34 miles, 3:24

We get out at 9:20 today from our lovely free camp spot along the river. So what if the bark beetle has killed most the trees, they don’t seem to be falling at the moment so we really enjoy the lack of people around and to total quiet except for the river. This is the kind of camp spot I always imagine in my head as perfect. Except for the dead trees, of course. But nature will take care of even these details.

We climb Ute Pass today, which is over 11,000 feet, but it goes fairly easy as it is all railroad grade, as it follows an old small-gauge rail line from the 1800s. There are spectacular views of the ever-bigger Colorado Rockies that make all other mountains we’ve seen look small. I feel strong today and enjoy–yes, enjoy–this beautiful climb. We both do. It’s really amazing what a difference the grade and road quality can make for a climb. This elevation gain is twice as much as climbs that have felt twice as hard.

Dave is craving some fresh vegetables so we go in search of a salad bar in Dillon on our way through. We end up at Ruby Tuesdays for about two hours because they also have wireless internet. Score! So Dave drinks about ten refills of Coke and I drink several cups of coffee (it’s a cold, sometimes rainy day) while we take turns with email and post pictures and a quick post. This is how it happens on the trail. We try to plan but it never works out, so we just take it on the fly when we can get time on the internet. Now you know.

We had planned on a much longer day, but since we spent so much time eating salad and working on the internet we decide to call it a day when we get to Frisco, where we stop in at a bike shop and the guys are so friendly they give us a free tool, a 30% discount on a new tire, and directions to a free and very local camping spot by a stream. It’s all perfect, because we get camp set up and a quick wash in the stream and then dinner right before it starts sprinkling.