Lake Mead N.R.A.

Lake Mead N.R.A.
READY TO ROLL!

Monday, June 21, 2010

Happy Father's Day and Mountain Biking

June 20, 2010.



Happy Father's Day!
We woke to another beautiful day with cool temps overnight and early morning. We took my father out for breakfast in Buena Vista to celebrate Father's Day.

Later Joyce and I went mountain biking on Clear Creek Road just a few miles north of our campground on US 24. The picture above and below is of the reservoir on the first portion of the road. 
Clear Creek Road (Chaffee County Road 390)
Length: 12.0 miles
Road Beginning and End:
 This portion of road is passable by passenger car. The first segment of road is through private ranch land. Leaving it, you enter forest land with lush aspen, pine and shrub growth on both sides of the road. Fishing in nearby Clear Creek is a challenge. A museum in the ghost town of Vicksburg, about 8 miles from U.S. 24, is maintained by the Clear Creek Canyon Historical Society. As you climb gradually toward Winfield, Clear Creek disappears and reappears through the undergrowth. Several of the buildings at Winfield are maintained by the historical society; the rest are privately owned.
Description: A moderate four wheel drive road offering nice opportunities for hiking.
Hiker Access To: Colorado Trail, Missouri Gulch (including Mt. Belford, Mt. Oxford and Missouri Mt.) Continental Divide Trail, Lake Ann, Three Apostles, Huron Peak, North Fork Clear Creek


The dirt washboard road soon climbs steeply. We drove our truck for as long as we could up the dirt road toward some old mining towns. However, the road got to be too rough and we were shaking and rattling to death in our Dodge dually. We pulled over and unloaded the bikes at 9200 ft and began our ride. We came across a couple of deserted mining cabins during our ride.






The climbs at altitude sure took our breath away. The down hills were also steep. It was great fun!


We quickly wore ourselves out and made our way back to our truck for the a bumpy ride back..but not before posing for the long arm portrait!




On the way back down, I got a Malfunction Indicator Light (MIL) on the dash in my truck. Probably an emissions issue that I'll need to get checked out.

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