We didn’t get much sleep last night, which we should have expected. When we went to check out the camp site earlier in the day, the campers we ended up parking next to last night were sitting by a fire with a bottle of vodka at 3:00pm. However, we didn’t have many options since we arrived after dark. We ate breakfast and got dressed to ride Magnolia West which looped throughout the campsite. At this elevation, the dirt roads are very rocky, so I was sure the trails were going to be more technically challenging than I have the skills for. Sure enough, within a few minutes I was hiking my bike. Andrew and I were both gasping for air, with minimum effort being exerted. The altitude really suppresses your physical capabilities. My brain is telling my legs to move, but they simply don’t respond. It’s a frustrating feeling. Andrew was not feeling great this morning either, so after a few miles we headed back to the car with the intention of going to Betasso Trail between Nederland and Boulder. We stopped by Happy Trails Bike Shop again to talk with Randy, the bike shop owner about where to camp near Lyons, our next stop about 30 minutes away. We pulled down Sugarloaf Road and arrived at the Betasso Preserve. We unloaded the bikes, walked to the map to check out which direction to go, then read the sign “No Mountain Biking on Wednesday and Saturday. “ It was Saturday. Really? Andrew was NOT happy. We loaded the bikes back up and decided to head towards Lyons where we were told to ride at Hall Ranch.
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| Happy Trails Bike Shop in Nederland |
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| Bike Shop - Coffee Shop - Burritos! |
We drove on the scenic Peak to Peak Highway, looking for a camping spot along the way. We were frustrated that things had not worked out for us this morning and wanted to set up camp early, reorganize the car, take a shower, and clear our heads since it had been go, go, go the past 3 days. After unsuccessfully finding any available spots at the camp spots Randy told us about, we found an area that seemed fitting. We put water into the solar shower and laid it in the sun to warm up, Andrew worked on his school work for fire and I rearranged the car, did some laundry (the old school way) and caught up on some reading about the surrounding areas of Colorado, trying to map out our path over the next few days.
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| On our way to Lyons on the Peak to Peak Highway |
Andrew set up the tarp, only blocking us from the roadside. I was the first to bare it all in the woods for our first shower in over 3 days. We had about 3 gallons of water for two people so I had to make it quick. This is how our showers went: Strip down, rinse with warm water, cool wind comes and sweeps past every wet inch of your body (brrr!) scrub with soap (ahh – that feels nice), shampoo, rinse (by this time I have goose bumps and my teeth are chattering), quickly grab a towel and dry off (much better!) We got a good laughed at each other standing bare in the woods and felt much better once the dirt and old sweat was washed off. So much better that we saw it fitting for Andrew to crack open a beer and a bottle of wine for me. But whoops, I forgot a wine opener. Andrew worked for over 20 minutes trying to get the cork out, which he did, but there was quite a bit of cork in the bottle. We made pork, rice and green beans for dinner and sat by the fire for a bit before we went to bed.
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| Andrew attempting to open the bottle. |
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