Trail Maintenance!

Since living in Telluride, I've discovered that resort/destination trails are high maintenance. Reason being that tourists are only here for a short time and will ride them in any condition. Unfortunately, the Parks and Rec Department is too busy maintaining the bike park and pouring new concrete on the Boulevard Trail, and the Forest Service is too understaffed with too much land to maintain to worry about trail maintenance here.

So, I took it upon myself to do a little trail work yesterday and fix some of the drainage issues on the Prospect Trail. At the moment, my only trail tool is a metal rake. I quickly learned that all of the big problems will require moving more dirt than I'm willing to move with a rake, but I did manage to fix some smaller issues. For the bigger drainage problems, I ordered a Rogue Hoe online two weeks ago, but they were back ordered. Hopefully, it'll be here next week. For those wondering, a Rogue Hoe is a somewhat short handled hoe with a thick, sharp, 5 pound blade. It is, in my opinion, the best all around trail tool. I've previously used one that belonged to a coworker at Mulberry Gap. It's great for moving dirt, breaking new ground, packing down loose dirt, and cutting roots. It'll also get used for vehicle recovery on camping trips should the need arise.

On another note, cycling here is absolutely amazing, but my muscles take longer to recover at this high altitude. So, I've been expanding my hobbies. Did some rock climbing and bouldering last week and I got my fishing license and a few flies today!

Imogene Pass

Single speeds are stupid. Especially when attempting a 13,000ft 4x4 mountain pass. It's fine for designated bike trails, but riding anything else around here is just brutal. Honestly, it makes riding not fun. The premise behind single speeds is that in rolling terrain you can use your momentum from the downhill to help you up the next hill. Imogene Pass, however, is a sustained 7 mile climb.

The first 5 miles up to the ghost town of Tomboy weren't too bad. After that the road became steeper with big loose rocks. It stayed that way until the summit, a distance of about 2 miles. I walked a good bit of that, but I had come too far to give up. Along the way, I passed an old mine shaft that was partially boarded up. It renewed my interest in spelunking, but I haven't been able to find any information about caves or mines in the area. The town of Tomboy was pretty interesting too. I read that it used to contain a school and a general store. I can't imagine living in a basin at that altitude.

The top of the pass was well worth the effort; even though, it was cold with blasting winds. A shot of Jack Daniels Tennessee Honey really hit the spot. It took a few hours to get up and about 25 minutes coming down. I would've liked to continue down the other side to Ouray riding through Ridgway and back to Telluride on Last Dollar Road, a relatively mild mountain pass. That route would only be 63 miles, but it was already 5 o'clock when I reached the summit.

I started and ended the ride with about 10 miles of single track. I may attempt another pass or the route through Ouray but only with a geared bike. Regarding my previous post about cyclocross bikes, I'd like to clarify that they make great adventure bikes in most parts of the country, but out here on the western slope, I think one would be better off with a geared, full suspension 29er. That's my plan for next season, but for now I have to focus on a 4wd truck and a snowboard!