[2WheelFun]

Hi All,

At work I get an hour lunch during the winter months so I headed out with my camera to try and capture a few shots to help show what the area looked like today. Needless to say it was getting pretty nippy as the clouds were dropping fast as was the temps. All in all it was a nice ride and I wish I could have kept driving. It lasted for 30 miles.

Here are the pics:
http://groups.msn.com/RCHobbiesRFun/noonridenovember232004.msnw?albumlist=2

 

[jukief]

Those pictures are absolutely gorgeous. Makes me so lonesome for the Pacific northwest.

 

[2WheelFun]

Those pictures are absolutely gorgeous. Makes me so lonesome for the Pacific northwest.

I know what you mean. Every time I go for a ride I am very grateful that I can ride these highways and not feel like it's the "big city experience". I tend to forget that at times but it only takes a few miles out of town and the appreciation sets in quick.

Is it pretty where you live?

 

[ispeed77]

pics

whistle
keep em coming, you've got some really nice scenery out there. guess i'll have to take a trip next summer.....

 

[2WheelFun]

ispeed77....I'll do my best.

However....it's raining today.

We may have partial clearing Thursday but eating turkey and watching football may just take up the whole day.

 

[ispeed77]

turkey day

yeah, those things tend to eat up the whole day. no big deal, i can wait :shock:

 

[jukief]

I know what you mean. Every time I go for a ride I am very grateful that I can ride these highways and not feel like it's the "big city experience". I tend to forget that at times but it only takes a few miles out of town and the appreciation sets in quick.

Is it pretty where you live?

You're going to be sorry you asked. A geography lesson follows.

It's gorgeous here, too--just a different kind of pretty. I live right at the base of the foothills to the Rocky Mountains. In less than five minutes, I can be starting up into the foothills (Horsetooth Reservoir--http://www.co.larimer.co.us/parks/Horsetooth.htm) and into the mountains. We have a couple of great twisty canyon rides within just half an hour from our front door--the Big Thompson River canyon (site of a famous flood--http://www.super70s.com/Super70s/Tech/Nature/Disasters/Floods/76July31-Big_Thompson.asp), which winds it way up to Estes Park at the edge of Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Poudre River canyon (http://gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/us_river/co_cache.htm), which will take me to Steamboat Springs if I want to keep going for several hours. We can ride well-known roads like Trail Ridge Road (http://www.nps.gov/romo/visit/weather/scenicdrives.html) or the Peak to Peak Highway (http://www.estes-park.com/go/peakpeak.html). If I want to go a bit further southwest, I can ride to all the famous Colorado ski resorts (Aspen, Vail, etc.). Next season, hubby and I plan to do a lot of weekend overnight trips deeper into the mountains than a single-day ride can afford.

If I want to just hit the open road, I can head out east onto the Great Plains or north to Wyoming (the border is just 30 miles north of me).

If I want to go a couple of hours south, I can ride up Pikes Peak (http://www.ppihc.com). Another hour south and I can ride over the Royal Gorge bridge (http://www.royalgorgebridge.com).

But, even with all that, there's just something about the Pacific Northwest that touches my heart. I only lived there for three years, but my son still lives in Portland and I visit there often. It's so incredibly beautiful, and so different than the Colorado scenery I grew up with.

That's the nice thing about our country. So much variety and so many beautiful places to ride a bike to.

 

[ispeed77]

CO

looks like i have to add colorado to my list next year, so little time... i guess i'll have to retire REALLY early so i have enough time to see everything. how do you think that will go over ? hehe

 

[2WheelFun]

My OH My jukief.....I can see you and hubby heading for the hills already! :lol: :lol: :lol:

I have to believe that once you start taking trips and doing the discovery thing on your bikes you'll have reasons to be happy bikers for sure.

I know exactly what you mean about the Pacific Northwest. It has such diversity of beauty that no other parts of the US has which does make it an interesting and beautiful place to live.

I grew up in Phoenix and California and had always thought that when I started a family....I wanted to live in a small community and away from the usual summer heat of Phoenix.....and the hussle n bussle of freeways....etc. Moving here has fulfilled that for me and I have no intentions of retuning to big cities. Spokane WA is about 95 miles from here and I rarely go there since it's beginning to feel like another city to me. The only time I head that way is to go skiing at Mt. Spokane but then return home afteward. To coin a phrase from a Mac Davis song....somewhat changed of course: Happiness is seeing big cities in my rear view mirror.

We'ere having a potluck party here at work in about 1/2 hr so I'll take time later to look at all of the links you provided. I'm sure it's breath taking scenery there as you described.....otherwise....why would so many live there?

 

[omega5]

We use to live in Tacoma. Loved it. Fish on the Sound for Flounder in the morning and cook 'em up above the snowline on Mr Rainer in the afternoon. Beautiful country and some of the friendliest people you'll ever meet. At lease it was that way in 1969 when I came back from Nam and spent 6 mo at Ft Lewis.
Dano