Earache

Best experience I've ever had on two wheels. 

You need to get out more.

Wasn't sure if the Welcome Wagon experience in Texas put you off of long distance riding <gg>.

Great report!  Thanks for sharing.

Thanks - glad ya liked it.

So how many total days and miles was this? Looked completely epic other than the rain!

It was 11 days, 5,300 miles. We were going to do Bonneville Salt Flats as well, but the other guy was getting kinda burned out from all of the heat issues he was having. So we cut it short and went back into the Colorado mountains to cool down..... then the rain caught us.

I do pretty much this same trip 2-3 times each summer. if anyone ever wants to tag along, feel welcome to do so.

Like I said, Casper and ShittyGixer went with me one year - I think they had fun.

I'll see if I can sneak this one past the wife. I've been gone a lot lately and she'll prolly have a shit over it.

After Ouray, we humped it into Vail for our last night in Colorado.

We rode through the storms that flooded out Denver last month, so I didn't get my camera out for one picture. Spent the next three days riding in heavy rain and 50 mph winds across Colorado and Kansas.

I wouldn't wanna say it sucked but it sucked.

Made it back to Indy the night before Mark had to fly home. He had a great time on his first visit to the US and I had a great time riding with him and showing him around. Can't wait until next year to do it all again. And Again, etc.

"I'm over here, over here!" I kept yelling. But she ignored me.

Back in town, we managed to find that rooftop brewery...

Onward!

But we still had time to crawl around on some rocks like a couple of fools...

Okay, back to getting to Ouray...

Out behind the office was the shaft entrance...

This was as far as I went before that self preservation instinct kicked in.

Deserted mines from the 1880's are all over the place up here.....

Headed back to Ouray after lunch...

Looks cool from just outta town as well....

Cool little town.....

Mark found a couple of sweet rides on Main Street...

Train pulls into town......

It runs from Silverton to Durango a couple of times per day.

We slide into the Pickle Barrel for some lunch at the bar.....

Stroh's? Really?

Place could do with a good dusting and cleaning, but the food was decent enough.

Silverton is a bit more touristy than Ouray, but not a whole lot. Both towns could up their game a bit, pave more than one street and get some better hotels, but Silverton is at least brightly painted and tarted up a bit...

But it';ll have to wait, as today we're going up and over Red Mountain Pass and into Silverton...

Well looky there, a brewery! Right across the street from our hotel! Who knew?!?!

Next year we'll be back in Ouray - on different kinds of bikes like these guys....

This house had a guest in the front yard laying waste to the owner's flower bed....

Around Ouray...

And then the rains came down over the hills and into town. Must have followed us..