Whoa, tough ride in Ft. Collins

Another roasty hot day, but there was a nice ride up in Hewlitt Gulch that I wanted to check out. From what I had seen on trail maps and read on the Internet about the ride, it was supposed to be an up and back with some kind of an end point at the top. I also met a few other bikers on the trail that alluded the same. About 6 miles in and up the mountain (I have an older GPS...not the nice one that broke on the way to Ottawa!), I still hadn't come across anything that would indicate an endpoint (even though the entire up and back ride was supposed to be about 8.5 miles in total). Right at that moment when I'm contemplating my options I hear the hiss (like snake, only worse...back tire going flat), and thunder rumbling in the approaching dark clouds. Of course I didn't have the spare tube or patches. Given the weather and unkowns of the trail ahead, I decided to backtrack the entire 6 miles on foot. I pushed the bike where I could (although the singletrack trail was so narrow I couldn't even stand next to the bike and be on the trail), and unfortunately had to carry it through any rock fields, stream crossings, etc. What a work out!!! I really lucked out in that the storms somewhat bypassed me...it rained for just a few mins, and there wasn't any lightning. I really DIDN'T luck out when I dropped the GPS while carrying the bike over a stream crossing, and it bounced on a rock, fell in the water, the screen cracked, and now it's toast just like the other one.

I was so parched and beaten down by the time I got back to the car that I had to jump in the Poudre river that flows along next to the road. It was awesome - tons of people tubing, kayaking, swimming, etc.

Pics:

Beauty, elegance, sophistication...the kegerator!


"What the heck are you talking about...who said anything about hot...it's freezing out there!"


In the early stages of the Hewlitt Gulch ride, I thought it was going to be a cake walk...


It got quite technical pretty quickly...


I thought I was right near the top, so I snapped this pic...totally dying from the heat and intense exercise at high elevation...


Of course the trail kept going for a bit, but grew much narrower and appeared to be less travelled. This was not a good sight...long hike out of there carrying the bike over the rocks and stuff. I had plenty of time to think about things on the way down...I think next time I'll be sure to take the spare ;)