gyorgyigabor

Hello !

Next Friday I will arrive at Denver from where I start my bicycle tour in Colorado (and then few days in Hawaii).
I would be happy to got advice, suggestion about bicycling (and others) in the mountains, in Colorado, etc.
For example:
Should I start the days earlier because of the afternoon rain or it's not so obvious that it would rain every afternoon ?
Could be a problem to refill the bottles, so I should carry more than 2 bottles of water ?
Can I leave my bike outside of a store / shop when I go in ? (in villages, in the mountains I think it couldn't be a problem, and in Denver ?)
Traffic ?
I've read that the road of Pikes peak open at 7:30 am ? Before it I couldn't start the climb ?
When is it ideal to start the climb of Mount Evans ?

Where can I buy energy bars, gels ?
Don't hesitate to write your other experiences, suggestions !

(about bicycling in Hawaii / Big Island too.)

Thanks: Gábor (Hungary, Europe), cycloclimbing addict

spinnaker

Not sure I would want to ride up and down the road to Pikes Peak. It is dirt and narrow. There can be a bit of traffic. It is not a fun drive let alone ride. At least the last time I was there. But a lot of the views are awesome. Maybe others can weigh in that have ridden it.

Look up the Heavy Breathers in Honolulu. They are a fun group. I meet some of them when they were riding the Great Allegheny Passage.

The Pali is awesome! But VERY windy. Be extremely careful!

Pellomoco

[QUOTE=spinnaker;18961676]Not sure I would want to ride up and down the road to Pikes Peak. It is dirt and narrow.

I believe that's the barr trail; also, there is a paved toll road it's about 12$ and completely worth it!

Shimagnolo

That info is 12 years out of date.
Each year from 2004 until 2014, an additional section was paved until it was fully paved in the fall of 2014.

See for yourself:
It was closed to the cycling public until the paving was completed.

There is a business that takes tourists to the top via van, then supervises them on a bicycle descent.
You can see one of their groups in that video.
The business was operating even before the paving was done.

Shimagnolo

[QUOTE=Pellomoco;18964928]Coupon here gets $2 off, to reduce it to $10: Pikes Peak America's Mountain - Pikes Peak

BTW The Barr Trail is a hiking trail that climbs 7500' in 12 miles.
Many parts of it look more like a staircase than a path.

andrewclaus

The Pikes Peak road was recently paved and I hear it's a stellar ride. I haven't done it yet. I spend a bit of time on Mt Evans and the difficulty depends on where you start. If you camp at Echo Lake, it's a relatively easy 30 mile summit day with only 4000' or so of climbing. Starting from town in Idaho Springs or Evergreen is a different matter, doubling the climbing and time required. You need very good weather and a very early start, say 0600 at the latest.

I cycled Mt Evans from my home in Golden last year, a 100 mile day with 11,000 vertical feet of climbing. That was a 12 hour day, starting at 0500. (Summit photo attached.)

Afternoon storms can be violent, and it's a good idea to be below treeline in the afternoon, with access to shelter (ready to pitch a tent). Some days you can watch a storm cell pass a few miles away. Some days the storms last a few minutes, other days all afternoon and evening. Some storms produce damaging hail, sometimes snow or graupel. Often after the afternoon storms, the evenings are very pleasant and you can continue your day.

Two one-liter water bottles is generally enough capacity. When I tour in the mountains, I carry a means to treat drinking water.

I carry a very small cable lock, one that will barely slow down a determined thief, but will deter a casual one. I always use it. Some areas of Denver do not have as much bike theft as some places I've been. Most cyclists lock their bikes here.

I don't have any knowledge about buying bars or gels. I carry dried fruit and nuts, which I buy at any grocery store.

BigAura

Note: If you're a sea-level dweller it takes a while to get acclimated to riding above 10,000 feet.

Shimagnolo

After the first time I rode from Idaho Springs to the Mt Evans summit, I realized I didn't need any water on the first half of the ride, (Idaho Springs to Echo Lake). So since then, I just start at Idaho Springs with two empty one-liter bottles, then fill them at the Echo Lake Lodge. No sense hauling water up the mountain when you don't need it.

andrewclaus

An excellent method if you can handle it mentally! You should see some of the looks I get when I mention that. You'd think I was talking about some taboo.

andrewclaus

And since the air density at 14,000' is about half that at sea level, you need good brakes, too. With so much less air friction, the acceleration on the descent can be surprising the first time. Add a little dizziness and fatigue (and marmots darting in front of you), and you need to be careful on the descent.

A camp at Echo Lake (10,000') could help tremendously in acclimating.

gyorgyigabor

Thanks !
Good picture
I will sleep at Silverplume and I think I will leave the village at 7 am, and start the climb at 8 am.
I plan to reach the summit at about 12:30 pm. (with few stops).
As I've read after the start the next opportunity to get water is by the entrance / Echo lake ?

I have another question:
Can you suggest me a bicycle shop in Denver where I can get a cardbox for the bike for the flight ?
Or do I have to write email to few shops and hope to get answers ?

Gábor

superdex

Silverplume is nowhere near Pikes peak. It's not exactly the best start for Evans, either.

But if you are starting from Silverplume with intentions of tackling Mt Evans, it looks like this:

Silverplume to Evans in | MapMyRide

~42mi, with a 14mi coast downhill to Idaho Springs and then 28mi of up, up, up to Mt Evans.

Can you give more details on what you'd like to ride, distances, and general places where you're lodging?

andrewclaus

Sorry, I don't know the bike shops around Denver very well. I haven't bought a bike for twenty years and do all my own work. REI is near Union Station and that's all I know.

There is creek water in West Chicago Creek about 7 miles up from Idaho Springs, water at Echo Lake (if the lodge is not open, there's the lake), and there's lake water at Summit Lake about five miles from the summit. None of the surface water is pristine--treatment is recommended. On one of my early attempts at the summit, Echo Lake lodge was closed that day and I had no way to treat water. That caused me to turn around early.

Perdido

How long are you going to be in Colorado? Road bike or mountain bike? There will be an organised not-for-profit ride of the Monarch Crest trail next month if you are still here:

Monarch Crest Crank - A Salida Colorado Mountain Bike Ride on the Monarch Crest Trail

The shuttle leaves from Salida CO, and drops you at the trail head near Monarch Pass, and then it's a 25 mile single track back down the mountain. If you don't have a mountain bike, you can rent one in one of the bike shops in Salida. Also, if you leave CO from Salida, there is bus service to Denver. So you can get your bike box in Salida, and then just take the bus to Union Station and the light rail to DIA. The aspens will be peaking (changing colors) so it's a great time to do one of the best rides in the US.