Day 15

I started off the day in Fort Collins, getting on the road later than I wanted once again. I had a destination in mind, and it would keep me on the interstates all day. I was okay with that, as I had heard that as far as interstate highways go, I-70 from the Denver area to Grand Junction was quite nice. 

The trip south on I-25 to where it meets I-76 was pretty crazy, it confirmed to me that I could never live in a big city or even too close to one. I certainly want to come to Colorado again some day though, might even be brave enough for a return to Denver. Traffic was bad today, or it felt like it, maybe it was normal. It got backed up more than once until we got past the Eisenhower Tunnel. It's the longest tunnel I've ever been through, 2.72km long. The elevation was actually higher than Beartooth Pass a week ago, at over 11,000 feet. There are numerous engineering feats along the path I travelled today, and seeing them was neat. When I come back in the future it will be to further explore the roads in the mountains, as there are supposed to be many. As it was, I very much enjoyed the Colorado Rockies. They are beautiful, and the country from Vail to Grand Junction is unreal. Even though I've been in the mountains so much on this trip, they vary a lot in appearance. I feel quite blessed to have this opportunity. Many times I've felt like a cowboy in a western novel, except on a steel horse:)

It seems as though I'm travelling west into a heat wave now, which had taught me a few more things again. Skin left exposed all day, even with sunscreen, is getting burned so its crucial to cover up with long sleeves. Some mesh riding gear that lets the wind through would be great, and I will buy it for the next trip. Having lockable bags on the bike would be nice too, and then just one bag to take in every night. It's becomes a little annoying to take in stuff I know I won't need. I packed light, but would find a way to pack even light next time. It has been good to take this trip, I've learned a lot about travelling on a motorcycle. 

One thing that annoys me is that now I'm far enough south where it's impossible to use my credit card to get gas by paying at the pump. Most places require a zip code to be entered, and being from Canada we don't have those. It was so much nicer to just fill up and go, usually didn't even have to get off the bike. It will be nice to get to where that's not an issue anymore. 

The odometer on the bike turned over 20,000 today, a little over half way through the ride. I only put on 10,889 last year, so I'll be matching that in the coming week. It wasn't a long day as far as mileage goes, but it took a while due to traffic. There wasn't much as far as towns go further west, or at least not within a reasonable distance. I will be looking to get to northern Utah tomorrow, and then taking a few days of sightseeing again. From there it's off to Washington to celebrate Independence Day with friends. 

I once again didn't get nearly enough pictures, mostly due to the interstate travel. A GoPro camera, or something similar, is a must on future trips. 

Just exited the Eisenhower Tunnel

Shortly after leaving Dillon

Made and emergency stop on the freeway for this pic

What I look like after a day on the road. The beard has been tough to contain at times, it's long enough now where it gets behind my goggles and right into my eyes if it don't put a tie in it

Many, many more photo ops were missed today, and it makes me sad:)