August 23, 2022
Fossils
Dunville to Pine forest near Tarryall Creek
Woke to a dewy tent, but thankfully the sun soon comes out, allowing my tent to dry.
Despite me checking both tyres while my tent was drying, as soon as I begin cycling my rear tyre feels flat.
My pump feels hard to work, so I undo it and put some chain lube inside the pump's chamber. So now it's working a little better.
Unlike late yesterday afternoon, despite the sun being out, this morning the road is providing slightly less spectacular scenery. It's not helping that on the bottom half of the loop section, it feels stepper. As the road takes a sharp corner, and the road flattens out slightly, I realise that perhaps I wasn't on the rail route for a short bit.
An information panel showing the old railway loop soon confirms this.
I'm now out of Phantom Canyon and on top of the mountain but there is still some climbing to do before it flattens out. While the route I climbed up is now covered in pine trees.
As I approach Victor, an elderly cyclists appears. From chatting to him, I think he could be the Warmshower host I contact a month ago in Victor. But he hadn't replied to my most recent message and anyway I didn't make it here last night. I won't let on, just in case I embarrass him that he forgot about me.
As I arrive into this mining town, which once had a few railroads here, rain looks imminent. One of the railroad companies was the Midland, the same one I used to get over Hagerman Pass.
After looking around a bit at this wooden heritage looking town including visiting a few old railroad depots, I'm soon descending to the nearby town of Cripple Creek past a large active open site. Along the way a railway line is visible at times.
Cripple Creek is a slightly larger and more modern looking town with some large multi storey buildings being built. A short tourist train departs from here. However since it travels to where I just cycled from and because I want to get to a national park this afternoon. I don't feel like I need to do this one, especially as I have done a few lately.
After a long gradual climb to Victor, I had hoped for a mostly downhill ride to Florissant but instead a few short up hill sections break up my momentum. While thunder is occasionally happening in one part of the sky but then sunlight is in another.
It's nearly 4pm by the time I get to the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument and it closes at 5pm. So I only have a short time to admire a few fossilised redwood tree stumps, which were made after volcanic eruptions. I am seeing a few interesting sites but I wish I had more time.
Thankfully I have time to fill my water bottles at the park visitor centre, as it had been hard to find water fountains elsewhere today. I have been carrying some creek water just in case. While since the national park has recycling bins, I'm able to get rid of a few items I have been trying to find a place to recycle.
I can't camp at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument and nearby in this open farming landscape is a busy highway. So I will have to continue for a while to find a quiet place to camp. There are campgrounds around but they all seems more suited for RV's and anyway I prefer wild camp as it's quieter.
Since it's only 5pm and the sun is now out, I have plenty of daylight to find a place to stay.
Thankfully a secondary road mostly follows the highway before I'm forced to join it for a bit. After passing through a few small towns with basic general stores, I'm able to turn off, onto the much quieter Tarryall Road.
In a relatively flat valley, I'm now traveling past ranches, with numerous no trespassing signs on every fence.
As I approach what I think is a possible spot to camp beside the Tarryall Creek, it doesn't look promising. Instead on my left, a track is heading up a slight hill into a pine forest.
It doesn't look like an official campsite but a trio are car camping here, so I will as well.
As I go to approach them, I realise they are smoking, so I will leave them alone, as I hate this disgusting habit. Instead I settle onto a pine needle floor for a relaxing night.
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