Royal Gorge Bridge, and now probably never will, but I saw it from afar. Most importantly, I honored Jamie.
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| Royal Gorge Bridge in Background |
