Last year I scrapped a ride I was planning to do up to Yellow Stone, and down to the Salt Flats. I scrapped it to play with toy cars more (I mean play with serious radio controlled racing vehicles… yeah that’s it), and to prep for a race in Vegas last year.
This year I was pondering doing that trip before Memorial day, but with schedules shaping up the way they are this spring, it seems that’s off the table as well. So… What to do?
Well another trip has been planned to head out to Fruita, CO to do some Mountain Biking with friends. Now I haven’t mountain biked on a trail or anything complex since I was 15. But I am game to give it a try if I am ready by then (fitness wise). So I got to thinking, why not combine that trip with friends with a bit of a motorcycle camping adventure?
Back to Utah:
There is a number of areas in Utah and western CO I never was able to see on previous trips. And last trip I never camped due to weather concerns, and skipped an entire area of Utah. So I am pondering and looking at a trip back out to Canyonlands in Utah, check out Moab, Arches, and camp down by the Islands in the Sky.
Possibly camping 2 nights, somewhere else in that area.
Paradox Valley:
Another area I would love to revisit, and check out more, is the heart of mining country in Colorado. Paradox Valley/Nucla CO. Looking at this image, every blue dot is a former mine.
This area was responsible for mining Uranium, Copper, Vanadium, and some other valuable items. It is also home to the US Uranium Reserve, and where the Uranium used for Little Boy bomb that dropped on Hiroshima was mined from.
But that’s not the main reason I want to head down there, The views are supposed to be pretty amazing. The reason its called Paradox Valley is that the Delores river runs paradoxically perpendicular to the valley instead of down it.
Looking to settle in a small Inn in Naturita or Nucla when I go through there.
Then back up to Fruita to meet up with everyone else for mountain biking. Taking the Canyon ride up to Gateway, and then back to Fruita. Last time I went through Gateway this is the view I saw:
Lots of Colorado is beautiful, but the western slope is just unrivaled for its awesome views.
Prep:
Already making a list of stuff to get ready, and motorcycle maintenance I need to catch up on. Shouldn’t be too much work given I own just about everything I need. But I fear a new chain, and some other updates to the bike are in order.
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