Ticked off another classic Front Range ride today, but made it a lot more interesting than standard out-n-back. Started off taking the bus up to Boulder, then tackling the ever popular Lefthand Canyon climb up to the quirky little mountain village of Ward at 9450ft.
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| Ward |
Once crossing the Peak To Peak Highway just above Ward, I continued further up to Brainard Lake at 10,300ft. This is a fee area (and quite crowded) during summer months, but in the snowy season it's free to cross the gate on feet or two wheels.
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| road conditions began to deteriorate around 10,000ft |
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| Brainard Lake in the Roosevelt National Forest |
After eating lunch on the shore of the lake, I met a couple of backcountry skiers who'd ridden mountain bikes w/ ski gear in tow and had a beer and good company in the parking area. Back to the task at hand, I began south on the Peak to Peak.
I eventually made it to the casino town of Blackhawk, refilled my water bottles inside a big casino while wearing full spandex kit and earning confused looks from heavyset retirees feeding the slots. Just east of Blackhawk, I took a very steep, dirt Smith Hill Rd up and over to Golden Gate Canyon Rd before climbing the final ridge as the sun sank low over the foothills to the west.
Once over the top, it was a magnificent descent of 2000ft in 7miles into the town of Golden. A straight shot on the rollers along 32nd Ave brought me to my buddy Ian's house for a beer and hanging out, a welcome reward after a long day of 102mi and 9,800 vertical feet of climbing. Finally accomplished my solo mountain century ride this year!
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