Third times the charm…
by Gurutech 2nd November 2025
“Bikes loaded—check. Riding gear—check. Full tank—check. Déjà vu? Double check.”
Ready to roll once again, chasing horizons like we’ve done a hundred times before. But every ride still feels like the first.
Colorado. Endless beauty no matter where you turn, mountains that touch the sky and beautiful clear running streams and endless dirt roads to explore. Once I visited it a few years ago, I knew I had more to see.
This story began a few years ago, during one of the most difficult chapters of my life. I had been admitted to the hospital, recovering from a severe case of COVID-19.
After a week-long stay with nothing to do but stare at sterile white walls and surf the 7 cable channels on the tv, my mind naturally wandered into the realm of what ifs—the kind that only show up when you’re forced to stop, sit still, and truly think.
What if I had done things differently? What if I never get another chance? What if I get 70/30 tires instead of 50/50 tires?
Lying there, I couldn’t help but reflect on the past “what if’s” but thankfully, that little pity party didn’t last long as good news came each morning that I was slowly improving and thru the grace of God and plenty of prayers from family and friends, I was able to go home after 11 days.
“Can we get serious now?”
As I began to take my annual or bi annual trips more seriously with my sons, I always felt that the previous Colorado trips were often left incomplete. Don’t get me wrong here, any time you can spend riding the back roads of Colorado are great ones, but I just wanted to complete the COBDR as the ride was intended, or at least as close as I could without missing too much of the route.
So, here we go!, again….
Cañon City Campsite Arrival – Day 1
With booking the campsite a month earlier, we secured our spot to leave the truck and trailer. With plans in hand, or at least on the GPS, we headed out and traveled just down the road to our first of many stops and explored the Royal Gorge Bridge & Park. What a sight to see, the bridge was built in 1929 for visitors to enjoy the natural beauty of this geologic wonder. The bridge is suspended 956 feet over the Arkansas River, is 1260 feet long, 18 ft wide and has a capacity up to 2,000,000 + pounds. If you are searching for a place that can change you, the Royal Gorge Bridge is one of those rare landmarks that doesn’t just connect two cliffs, it connects lives, generations and unforgettable moments….if your brave enough!
Heading West-ish..
After spending the day traveling around Cañon City visiting local sites such as the Royal Gorge Route Railroad train station and the downtown area, we traveled North to the entrance of the Skyline Ridge Drive. Built in 1905 with prison labor, this one-way scenic drive follows a narrow, 2.8 mile long razorback ridge about 800 feet above the surrounding area. Known for its dramatic, “white knuckle” ride due to a lack of guardrails, it offers spectacular views of Cañon City and the surrounding mountains. In 1932, inmates built this entrance arch using a stone from every state in the union. A marble marker is beside each rock with its state name. Click the link to see more..https://youtu.be/C1xf4VTtmFE
Heading to the First Campsite via Marshall Pass
Since our original plan was to ride to Telluride without a real destination each night, we heading out from our campsite in Canon City.
You always have to plan for the unscheduled fishing stop! This was one of several beautiful streams that we stopped at to take a rest and break out the awesome Tenkara fishing rod.
After a night of camping near Lake San Cristobal, we packed up camp and headed back into town and had a delicious breakfast at HangOut & Euphoria in Lake City. It is a quaint full service restaurant serving breakfast, brunch and dinner. Strongly suggest this as also biker friendly.
