I Think I Saw a Jackalope…I Did, I Did

August 2, 2022

Thought I’d share a little of what a typical “breakdown the campsite” looks like.

Is this just the coolest picture! It’s almost a little spiritual or is that a UFO hovering over the mountains?

Southwest coming out of Riverside on RT 230

Leaving Riverside, WY staring at the sunrise in Colorado.

Looking east coming out of Riverside, WY. Must be Colorado out there somewhere. 14 mile from the border.

Barn (in this case the whole darn ranch and the beautiful back drop) of the day.

The sign of the day! For me it’s like coming home…only to leave again soon 🙁

Early Colorado scenery looking west or maybe south west.

6 miles into Colorado looking north. An example of such a different type of scenery from what we’ve been looking at the past couple of days.

We went through a town called Cowdrey. Still looking for the town, but found the post office. Seriously, there is no town just a couple houses and a post office. Oh yeah, up the road a couple miles there is a lake of the same name.

Saw this view in Colorado and thought it looked cool. Just sharing.

I am pretty sure it was a Jackalope, but I guess it could have been a Jackrabbit…nah, I’m sticking with it was a Jackalope. What a great way to leave Wyoming!

When I woke up this morning I could smell Colorado. Hey, stop thinking like that. It wasn’t the smell of marijuana it was the smell of high altitude fresh air and pine trees. Twenty-seven miles later, and thanks to the pea soup green machine I was standing in Colorful Colorado.

But before getting into Colorado, some final comments on and pictures of Wyoming. Our final town in Wyoming was Riverside. The people were very friendly, the food was good, and the campsite was perfect for our needs. Clearly I whined a bit about the last couple days scenery, but happy to say the final day presented some nice photo ops. And of course it was in Wyoming that I saw the ever elusive Jackalope! I’ll add pictures of the scenery but if you want to see the Jackalope, you’re going to have to go to Wyoming on your own.

The ride today was only 49 miles, had about 2,800 feet of climbing (topped out around 8,100 feet of elevation) and some winds (mostly crosswinds and head winds, absolutely no tailwinds). For the record, tailwinds are harder to find than Jackalopes 😉. Scenery seemed to change almost immediately as we crossed into Colorado. Different landscape from the mountains, to the fields, to the trees, etc. It was like someone literally turned the page.

We ended in Walden, CO, which is the Moose Watching Capital of Colorado. No I didn’t make that up, it was on the sign as we entered town. Nice little town and the people have been real friendly. We’re camping in the town park tonight and right now just hanging out on the lawn in front of the old courthouse. As with all the small towns, a bunch of closed stores, reduced hours of operation, and help wanted signs everywhere. Also there is a NAPA Auto Parts store.

Why do I bring that up? Because it’s a theme I have been noticing…every small town, including the ones with a population of 100 or less seem to have an auto parts store. Heck some of the places didn’t have a church, but they had an auto parts store. I find it odd, but it’s a pretty consistent theme so it must make sense. Ok, done rambling on about that.

Sign of the day was a no brainer, “Welcome to Colorful Colorado”.

Barn of the day, heck yeah. In fact I’m going to give you the whole ranch and let you find the barn.

Lesson of the day…I mean other than Walden being the Moose Watching Capital of Colorado. We met a guy named Eric who is 73 years old and is going cross country on a recumbent trike bicycle. The lesson of the day is… hell no don’t ever try that. You ride too low and the shoulders are often too narrow and/or just don’t exist. They need to rename those things as death mobiles.

I think that’s it for today. Two more days of riding and we get to see Michele and Alice!

Bye for now

Ian

Today's ride: 49 miles (79 km)
Total: 2,688 miles (4,326 km)

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Michele GordonYay!!! Welcome to Colorado … the pictures are beautiful ….the barn ….well that’s a barn and the sign is one of my favorites …..welcome to colorful Colorado woohoo 😘
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2 years ago

Beth ArtHi Ian,

Your comment about tiny towns still having an auto parts shop reminded me that in France we notice it was the hairdresser and dog groomer that were last to go.

Here in NZ you might find a café if the road is on a tourist route but many small towns, marked on a map, can't be found.

Beth
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2 years ago

Ian GordonTo Beth ArtThanks for your comments Beth. Got me thinking more about the demographics of small towns we’ve passed through. More. On that tonight or over the next couple of days.

Ian
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2 years ago