Rolling east we dropped down into Durango at 6500 feet and then started the climb to Coal bank at 10,640 feet High in the Rockies!Then you drop back down a ways before you make another climb...
This time you top out on Molas Divide just a sliver under 11,000 feet high.
The Snow ain't all gone yet... and the Aspen are just starting to leaf out... But it's no less a beautiful ride.
After making the Molas climb you drop into Silverton... where you can take on groceries if you're needful... and then continuing North you make another climb up over Red Mountain pass... This time you break through 11,000 feet to 11,018!
and then almost immediately drop into Ouray.
We met some good friends who live there... and fed us a fine lunch before we climbed back on the Raider and made the trip in reverse, rather than the long way 'round through Ridgeway, Telluride and Dolores...
The skies going up were blue as they could be... but weather started coming in as we ate... and we made the return trip under cloudy cover.
Got back into Durango to find, when I refueled, that that Yamaha Raider carried two of us up over those passes and back again; starting from 6500 feet, climbing up to 11,000, back down a ways and back up... six times! over 189 miles, and tallied up 46.5 miles per gallon doin' it! ... and just for sayin' it... she's in pretty strong need of a tuneup too! ;)
She is an Awesome Machine!
So awesome... it looks like a friend of mine might be talkin' me into a Second run to Alaska on her in 2013!
Life is good when you live it on two wheels
Grab Your Handles and Ride!
Brian
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