Dinosaur National Monument - Day 2

Upon waking in our campsite (setup the day before), we ate breakfast and jumped on the bike to ride down some dirt paths deep in the national monument to get a glimpse of what life was like for Josie Bassett Morris. She was a tough gal that set up residence and a ranch in the natural box canyons located in the area where she raised pigs and cattle.

Afterwards, we caught the 9am shuttle from the visitor center to take a peak at the dinosaur fossils. The following are only a few pictures from the morning adventure (probably somewhat hard to view):

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We packed up the bike and were back on the road around 10:30am headed towards Aspen, CO. From Aspen we took Highway 82 over Independence Pass (awesome road, BTW), through Buena Vista, past the collegiate peaks (three 14′ers) and into Colorado Springs to get home around 8pm.

Good trip despite the circumstances. Sad to be home. Could have keep on riding.

Dinosaur National Monument - Day 1

We reached Dinosaur National Monument around 4pm after riding all day from Cody, WY. Total miles for the day: 420.

Normally, we pack cooking equipment when camping. However, since we didn’t have room for cooking equipment this trip, we had to pick food up while on the road. We stopped for food at the Dinosaur Brew Haus in Vernal, UT for some BBQ. I definitely recommend stopping by if in the area.

From Vernal, we headed to the temporary visitor center outside of Jenson, UT (roughly 10 miles from Vernal) to pick up information and proceed to the Green River Campgrounds where we set up our tent for the night.

Once the tent was propped and we changed out of our riding gear, we opted to hike the Sound of Silence trail (3 mile hike). Absolutely loved it. The landscape changes constantly on the hike and not to long after beginning the hike, the sound goes silent for the rest of the hike. Nothing stirs, just your own footsteps and breathing. The following are pictures of the campgrounds (first two pictures) and the rest are all photos from the hike itself:

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It is recommended that this hike be done in the early morning or late afternoon. We were lucky enough to do it in the evening when the lighting and the weather was perfect. After finishing the hike we headed back to the campsite, rested, and then set out for the astronomy show where three telescopes were setup for viewing the night sky (started around 9:30pm). The night was clear and we were able to view many stars. Even saw a couple comets burn up in the atmosphere.

Pretty amazing day.

Ride to Dinosaur National Monument

The plan, after the funeral, was to ride through Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park into Dinosaur National Monument. However, after talking with family members who came up through the park, we learned that there was construction and the park was packed with activity. We were also looking at a 600+ mile day. It was just too much to accomplish in one day. Besides, we’ve been to the former two parks before so best to skip them and get more time in a national monument which we hadn’t seen yet.

Here is the map of our trip to back home. In this case, we split the trip into two days where we could arrive in Dinosaur National Monument on Day 1 and drive the rest of the way home on Day 2. The following are pictures from the ride:

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I do, however, regret not getting to ride Highway 20/16/14 out of Cody into Yellowstone though.

Protected: Day of Funeral

Angels Keep

After our ride to Cody, we ended up staying at Angels’ Keep for two nights because we prefer Bed and Breakfasts when possible. However, I must say this was the nuttiest place we’ve ever stayed at. We ended up here because accommodations were slim due to all the biker traffic for Sturgis and it wasn’t outrageously priced. Of course, that leads to the following:

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Embarrassing and a little freaky, yes, but also rather amusing. All-in-all, we slept well and the hosts were an interesting, pleasant, and amusing bunch. I swear that the husband was Ned Flanders in real life (voice and all).

Ride to Cody

We spent the day riding to Cody, WY on the motorcycle in order to attend a funeral service for Kate’s grandmother. While the reason for our departure was a sad one, I was determined to keep things upbeat and interesting. So why not make a road trip out of the event? This is what I would want for others when my flame finally burns out. So we did just that. We packed the camping equipment, funeral clothes, and set out on the road to make it in time for dinner with the family.

Here is the map of our trip from Colorado Springs, CO to Cody, WY. The best part of the trip was traveling up Highway 24 over Wilkerson’s Pass and then Hoosier’s Pass via Highway 9 into Breckenridge during the wee hours of the morning. Highway 120 from the South into Cody, WY is a fun ride as well. Here are some photos from the day on the road (615 miles total):

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Memorial Park

After our adventures yesterday at the Bear Creek Dog Park and spending time in Old Colorado City and Manitou Springs, we attempted to head out to the Cheyenne Mountain State Park to hike but there were two problems: a major bike race was consuming most of the park trails and dogs are not allowed. We ended up goofing around in Memorial Park instead. Here are a few random shots from our time there:

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Afterwards we headed off to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo for the afternoon. This was mom’s first time there and the second time for me as I had been there almost four years ago (crazy to think its been that long).

Protected: Jake and Tellys

Protected: Bear Creek Dog Park (Extras)

Tags: Bear Creek Dog Park

Bear Creek Dog Park

Bear Creek Dog Park is probably the best dog park the city has to offer. It is large and it has space for large and small dogs. We took Ein out for the morning to play with the other dogs. Here are a few shots from our morning adventure:

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Tags: Bear Creek Dog Park