TA 2 - September 22

Yesterday was a well-deserved rest day spent in Dillon, CO.  My rental bike had not been shifting very well from the get-go, so Cy took it in to a local bike shop for some repairs.  I spent a pretty quiet day.  Walked down the hill to REI and to the Columbia outlet store.  No big purchases in either location but nice to be out for a stroll.  Lunch and dinner out with some of the gals, and then time to catch up on reading, emails, etc .

Today was a beautiful day in the neighbourhood!  The highlight was cycling to the highest point on the entire Trans Am route. Hoosier Pass at 11,539 feet. Not a lot of oxygen up there!  Maybe it will be all downhill from here (not!).

There are many bike paths in and around the Dillon area. We managed to stay on a bike path for the first 16 miles; all the way in to Breckenridge.  Lovely views of the Dillon Reservoir for much of it.

We had a good view of some of the ski hills coming in to the town. Breckenridge is just one of 3 or 4 big ski areas within spittin’ distance. I was surprised at just how busy the town was for the middle of September. Reminded me of Banff in many ways.

Even though it was an easy ride into Breckenridge we had managed to climb 1000 feet already. Sure felt rather easy. After leaving Breckenridge, though, the climb began in earnest. It may have been a bit steeper in places than previous rides, but overall it was a fairly pleasant climb. The thin air was an added challenge but really it wasn’t at all bad.  I’m a bit surprised that the altitude didn’t seem to affect me too much. The pass is a few hundred feet higher than the village of Namche in Nepal on the way to the Everest region. And I remember how poorly I felt there.  Maybe I should have joined that Nepal trip with Elli & co that leaves in a few weeks ......  Also - it’s less than 100 feet lower than the top of Mount Temple near Lake Louise!

Oh well - continuing on the downward trend again tomorrow. But first - a cool ride down from Hoosier Pass. I was glad to have all my layers on but my cold hands had a hard time hanging on to the bike sometimes as we covered the last six miles on a very bumpy and poorly maintained bike path from the town of Alma to the town of Fairplay.  I was in to Fairplay in good time; by noonish. Fairplay is our highest overnight location - 9953 feet.  There is a large open air museum called South Park City. It is a reconstruction of a Colorado mining town from the boom times of the 1850s through the 1880s. The museum opened in 1959 - 60 years ago.

Even after that stop I joined just about everyone else in waiting for our hotel rooms. Still in in time to catch some WNBA playoffs on tv.

Stats for the day:
Dillon CO to Fairplay CO
63 km. 39 miles.
3075 feet up. 2289 feet down.
Temp:  3C to 21C. Beautiful sunshine all day. Winds from all directions at various times, but not a factor.  A cool ride down the hill.