Day 38

Didn't sleep well last night at all. It was very cold and I had to put on a jersey, but even that wasn't enough. Lay on a bit longer than normal because it was just too raw to get out! On the road at 08:00 and into Copper Mountain ... what a beautiful ski resort ...


I'd imagine it's a fun place to be at any time of year. Lots of cyclists about now and I take the lovely cycle trail up over the Vail Pass ... not too hard and then had a 10mile freewheel all the way down the far side.


At places you lose the cycle trail but there's plenty of help at hand. Just like that two local cyclists pass by and we get chatting.


They are Kevin (R) and Mike (L) and by the looks of them do a lot of cycling ... and it's fantastic country to have fun on a bike. They escorted me right to the front door of Vail public library ... that's what you call service! Thanks lads.


All these skiing resorts are beautiful little towns ... a touch of Disneyland landscaping ... everything is so tidy and interesting. The gardens, golf courses, conifer groves are so well laid out and well tended. In downtown Vail it feels like Switzerland with chalets and cuckoo clocks. Pity I can't stay much longer ... there are other places waiting for me! I keep to the bike trail ... it follows the river bank and we are going downhill remember ... I'm on the other side of the Rockies and following DOWN this twisting canyon all the way to Grand Junction (I hope?). It's such a lovely day and pleasantly warm as I descend. The cycling is easy even though I have a slight cooling headwind. Now in Eagle ... clocked 55miles ... but the public library is having trouble with it's Wifi ... can't load up a few pics! This is another pretty town ... I'll go to SubWay outlet, if they have one, and then push on in the direction of Glenwood Springs. Navigation is straight forward other than trying to find the entrance points to the lovely bike trails. Think I'll just stick to highway 6 ... it's more direct. Lovely evening ... not too warm, good road with light traffic. Get a bite to eat in a roadside cafe ... drink as much soda as you can. Probably not good for you but it's hard to resist. Pass through the little town of Gypsum where they really do make plasterboard and get onto a bike track that runs alongside highway 60. The terrain is changing now ... it's more arid and the hills show signs of being eroded by heavy water runoffs. The bike trail ends abruptly but to one side there is a nice green patch beside the fast flowing Eagle River. This will do nicely for the night. Distance covered 65.4miles. Out of the high mountains so looking forward to a good night's rest.

Location:Vail, Colorado