LA or Bust - 2009 Trip - Day 4

Start Location: Gunnison, CO
Ending Location: Dodge City, KS
Miles Today: 435
Trip Miles: 1809
States Visited: 6
National Parks Visited: 1
Low Temp: 44.9° F
High Temp: 88.8° F
Min Elevation: 2477'
Max Elevation: 11336'

Route Map:

We hit two sort of milestones today.  We turned over 70,000 miles on the bike which is more than we have ever put on a bike before.  We also climbed to over 11,000 feet which is as high as we've been on a bike before.  We hit 10,000 feet on the Four Corner's Tour but never more than that.

We were concerned about the weather starting out today.  The Internet said the temperature was 37 degrees when we got up and we knew we had to climb to the top of Monarch Pass andthe  Continental Divide in the first 50 miles.  The ride was great with, once again, virtually no traffic.  We did see a snowplow on the way up to the pass that worried us a little especially since we met a biker yesterday who had come through the pass early that morning to cold rain and sleet.  As it was, the actual temperature was in the mid 40s and climbed to the mid 50s when we got to the pass.  The views were spectacular.  We are really spoiled. Needless to say, this changed once we reached eastern Colorado and into Kansas.

We changed our strategy again.  The ride today on US 50 was so nice - no traffic and 65 miles per hour - that we decided to stay off the Interstates as long as we can.  So instead of taking I-25 out of Pueblo, we stayed on 50 all the way to Dodge City, Kansas.  The only problem with this strategy is that gas stations and rest stops are sometimes a little harder to come by and further in between.  But there have been enough small towns along the way that we haven't really had any problems.  At these speeds we have been consistently getting 40+ miles per gallon so we can easily go 200 to 225 miles without filling up.  It's also been pretty easy to find grocery stores to get food for lunch and some nice city and municipal parks to stop for lunch along the way.