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twc
 Advanced Member
627 Posts
[Mentor]
Fort Collins, CO
USA
Harley-Davidson
Electra Glide Ultra
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 Posted - 03/08/2008 : 10:50 AM
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After an ephemeral existence, this trip report fell victim to last fall's server problems. With the Vernal Equinox just around the corner -- 12:48 AM MDT, March 20, 2008 to be precise -- I thought this would be a good time to re-post it and get that blood flowing. It won't be long now...
Snowy Range Road, Wyoming
September 8, 2007
Yesterday, Shirley and I finally got around to a bike trip we've wanted to do all summer. We covered 304 miles and captured two scenic byways: Cache la Poudre - North Park in Colorado and the Snowy Range in Wyoming. We'd been watching the weather - important at this time of year - and discovered that Saturday was going to be the world's most perfect day for motorcycling. It was sunny with just a few clouds, not much wind and just crisp enough to make sure you wore all your gear - just to stay warm. Saturday's forecast was followed by this one for the Snowy Range on Sunday:
quote:
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHEYENNE WY
528 AM MDT SUN SEP 9 2007
TEMPERATURES WILL FALL INTO THE MID 30S AND LOWER 40S AFTER
MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. NEW SNOWFALL WILL BE 1 TO 3 INCHES ABOVE
7500 FEET IN THE SNOWY RANGE AND AN INCH OR LESS OVER THE
REST OF SOUTHEAST WYOMING AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE 7500 FEET.
Well, I suppose there's a reason the Snowy Range got its name. But the forecast for the weekend was all it took. Road trip! Here's the route:
We were not alone. I'm pretty sure that every motorcycle in working condition in the Mountain West was on the road with us. We started up the Cache la Poudre canyon west of Fort Collins. At about 10,000 feet the aspen are just starting to turn. It looks like we're on schedule for the normal third-week-in-September peak viewing period. We topped out on Cameron Pass and continued on to Gould and Walden.
The usual route out of Walden takes you west to Steamboat Springs, but we went north to Cowdrey and headed toward Wyoming. Just south of the Wyoming border we ran into a road paving project. I'd checked the Wyoming Department of Transportation web site to make sure the Snowy Range road was drivable, but I'd forgotten about Colorado. We only had to wait about fifteen minutes for the pilot car so it wasn't too bad. Of course, there was that three-inch edge we had to climb to get onto the new pavement. I'm sure the driver behind me is still wondering why I made that little S-turn to get back in my lane.
Wyoming! There were antelope all over the place but none provided any adventure in travel. We reached the midpoint of our trip at the sister towns of Encampment and Riverside, which together combine to form one small town. We stopped for lunch at the Mangy Moose Saloon in Riverside ("Best Hamburgers and French Fries in the Valley") and had, no kidding, hamburgers - and they really were good. It was a delightfully politically incorrect place with people smoking, drinking beer and watching the Nebraska - Wake Forest game (which Wake Forest should have won, IMHO). They also have a dog that greets all guests and prowls the floor for errant French fries. The waitress told us she finally had to tell people not to feed the dog because it was getting fat.
We rolled away from the Mangy Moose several pounds heavier than when we arrived. About ten miles north of Riverside we turned right and headed east over the Snowy Range.
It's really surprising how few people come here. There's good fishing, hiking trails and there are places to camp. Locals tell us it's not uncommon to come up on the Fourth of July and have no trouble find a place to park a trailer.
It was at about this time that Shirley started questioning the ergonomics of the Road King's saddle. I believe her precise comment was, "My butt's sore." Here and I'd just installed new passenger foot boards to replace the factory standard pegs. There's just no pleasing some people  .
Near the top of the pass, there's an old CCC latrine constructed in the late 1930's from native stone. It was finally decommissioned in 1986 and it's still in good condition, though now boarded up. I'll bet it will still be standing when its modern replacement has fallen to the ground.
We topped out on Snowy Range Road and headed down the other side to the little town of Centennial. The road is in perfect condition, having been repaved last year, and must have been made with motorcycles in mind. Lots of twists and turns, good visibility and great scenery wherever you look.
After Centennial, we were back in rolling hills all the way to Laramie. It was 65 mph all the way so I just set the cruise control and watched the roadside for antelope. At Laramie, we turned south on U.S. 287 for the last leg of our journey.
We stopped at a rest stop just over the border in Colorado, mostly so Shirley could get out of the saddle for a while. Honestly, you'd think a woman who was practically born on a horse could handle a little saddle time. At the rest stop, we met a trucker there who showed me the first super-single I'd ever seen. It seems that there's a move away from duals to a single, very wide tire that has the same load-carrying capacity but at about 6% less fuel consumption. He also had what looked like some kind of automatic inflation device for the tires, but even he wasn't sure how it worked. The trucker likes motorcycle riders. He's of the opinion that there's no better tool for training people to be defensive drivers.
Back home! I'd been curious what kind of mileage we'd get riding two-up so I tracked it carefully throughout the trip. We'd gone over two mountain passes and most of the rest of the road was 65 mph highway. When we stopped for fuel in Fort Collins we'd driven 301.0 miles and consumed a total of 6.42 gallons of gasoline, or 46.88 miles/gallon. That's enough to make a Prius sit up and take notice, with its 45 mph highway mileage. And the Harley has a bigger engine: 1584 vs. 1500 cc. I suppose it can still beat us in town, though.
When we arrived home, Shirley curled up with a good book: the Harley-Davidson catalog. She picked out the new saddle she thought would be a good candidate and we went to Thunder Mountain on Sunday morning. We arrived just after they opened and, as luck would have it, there was a Road King parked out front that was outfitted with exactly the saddle she had chosen. It wasn't much trouble to find the owner from among the three customers inside. He invited us back outside to climb on his bike and try out the saddle, which easily passed inspection. He also had the matching leather tour pack on his bike and that proved attractive enough to make it to the shopping list, too. We left Thunder Mountain quite a little poorer than when we arrived and should have all the new parts installed within two weeks. I think Shirley's decided the next bike will be an Electra Glide Ultra Classic. Might as well get all that stuff up front.
FOLLOW-UP: Shirley really likes the new saddle. Our last trip together for 2007, a run up to Estes Park, was done in total comfort. That trip also produced a cautionary tale: You'd be surprised at the dollar value of antiques and artwork that can fit in a Tour Pack.
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Edited by - twc on 10/27/2008 10:05 PM |
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Indiana Randy
Moderator
1758 Posts
[Mentor]
Fort Wayne, Indiana
USA
Honda
2000 Magna V4 750
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Posted - 03/08/2008 : 1:54 PM
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Thanks for posting, Tom. Nice report. Just what I needed as I watch the temp go all the way up to 29 today and wonder when all this snow is going to melt! 
You're right; It gives us hope and something to look forward to- Beautiful pics  |
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Dawg Rider
Senior Member
306 Posts
Sasser, GA
USA
Harley-Davidson
FXD Super Glide
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Posted - 03/08/2008 : 4:56 PM
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| Gorgeous. Every shot looks like a postcard. |
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bkikkert
Advanced Member
796 Posts
[Mentor]
Cornwall, Ontario
Canada
Harley-Davidson
Ultra Classic-FLHTCU
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Posted - 03/08/2008 : 5:32 PM
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| Very nice photography.....looks like great riding country.. |
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Cash Anthony
 Administrator
1056 Posts
[Mentor]
Houston, Texas
USA
Honda
Magna 750
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Posted - 03/08/2008 : 5:37 PM
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Terrific trip report! And the scenery... makes me think about riding all the way back to Colorado just to get to it. Thanks for posting.
Cash |
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degaboh
Senior Member
258 Posts
Houston, TX
USA
Kawasaki
Ninja EX250R
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Posted - 03/08/2008 : 5:41 PM
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So jealous...love the pics. Thanks for posting!
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Tburd
Senior Member
381 Posts
Waukesha, WI
USA
Suzuki
Boulevard S50
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Posted - 03/08/2008 : 7:26 PM
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| Thanks for reposting the pictures, I missed them the first time. I live in Wisconsin and this part of the state is pretty flat. Maybe someday I can get to the mountains too. Sure looks like fun. |
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BMorleyW
Starting Member
7 Posts
Steamboat Springs, CO
USA
BMW
R1150 RT
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Posted - 03/24/2008 : 12:41 AM
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| Snow Range is On Again - You know what? Snowy Range is on again. Now's the time! BMorleyW |
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Snowy Range Road, Wyoming