Day 17: Leadville to Eagle. Tennessee pass.

July 19, 2018

Today is long in distance but has 3 times more descent than ascent. It should be easy. We were told that US 24 has a lot of commuter traffic between Leadville and Vail, so we waited until 9 AM to get on the road. That gave me time to take a few pictures in the morning.

I had breakfast at the hotel and went to a food truck to buy a breakfast burrito for the road. Unfortunately I forgot that most burritos in Colorado are served smothered in sauce instead of dry, wrapped in foil. The burrito arrived in a big foam container that I didn't want to carry. I should have thought of that because every burrito I've had in Colorado was "wet".

The morning sun side of Leadville Main street. Leadville has several rooftop flagpoles.

The temperature was already pleasant for cycling at 9 AM. I started in shorts. First is a hill climb to the north edge of Leadville, then a small descent to a big valley.

Last night I smelled smoke. Today I don't smell it but smoke was quite visible in the big mountains to the west of Leadville. After only 10 miles I was past the visible smoke. Overall I was very lucky to encounter smoke only one time during an 18 day tour in July.

Smoke obscured the view of spectacular mountains to the west. The only place during the tour where smoke was noticeable.

The climb to Tennessee pass is very gentle. The mountains near the summit are rounded, resembling the older Smoky mountains in Tennessee. Of course nothing in Tennessee is 10,000 feet elevation.

Not much smoke looking north towards Tennessee pass.

The wide valley is surprisingly desert-like for 10,000 feet elevation, the highest desert I encountered during the tour.

From the valley to the pass is only a 500 foot climb. Tennessee Pass is my 4th and final crossing of the Continental Divide. I'm traveling north, crossing from the Arkansas/Mississippi/Atlantic watershed to the Eagle/Colorado/Pacific watershed.

4th and final Continental Divide crossing of the tour. Only a 500 foot climb when approaching from the south.

Tennessee pass has a large granite memorial to the U.S. Army 10th Mountain Division. A set of interpretive signs describe the history. The inspiration for the 10th Mountain Division was the spectacular success of Finnish ski troops who repelled a much larger force of Russian troops in 1939. The 10th Mountain Division was an elite group of world-class mountaineers and skiers. They trained year-round at a nearby base called Camp Hale which is now the Cooper ski area.

10th Mountain Division memorial at Tennessee Pass.

The 10th Mountain Division proved to be total badasses in central Italy in 1945. Multiple invading forces had failed to penetrate German artillery in cliff-top pillboxes. The 10th Mountain Division arrived, promptly climbed the "un-climbable" cliffs at night, and quickly destroyed the artillery. They served in many battles but were never deployed in winter mountain terrain for which they trained. After the war veterans of the 10th Mountain Division founded the modern U.S. ski industry. 62 ski resorts were largely founded by veterans of the 10th Mountain Division, including Colorado's biggest resorts Aspen and Vail.

Forested descent from Tennessee Pass north towards the Eagle river.

The descent from Tennessee Pass wasn't very long before I crossed the Eagle river on a high bridge and began a 500 foot climb up the Red Cliffs towering above the Eagle River.

Traffic was very light on US 24. Good thing because there is no shoulder and the highway is very winding.

View from the bridge looking south, upstream along the upper Eagle river.

US 24 bridge in a very steep canyon. The area is called Red Cliff but the cliffs don't look very red to me.

At the unmarked summit of the red cliffs was a view of a cliff-edge mining ghost town below. I regret not going down to explore it.

View from the Red Cliff summit. Mining ghost town ahead.

Then finally a steep descent to the Eagle river, connecting to the river near the upscale village of Minturn. I'm now entering the zone of prosperity that surrounds Vail.

I stopped for lunch at an awful Thai restaurant in Minturn, then crossed under I-70 and found the bike trail. The trail goes upstream to Vail but I will follow it downstream to the town of Eagle. For 12 miles the trail goes through the back yard of multi-story condos. The trail was congested with local cyclists, pedestrians, and dogs.

The temperature steadily climbed as I descended during the afternoon. Fortunately the trail has frequent shade. I finally lost the shade when the trail ended and I pedaled on US 6 for the last 15 miles. The wind was brisk from the northwest, so the 92F temperature wasn't too bad. But it was a sudden return to summer heat after 3 days at extraordinarily high elevation.

US 6 and Eagle river in a red rock canyon.

US 6 has a narrow shoulder. Most traffic is on I-70. The population thinned dramatically after the bike trail ended. Traffic was light.

I had a northwest headwind all day, especially strong when traveling west in the afternoon.

Tonight we stay at Eagle River Lodge in Eagle, Colorado. We are in the new suburban area north of I-70, high up a hill with a good view of the Colorado river canyon. Not my favorite kind of place, but restaurants and a supermarket are nearby. I arrived at 4:40 PM. $123.74 for a large plush room. The price is high because of proximity to Vail.

We had a good Mexican dinner nearby. The evening was very warm. I'm back to the land of air conditioning, only 6700 feet elevation.

Overall it was a good day, enjoying the reward of a big descent after climbing to the highest city in North America.

Distance: 61.2 mi. (98 km)
Ascent/Descent: +1694/-4870 ft. (+513/-1476 m)
Average Speed: 11.8 mph (18.9 km/h)

Today's ride: 61 miles (98 km)
Total: 693 miles (1,115 km)

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