Visiting Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

We concluded our national park visits during our Labor Day motorcycle trip with Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Black Canyon is known for its incredibly deep and steep cliffs as well as its very narrow widths - some so much so that only half an hour of sunlight reaches the canyon floor each …

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Touring the Cliff Dwellings in Mesa Verde National Park

One of the highlights of our Labor Day motorcycle trip was spending a day in Mesa Verde National Park. Brian booked us a room at the Far View Lodge, which is about half-way into the park, so we technically had a late afternoon/evening as well as most of the following day for our visit. That …

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Wyoming Hikes: Medicine Bow Peak

We've made the 1.5-hour drive over to Wyoming's Snowy Range a couple of times but on our latest visit we camped overnight and woke up early to tackle one of the hikes that's been on Brian's list - Medicine Bow Peak. The summit sits at 12,018 feet and is accessible via a few different trails. …

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Wyoming Hikes: Miner’s Cabin and Lake Marie Trails

We're still learning the best places to hike around Cheyenne, Wyoming, and have really enjoyed exploring Curt Gowdy State Park, Vedauwoo Recreational Area, Pole Mountain Open Space, and Red Mountain Open Space. During my parents' recent visit, we took the opportunity to check out a few new hikes in nearby Medicine Bow National Forest. About …

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Wyoming Hikes: Turtle Rock, Skeleton and Cow Trails

Known far and wide as a climbing mecca, we've been talking about hiking in Vedauwoo Recreational Area since we moved to Cheyenne last fall. After one failed attempt in winter (the parking area was inaccessible due to several feet of snow and both the temperature and wind chill were unable to climb into the single …

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Motorcycling the Mount Evans Scenic Byway

Brian's bucket list has long included motorcycling to the top of Mount Evans in Colorado. At 14,130 feet - reached via 28 miles of narrow, curving road that climbs 7,000 feet to the summit - Mount Evans is 20 feet higher and surprisingly less frequented than the more popular nearby Pikes Peak. Colorado’s highest byway …

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Colorado Hikes: Red Mountain Loop

We're still learning all of the places to hike near Cheyenne, and this weekend we had an opportunity to check out a new area just across the border in Colorado. The Red Mountain Open Space is a 15,780-acre public area with 15-miles of trails for hiking, biking, and horse-back riding. We wound our way back …

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