Mountain Biking - Camping Colorado

I'll be going on a camping/outdoors trip some time soon. Below I put together a quick list of what I would need. I just started on this tonight so I'm sure I left out something. If any of you could come up with some good necessities and ideas please let me know. I'll be out there for at least a month. :D

I'm coming from St. Louis and have never biked in Colorado. I just figured... I have a MTB so why don't I ride it on a mountain. Makes sense doesn't it? If you guys could also give me some ideas on places to camp and ride or just great places to see that would be of much help too.

Keep in mind I have a XC bike (My bike (http://www.joekiske.com/NRS1_2.gif))(This is funny.. (http://www.joekiske.com/Huffy.jpg)) and not a big hit or downhill rig. I'm sure that wouldn't matter that much though. I'll have fun either way.

http://www.joekiske.com/camping.jpg

Thx, :D

-Joe

You said "soon." Don't make it too soon. We are still having blizzards, and the snow is still quite deep in the higher mountains. Arapahoe Basin ski area will likely be open until after July 4th. They got about 25 feet more snow this year than last.

Snow will vary a lot dependent upon the altitude and whether you are in southern Colorado (San Juans - drier this year) or northern mountains.

But, I would guess that the higher elevations will still be impassible until mid or late June.

Where are you planning on biking? Makes a great big difference.

Oh, that's some good information. I'm not too sure where I'll be biking. I don't know of any good places to stay. I was going to get down there and talk to the LBS or something but I figured I probably should prepare a little more and ask around the forums. That’s a bummer about the snow. Do you guys still ride in certain areas? How is the weather (temp wise)?

you might want to add a water filtration system.
and maybe a good route would be to ride part of adventure cyclings great divide.
http://adv-cycling.org/routes/divide.cfm
ken kifer has a lot of advice on touring/camping on a bike, his site is definitly worth checking out.
http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/touring/index.htm

and heres a site with links to a lot of peoples touring journals. its worth going thru several peoples to help come up with a list of what you should bring along.
http://www.bicycletheamericas.com/sharingtheexperience.html

and don't forget a towel. a towel is the most important item in any travlers inventory.
any doug adams fans out there? :)

o and have a blast, sounds like a great trip :)

Oh yeah! I can't forget a towel.

Because of the snow, what are your thoughts on camping UT or AZ until it melts away?

Also, what are some good tubeless tires for rough (extra rocky) terrain? I have Hutchison Pythons.

Originally posted by Wait
Oh, that's some good information. I'm not too sure where I'll be biking. I don't know of any good places to stay. I was going to get down there and talk to the LBS or something but I figured I probably should prepare a little more and ask around the forums. That’s a bummer about the snow. Do you guys still ride in certain areas? How is the weather (temp wise)?

The lower areas and the foothills will be fine, unless there is a lot of rain. It really depends on where you want to bike. I.e., Summit County's lowest elevation is about 8,400 feet. However, just west of Denver there are trails at about 6-7,000 feet which should be dried out quite a bit earlier. And in Denver itself, on the plains, all the trails are dry and rideable, but you won't get a "mountain" experience, if that is your desire.

A box of small and extra large ziplock bags. Duct tape.

I prefer the Pythons over anything else I've tried for riding out here.

Colorado Springs is an amazing Mountain Biking playground - plus plenty of great sites to see. If you head out here after mid July, I can probably show you around for a day!

Snow?! Are you kidding me? All our trails are clear and dry! Denver always get dumped on...we get nothing (or close to nothing).

Originally posted by johndoug
A box of small and extra large ziplock bags. Duct tape.
Ah, yes! The Duct tape is a must. I'm glad you mentioned that one. :D


Originally posted by bikeCOLORADO
I prefer the Pythons over anything else I've tried for riding out here.

Colorado Springs is an amazing Mountain Biking playground - plus plenty of great sites to see. If you head out here after mid July, I can probably show you around for a day!

Snow?! Are you kidding me? All our trails are clear and dry! Denver always get dumped on...we get nothing (or close to nothing).

Well if there really isn't that much snow on the ground I'll probably be leaving in about a week or two. I'm going to be camping and if the weather is bad riding back to the van for shelter. Like I say, I'll be out and about for a good month or so.

…I could just go to Utah and head back through Colorado after the snow is gone.

-Joe

If you're going in another month, or don't mind camping in the cold nights, stay at Molas lake campground between Durango and Silverton. Great campground, freakin' incredible location. Durango is close. Silverton is close. Ouray is close. Mostly, though, it's a kickass location for a campground.

Oh, and do a 14er while you're there.

14er ?? What is that?

Originally posted by Wait
14er ?? What is that?

A mountain over 14,000 feet in elevation. Colorado has 54 of them.

http://www.cyberwest.com/cw04/v4adwst3.html

I did not mean to imply that there was snow in Denver preventing mtn biking. There are plenty of places to go near Denver and in the foothills. I thought you wanted a true mountain experience, and for that you would need to wait for the snow to melt in the higher mountains.

There is a considerable difference in biking the foothills and "front range" and the "real" mountains. Depends on what you want.

I can't get the pic to work so here is the list... I have added a little more sinse the picture. My host is down.

Safety:
Whistle, Pepper spray, Flare gun, Band aids, Water purification tablets, Water Filtration System, Compass, Map(s) of the area,

Bathroom:
Razor (blades), Clippers, Tooth brush, Toothpaste, soap, Toilet paper, Towel,
Clothing:
T-Shirts, Sweater, Pants, Boxer shorts, Socks, Shoes, (Rain) Coat, Stocking Cap, Hat, SOS Suit (Reflective),

Van:
H2O Cooler, Water jugs, Food storage (5 Day Cooler), Club or Knife, First aid, Extra batteries,

Camping Gear:
Tent, Sleeping bag, blanket(s), Pillow, Air mattress, Candles (matches/lighter), Lantern, Fan, Black trash bags, Twist ties, Camouflage netting (hide gear if need be), Rope, Duct Tape, Ziplock bags

Bike accessories:
Bike, Patch kit, Inner Tube(s), Tires, Multi-Tool, Chain, “White lightening”, Light (blinks), Air Pump, Helmet, Water bottle, Camelbak, Cleats, Tie raps

Cooking materials:
Matches/Lighter, Stove, Skillet, Pot, Cup, Spoon, Fork, Can opener, Pocket knife

You might look into the Crested Butte area as well I hear its really good for mtn. biking though I have never been there yet.

I was wondering if anyone has ever biked out at Estes Park, Colorado.
http://www.estesnet.com/images/epaerial_small.jpg
My neighbor can't stop talking about it. He is in his eighties and loved his trip through the "Park" many years ago. He said he hike out there and it was beautiful...etc. Old men tell long stories. :D

I am guessing that just about anywhere in Colorado is going to be good for mountain biking with the exception of the eastern region... they look pretty flat. I’ll probably travel around the state once I get up there, I just want to have a starting point or a general idea of where I’ll be headed.

If I’m not camping, I’ll be living in my van down by the river... or somewhere away from civilization and close to God.

Thx for your help,

-Joe

Last summer, my wife and I did a grand "Tour of Colorado" did about 2 weeks of camping and mtn biking. Finished up with my best friends wedding in Denver. This was the last week of June and first of July!

We started in Denver, then went south to Salida. Great town for mtn biking. In the San Juan Mtns and some great cool shops in town to get trail maps. We tent camped and it did get chilly at night but we were fine!

We then cruised over to Crested Butte. I would love to win the lottery and move to this place. We happened to be there the week of the "Crested Butte Fat Tire Festival". What a great place! Got to do some incredible rides and got to watch some DH Race action! The town is awesome, cool shops, great dining and a very cool laid back attitude from everyone! I couldn't afford to live there, but I definately want to go back for another vacation.

From there we hit the Durango area. A lot warmer than I expected and the town was bigger than I imagined. We did a ride along the north part of town that was an incredible climb, and an awesome trip back down!

From there we headed north again toward Grand Junction. Did NOT do any riding there, just looking around. Supposidly the Kokopelli trail begins there and is sweet riding, but like I said, we just cruised through and didn't stop!

We then headed back towards Denver and stopped and stayed in Keystone. That was a blast! Got to just do DH runs with our XC bikes all day long! We rode the lifts and just had fun blasting down all day. I can definately see the attraction to this type of riding. If I lived in CO, I'm positive I'd have a DH bike in my stable!

Then back to Denver for the wedding.

My favorite place was Crested Butte. My favorite riding was Keystone, because I'm lazy and loved the chair lift going up!

Durango and Salida were drier and more "brown" than I had imagined in my mind. I always had a picture of a LUSH forest everywhere, and was surprised on how dry it was.

I actually was planning on moving to CO and working in the Golden area this past Christmas, but for other reasons that got shot down! I was going to move to Evergreen, CO. and I understand the riding there is sweet. There are some trails that begin right outside where my office would've been!

L8R

Well, Durango is in the middle of one of it's worst ever droughts, so it's a little more brown up there than usual. You should drive down here if you want brown! There is a lot of forest between Durango and Pagosa Springs, (which is worth a stop as well). The good thing about the south mountians in Colorado is that, at least at Wolf Creek, there was a lot more snow this year than last. Less of a risk of fire as a result, but the whole state is still waaaay below normal as far as moisture goes.

The riding in Telluride is also supposed to be good, but I haven't been there except to party at their Blues and Brews Festival in September. A great time to be in the mountains! (Plus every micro brew in Colorado and many from New Mexico, Arizona, etc.).

Yeah, Missouri is lame. I'm going to hold out another few weeks to let the snow melt and the trails dry, but after that I'm on my way. I have a feeling that almost anywhere I go (as long as I find a bike shop) will be great for riding. I was just hoping to find a paperback book of trails in Colorado. I have seen them for Missouri but the book stores around here don't seem to have anything like that for CO. One usefull book that I did pick up is “Colorado Camping by Robyn Brewer”. This thing is huge and list a great deal of campsites, maps…etc.

I can’t wait
(hence the name “Wait” I’ll be waiting)

-Joe

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/103-6849344-7832607

if the link doesnt work go to www.amazon.com and do a search on colorado bicycle trails, it will bring up a few books. if you dont want to order online just get the authors and titles and have your book store order them for you. you may also want to check adventure cyclings site.

Great, thx.

-Joe