Mark your calendar's ... July 24 -28.

[Whip]

San Juan Mountains of Colorado.

 

Venue to be announced soon.

 

 

[lawnchairboy]

IN

[MikeB60]

Inx2

[Groanup]

My calendar is marked...

[TSConver]

Going to try and make it.  Probably a 2 week vacation for the wife and me.

[LBump]

A favorite spot. 

[C_Williams]

IN  ! and looking forward to it

[MachineJoe]

IN  !!!!!!!!!!!!

2 weeks for my wife and myself as well

 

[SANTA]

as long as they don't lock the gate, im planning to come

[Dennis Andress]

IN!

[Twisties]

Well, if you put it in my backyard I suppose I'm IN.   

[W8NONU]

Sounds like a plan!

[tobyzusa]

I’m so IN.

[Motorhead1977]

A very real possibility. Have to see if it's possible to arrange the necessary time away from my law practice for the long drive out and back. 

[Bullett]

IN!   Lots to do in the San Juans!

 

[92232]

I have put this on my calendar.  But being retired makes it easy.

[Mapaddict]

A definite maybe. 
 

[Limecreek]

IN

[randy]

IN, IN, IN and my son Ryan will be joining us for the week.  First time Riding with Ryan since about 2010. It will be a blast.
My Uncle is 50/50, but Ryan and I are in :-)

[randy]

and I know we have been there twice, but I still think Gunnison, CO is a winner, but not sure if Gunnison, CO is considered part of the San Juan Mountains.

 

[roadscholar]

The San Juans are in the SW corner of Colorado and the most spectacular of them are roughly between Ridgway-Durango along the US550 corridor and Lake City-Telluride east/west accessible by mostly steep, rocky jeep trails  The road riding within a I00 mile radius or so is some of the best anywhere for scenery and technical but there just aren't that many paved ones because of the rugged terrain so plan on some fairly long day loops or out and backs. Plenty of attendees will know where they are but once it's announced and gets closer if anyone's interested I can also point out some scenic maintained gravel roads that can be ridden on a GS/big Adv bike. There's also a plethora of dirt bike/jeep trails but most are recommended for experienced offroad riders. Here's a teaser with TEWKS heading toward Red Mountain Pass on our way to an offroad adventure one day.

 

https://waybill.smugmug.com/Colorado-July-16-videos/i-823DRzg/A

 

[JSCOTT]

I'm in.  We will make a 2-week vacation out of it.  Lived in Pagosa Springs for a short while many years ago.  Will be great to be back out that way.  

[lawnchairboy]

3 hours ago, roadscholar said:

The San Juans are in the SW corner of Colorado and the most spectacular of them are roughly between Ridgway-Durango along the US550 corridor and Lake City-Telluride east/west accessible by mostly steep, rocky jeep trails  The road riding within a I00 mile radius or so is some of the best anywhere for scenery and technical but there just aren't that many paved ones because of the rugged terrain so plan on some fairly long day loops or out and backs. Plenty of attendees will know where they are but once it's announced and gets closer if anyone's interested I can also point out some scenic maintained gravel roads that can be ridden on a GS/big Adv bike. There's also a plethora of dirt bike/jeep trails but most are recommended for experienced offroad riders. Here's a teaser with TEWKS heading toward Red Mountain Pass on our way to an offroad adventure one day.

 

https://waybill.smugmug.com/Colorado-July-16-videos/i-823DRzg/A

 

I will not have a small bike but can show the interested on the big pigs some beautiful non-tarmac if interested.  I will be on a GS.

[lawnchairboy]

[lawnchairboy]

nuthin' to see out there anyhow.

 

 

 

 

[Twisties]

On 11/27/2022 at 1:21 PM, randy said:

and I know we have been there twice, but I still think Gunnison, CO is a winner, but not sure if Gunnison, CO is considered part of the San Juan Mountains.

 

The San Juans are bordered by Telluride, Ridgeway, Ouray, Lake City, Creede, South Fork, Pagosa Springs, Durango (kinda), and Dolores (kinda).  Gunnison is about 50 miles north of Lake City and I don't consider it San Juans.  Also, the major construction on US-50 was supposed to be done now, but has been extended to July....  not clear if it will be done for the event.  It would be a major downer to be in Gunnison with that still underway.  That said, I have no idea where it will be other than what was said, San Juans.

[LBump]

Dual Sport riding in the area will take you to upper elevations.  I doubt if you'll be disappointed. 

[Twisties]

Street riding in the San Juans is not my favorite.  The million dollar highway from Ouray to Durango is certainly incredibly spectacular, but traffic has made it slow going most of the time.  Early and late hours may still allow for sporty riding.  That said, there are many great street routes accessible from the area.  Favorites are 145 through Gateway, 65 over Grand Mesa, 92 over Black Canyon, 149 through Lake City and Creede.  
 

 

[roadscholar]

Gunnison sits in a big flat valley bordered by the Sawatch Range and Elk Mountains to the East and North, and The La Garitas and Cochetopa Hills to the South.

 

10 hours ago, Twisties said:

That said, there are many great street routes accessible from the area.  Favorites are 145 through Gateway, 65 over Grand Mesa, 92 over Black Canyon, 149 through Lake City and Creede.  

 

Those are the main ones I was referring to earlier but again any loops including them will be nearly a full day from the 550 corridor S. of Ridgway (Ridgeway has no E). Colorado is a deceptively big state especially if you’re used to riding in the East, distances are usually greater than appearances on a map.

 

10 hours ago, LBump said:

Dual Sport riding in the area will take you to upper elevations.  I doubt if you'll be disappointed. 

 

It is dualsport heaven but again much of it is steep, rocky, with offroad experience and a proper dirtbike required, yes a few ride big bikes on the trails but they're either lucky or really good not to be picking them up semi-regularly   It's also crowded on weekends but likely won't be as much during the week when an Unrally normally takes place. There are many places to rent Jeeps, SXS's, 4 wheelers, and dirt bikes.

 

Weather.. if you don't like it, wait a minute : ) which is almost accurate. One time in 2000 I was doing a loop thru Colorado on a street bike, in Montrose the bank’s thermometer read 97*, 45 minutes later it was hailing on Red Mountain Pass and the temp was probably high 20’s, in June. Also if it's overcast or even cloudy down low..

 

 

it can be like this at elevation..

 

 

No matter the means of getting there, the area encompasses some of the most spectacular mountain scenery anywhere in the country making it worthwhile to do whatever it takes to see it.

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[randy]

12 hours ago, LBump said:

Dual Sport riding in the area will take you to upper elevations.  I doubt if you'll be disappointed. 

will local's be able to put together some TRUE dirt routes.  I have a 2009 BMW G450x dual sport.  But this bike is NOT highway capable, or really even street capable for long distance.

In general can I load the bike in the truck , go to the base of the mountains, and ride for 6 hours then come back to the truck and back to the motel?

In Georgia I trailer the G450x to Helen or to Dahlonega and then unload the bike, about a 3 mile street ride to first dirt road, then ride for 5-7 hours in the mountains and then load back up and drive home.

If I bring my G450x I would need to do the same, basically 10 miles one way is about the limit of riding this bike on the street roads. 

if any locals have GPX routes and want to send them to me, please PM me.  I would like to get an idea of how much dirt riding I could get in.

[randy]

14 hours ago, Twisties said:

The San Juans are bordered by Telluride, Ridgeway, Ouray, Lake City, Creede, South Fork, Pagosa Springs, Durango (kinda), and Dolores (kinda).  Gunnison is about 50 miles north of Lake City and I don't consider it San Juans.  Also, the major construction on US-50 was supposed to be done now, but has been extended to July....  not clear if it will be done for the event.  It would be a major downer to be in Gunnison with that still underway.  That said, I have no idea where it will be other than what was said, San Juans.

thanks, my son lives in Fort Collins, CO and my wife and I have visited that area often.  So I know those towns,  thanks

[Motorhead1977]

I think this discussion is very informative.  The large extent (though many years ago) of my experience through the "Rockies" has been via interstate highways on a "mission" from point A to point B.  From the posts here and the videos shared it seems that in the area being discussed only about 20% to 25% of the available riding is on paved roads and most of those are "main" (Non interstate) roads/highways?  Perhaps I am misinterpreting what I am seeing.  I'll look for those who are extremely familiar with the general area to enlighten me.  TIA

[roadscholar]

2 hours ago, Motorhead1977 said:

I think this discussion is very informative.  The large extent (though many years ago) of my experience through the "Rockies" has been via interstate highways on a "mission" from point A to point B.  From the posts here and the videos shared it seems that in the area being discussed only about 20% to 25% of the available riding is on paved roads and most of those are "main" (Non interstate) roads/highways?  Perhaps I am misinterpreting what I am seeing.  I'll look for those who are extremely familiar with the general area to enlighten me.  TIA

 

I'm pretty familiar with it having ridden the area extensively every Summer and Fall the past I0-I2 years. Drew up a few maps encompassing the best (paved) day routes out of Ouray (assuming it's the location but even if it isn't the routes still work).

 

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=110mrnKbnAYX5x25ZvtpjgL8bcYmpBm0&usp=sharing

 

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1TaYm5NYS1SHZVONWgUK5yLtUCgDayS4&usp=sharing

 

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1rwCtQwhHldjyDQkaptcrvKiiLZ1lCfc&usp=sharingthat will be a long day

 

There are plenty of things to stop and see and places to eat on them all but one place I'd personally recommend on the Cortez route is Mesa Verde National Park, that will be a fairly long day but try to allow at least a couple hours to view the Park as it is pretty amazing. Another is the Black Canyon of the Gunnison on the Crawford route. 

 

[LBump]

14 hours ago, roadscholar said:

What roadscholar said!

 

No matter the means of getting there, the area encompasses some of the most spectacular mountain scenery anywhere in the country making it worthwhile to do whatever it takes to see it.

 

 

 

 

[Motorhead1977]

@roadscholar, thank you for that effort.  I'll look at them this evening.  I expect it will help a great deal.

@LBump, I agree that the scenery is spectacular it's just that being on a 1250RS does not make unpaved road surfaces of anything beyond a very short distance an option.  Got into one of those unpaved sections while riding our former 1200RT in Quebec one summer with near disastrous results.  IMHO neither of those bikes are good tools for unpaved travel. 

[Cap]

On 11/25/2022 at 8:13 AM, Twisties said:

Well, if you put it in my backyard...

 

And here I thought it was MY backyard...  I should be there if the planets align

 

Cap

[Cap]

4 hours ago, Motorhead1977 said:

...From the posts here and the videos shared it seems that in the area being discussed only about 20% to 25% of the available riding is on paved roads ...

 

Don't be misled.  Yes, there is awesome off-pavement riding.  Lot's of it.  But there are also many, many, miles of fantastic twisty paved roads to experience.   And depending on your preferred length of riding day, you can loop east or west with half-day or full-day options.  And generally, the enforcement is pretty scarce and lenient between towns.  Although there is a Sheriff patrolling the Million Dollar Highway in an unmarked silver Ford pickup.  DAMHIK

 

Cap

[Twisties]

9 hours ago, randy said:

will local's be able to put together some TRUE dirt routes.  I have a 2009 BMW G450x dual sport.  But this bike is NOT highway capable, or really even street capable for long distance.

If the bike is not plated and street legal you can ride the jeep and other dirt roads with an offroad sticker.  There are no lack of routes.  No, wait, there are a ton of routes.  You can get an offroad sticker online or at any moto dealer.  $25.  You may not ride on state highways without a plate.  You may ride on county roads in some counties, but not others.  The short answer is, yes that will work well so long as there is parking for your truck.  Most places have this.

 

If the bike is plated you can generally ride on anything that looks like a road, but to go on a designated off-road route (there are many), or truly off-road you would need the sticker.

Colorado Off Road Sticker

[Twisties]

7 hours ago, roadscholar said:

There are plenty of things to stop and see and places to eat on them all but one place I'd personally recommend on the Cortez route is Mesa Verde National Park, that will be a fairly long day but try to allow at least a couple hours to view the Park as it is pretty amazing. Another is the Black Canyon of the Gunnison on the Crawford route. 

 

I live just below the cliffs of Mesa Verde, and will offer some ideas:

 

1.  Tours of the dwellings are on a reservation system.  They open for reservation two weeks in advance at 8 am.  Reserve early.

 

2.  There is one decent dwelling that doesn't require reservations, out on Wetherill Mesa... it's along drive.

 

3.  The road up is great!  Traffic less so.  Allow an hour from the park entrance to your tour, more if it's on Wetherill Mesa.

 

4.  They closed the Museum for covid, then got into a remodel.  Now saying it will be open in 2025.  There is another great museum available however, at the Canyons of The Ancients visitor center just off 145 on 184, near Dolores.  I recommend a combined trip, assuming Bill is right about the rally being based on the north side of the mountains (Ouray/Ridgeway/Telluride), or if it should be in Pagosa Springs.  These are about 1.5 to 2.5 hours ride away.

 

5.  Tours are easy for me, but we did take some folk who struggled...  pay attention to the conditions they describe.  There is plenty to do and see without taking a dwelling tour.  

Reservations at Recreation . gov

 

[Twisties]

9 hours ago, Motorhead1977 said:

I think this discussion is very informative.  The large extent (though many years ago) of my experience through the "Rockies" has been via interstate highways on a "mission" from point A to point B.  From the posts here and the videos shared it seems that in the area being discussed only about 20% to 25% of the available riding is on paved roads and most of those are "main" (Non interstate) roads/highways?  Perhaps I am misinterpreting what I am seeing.  I'll look for those who are extremely familiar with the general area to enlighten me.  TIA

If it is based on the north side of the San Juans there will be plenty of street riding to keep you busy for a few days.  

[Twisties]

9 hours ago, Motorhead1977 said:

I think this discussion is very informative.  The large extent (though many years ago) of my experience through the "Rockies" has been via interstate highways on a "mission" from point A to point B.  From the posts here and the videos shared it seems that in the area being discussed only about 20% to 25% of the available riding is on paved roads and most of those are "main" (Non interstate) roads/highways?  Perhaps I am misinterpreting what I am seeing.  I'll look for those who are extremely familiar with the general area to enlighten me.  TIA

If it is based on the north side of the San Juans there will be plenty of street riding to keep you busy for a few days.  

[Twisties]

Also, there are tons of Jeep rentals in the area, along with guided tours.  

[roadscholar]

6 minutes ago, Twisties said:

I live just below the cliffs of Mesa Verde, and will offer some ideas:

 

1.  Tours of the dwellings are on a reservation system.  They open for reservation two weeks in advance at 8 am.  Reserve early.

 

2.  There is one decent dwelling that doesn't require reservations, out on Wetherill Mesa... it's along drive.

 

3.  The road up is great!  Traffic less so.  Allow an hour from the park entrance to your tour, more if it's on Wetherill Mesa.

 

4.  They closed the Museum for covid, then got into a remodel.  Now saying it will be open in 2025.  There is another great museum available however, at the Canyons of The Ancients visitor center just off 145 on 184, near Dolores.  I recommend a combined trip, assuming Bill is right about the rally being based on the north side of the mountains (Ouray/Ridgeway/Telluride), or if it should be in Pagosa Springs.  These are about 1.5 to 2.5 hours ride away.

 

5.  Tours are easy for me, but we did take some folk who struggled...  pay attention to the conditions they describe.  There is plenty to do and see without taking a dwelling tour.  

 

 

Thanks Jan all good info, I haven't been there since 2008 and figured some stuff had changed since then, I just remembered the whole place as being pretty amazing. 

[Twisties]

Here is a site for designated OHV trails in CO.  These require the off road sticker mentioned above.  The major jeep roads of the area require either a plate or the sticker in most cases.  

 

Colorado Designated OHV Routes

[LBump]

Anyone coming to the area in a vehicle should bring an off-road/dirt-type bike. Or, you could hire one from a local off-road company. 

The option to ride trails like the Alpine Loop is exhilarating.  If you drop the bike, there will be others to assist.  The views are worth it!

Photo Credit: @coursegold Thanks Joe

 

 

[roadscholar]

5 hours ago, Twisties said:

15 hours ago, randy said:

will local's be able to put together some TRUE dirt routes.  I have a 2009 BMW G450x dual sport.  But this bike is NOT highway capable, or really even street capable for long distance.

If the bike is not plated and street legal you can ride the jeep and other dirt roads with an offroad sticker.  There are no lack of routes.  No, wait, there are a ton of routes.  You can get an offroad sticker online or at any moto dealer.  $25.  You may not ride on state highways without a plate. 

 

I think Randy is looking for dirt only stuff because his bike sucks on road not because it isn't street legal but that's a guess. Need an OHV sticker either way.

 

Like others I'll post a few pics of some of the better known passes and let people research themselves, probably remember them better anyway.

 

This is the quickest way to get from 550 near Ouray to Animas Forks (the midway point of the Alpine Loop where roads converge and diverge). 

 

 

 

It's the more difficult but quicker if you're in a hurry.

 

 

 

This is the longer but more fun and scenic way (still tricky) because there are 3 passes before getting there, if you count Corkscrew as one which it would be anywhere else but here.

 

 

It's hard to get a picture of Corkscrew looking down on it but I'm sure from that mountain in the distance it looks a lot like a corkscrew, It's kinda the dirt version of Stelvio Pass except smaller.

 

 

once over the top you’ll see the road to Hurricane.

 

 

 

Between Hurricane and California is Lake Como, yes you have (get) to go down there then back up again.

 

 

 

California is the highest pass in the San Juans besides Imogene, if you walk (or ride) up that little hill you can probably call it I3k even.

 

 

the road to Animas Forks.

 

 

It's an old mining town and they've been restoring some of the buildings.

 

 

 

From here you can take Engineer Pass to Lake City like Larry did above or Cinnamon Pass like TEWKS did, either way you'll have to take the other one back because it's the only way to get back to Ouray unless you want to go all the way around and get back at midnight. Actually you could take the gravel road from AF back down to Silverton but that's no fun.

 

 

Then the tricky stuff is mostly over, both routes to Lake City are more relaxing and very scenic and not to be missed so plan accordingly, the entire Alpine Loop is a big ride that can potentially take all day. One time I towed the DRZ from Maysville to Lake City because I wanted to ride up Engineer and back down Cinnamon so I stopped in a big Jeep rental place and asked the lady how long it took. She said, 6 hours in a Jeep, 4 on a 4-wheeler, and 2.5 on a dirt bike if you don’t stop. It probably took me 2 just to get to the top but the visuals are so spectacular you just have to stop and take it all in every once in awhile. To be cont..

 

 

 

[SANTA]

so the dilemma is ; its 1200mi one way, and i can just rock that on the street bike, but i can't do the back road with  the street bike, and i will not ride the f650gs that distance, (i've done the long haul to Inuvik and back was pretty beat up by the single cyl vib after 2 days straight) it would have to go on the trailer, and that just ain't gonna be enjoyable missing the great roads in between,  but its all academic if they don't drop the vaccination requirement at the border by UN time...

[randy]

So my G450x is STREET LEGAL it is tagged, titled and insured.  However, it is geared very high, because I ride 70% single track and forest service roads.  it can of course ride on the street, but 55 mph is about it.  and while my tires are technically street legal, they are the most off road knobbie's that can be street legal.  Basically, the bike is street legal just so I can jump on a street road for 5 miles to connect to another forest road.

so again I would trailer out from Atlanta, and have both my street bike and G450x with me. spend 3 days riding street and ideally 3 days riding off road.  but again I need GPX routes to see how many street miles I would be riding on the G450x.  And NONE of the street miles can be highway miles.   If I need to take the highway to get to the off road start, I will just trailer the bike to that area, ride all day, come back to the truck and load the bike up and drive home.

so the question is, how far is the start of one of those routes from the (to be announced) hotel, and if to far, can I haul the bike to a certain point, leave the truck there and then ride the day, either a big loop, or up and back the same route.  

[Twisties]

3 hours ago, randy said:

So my G450x is STREET LEGAL it is tagged, titled and insured.  However, it is geared very high, because I ride 70% single track and forest service roads.  it can of course ride on the street, but 55 mph is about it.  and while my tires are technically street legal, they are the most off road knobbie's that can be street legal.  Basically, the bike is street legal just so I can jump on a street road for 5 miles to connect to another forest road.

so again I would trailer out from Atlanta, and have both my street bike and G450x with me. spend 3 days riding street and ideally 3 days riding off road.  but again I need GPX routes to see how many street miles I would be riding on the G450x.  And NONE of the street miles can be highway miles.   If I need to take the highway to get to the off road start, I will just trailer the bike to that area, ride all day, come back to the truck and load the bike up and drive home.

so the question is, how far is the start of one of those routes from the (to be announced) hotel, and if to far, can I haul the bike to a certain point, leave the truck there and then ride the day, either a big loop, or up and back the same route.  

I don't have gpx files.  But there are many resources out there available online.  This area is heavily visited.   I'll just say again, from a general pov:  If the event is in Ouray, the trail to Yankee Boy/Imogene and Black Bear is just outside of town.  You can ride the bike.  Engineer and the whole alpine loop complex is a little farther....  off the top of my head 4-5 miles from town...  Oh I suppose I should look at Google....ok, Maps says 3.8 miles from the center of town to the trailhead.  My recollection is that there is plenty of parking and trailer turn around up towards Yankee Boy.  My recollection is that parking at the Engineer turnoff is limited and trailer turn around would likely require a drive up the highway (550).  These two accesses are by no means the only ones in the area, but they open a huge amount of riding that will keep you busy for the 3 days. 

Going farther afield, Scotch Creek/Ophir Pass would be a drive for sure.  I have parked in a pull out near Scotch Creek on the west side along 145.  People will often ride the loop between these two. I tried Ophir Pass from the west on my 350 EXC-F and had to turn back.  I had ridden Ophir both ways 10-12 years ago and thought of it as easy, but not on that day.  The 4wds have brought down a lot of loose rock onto the shelf road and I couldn't maintain control.  

 

If you want to ride single track, check out the link I gave above with the ohv trails and get the ohv sticker.

 

If the event is in Ridgeway there are some other roads but I am not much familiar.  You can still access by street for some, others will need a drive.  In that area I think you'll have less issue on parking.  

 

If it's in Telluride, IDK.  Definitely Last Dollar and I think you might be able to access Imogene from town with virtually no street riding.  Black bear is one way the other direction, and may not be open for the season.

[randy]

awesome so if the event is in Ouray, it seems I am good.  4-8 mile surface streets is perfect.

I will start looking at the OHV and other links you gave.

thanks so much