If you were going to Colorado (pics added)

[bpreynolds]

Yup.  Thinking about making one of the old bucket trips out yonder.  Would take me 2 days from Louisville just to get there.  Off the top of my head I know I'd want to ride the Peak to Peak road and also the San Juan Skyway.  Seems like a million amazing roads out there but any further advice?

[Guzzistajohn]

I like the Poudre river area west of fort Collins. Most
of the tourism is from fishermen. They stay off the roads and in the creek





 

[Lannis]

Yup.  Thinking about making one of the old bucket trips out yonder.  Would take me 2 days from Louisville just to get there.  Off the top of my head I know I'd want to ride the Peak to Peak road and also the San Juan Skyway.  Seems like a million amazing roads out there but any further advice?

Black Canyon of the Gunnison.   Get there and see it.    I'm doing it again ....

Lannis

[twowheeladdict]

Do a loop out of Durango or Ouray and include the million dollar Highway with the San Juan Skyway.  If you want to bypass most interstates head towards Wichita and take 160 over wolf creek gap from alamosa to pagosa springs.

Roadrunner has done a couple shamrock tours in the area with places of interest like Mesa Verde National park and take a rabbit trail near wolf creek gap to Creede, CO.

I was in the area 3 weeks ago on my Road Glide.

[shaka]

The aforementioned routes are among my favorites from my Norton days when I lived in New Mexico. Another one is Loveland Pass on the Front Range west of Denver, US Hwy. 6. Lots of twists and hairpin turns.

[Jim Rich]

Gone many times, always a treat.  Last time, used a Butler Motorcycle Map to plot the course and it was really excellent.  They highlight the good roads.  I always aimed at crossing the continental divide as many times as possible but once I rode 141 down the Dolores river through Gateway CO.  I was smitten.  It is a taste of Utah red rocks, good pavement, curves & views with no traffic.

https://www.butlermaps.com/

[oldbike54]

 Take Bob Seger's advice and Get out of Denver Baby .

 Being a simple guy , I really like to stay away from the ski villages like Breckenridge . Visit Trinidad and eat at the White Spot Cafe .

 Dusty 

[Sheepdog]

Once you cross the Front Range, all the roads (save the interstates) are great. The following link has a week-long route in Colorado that is truly gorgeous. The only problem is that once you ride Colorado, you�ll want to ride New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming...etc.

http://www.swcolotravel.org/page.cfm?pageid=15595

[Guzzistajohn]

Black Canyon of the Gunnison.   Get there and see it.    I'm doing it again ....

Lannis

Awesome place

[PJPR01]

Yup.  Thinking about making one of the old bucket trips out yonder.  Would take me 2 days from Louisville just to get there.  Off the top of my head I know I'd want to ride the Peak to Peak road and also the San Juan Skyway.  Seems like a million amazing roads out there but any further advice?

You'll really be limited by the # of days to determine which of the many roads to ride, so if you've got a full week, you can cover most of the roads listed above and several more - all fantastic suggestions. 

Riding up the middle as well Salida, Buena Vista, Leadville up the back way to Avon thru Minturn is also very scenic...
Telluride to Gateway and back is one of my favorites - if you want to do some very light dirt riding in that same direction with a beautiful ride thru the Aspens, head over the Uncompaghre plateau and it will take you all the way to Gateway on the ridgeline.

Ouray, Silverton, Durango, Cortez, Telluride is another full day loop. 

If you're headed that way, stop in and go for a horse ride with Rowdy (Ride with Rowdy)...a very entertaining and colorful character...

Very hard to go wrong in Colorado...so many wonderful roads.

[LowRyter]

some favs.  hwy 92 and Black Canyon.  133 to Marble. 

Stay in Crested Butte if you get a chance

hwy 82 Twin Lakes (Independence Pass) to Aspen

Cottonwood Pass is a good hardpack from Buena Vista to Gunnison or Crested Butte.

550 of course.  Stay in Ouray. 

141 from Telluride to Gateway

hwy 90 from Naturita (Paradox Valley and River) to Moab UT

hwy 149 through Slumgullion Pass


This is all south of I-70,  BTw, I-70 west of the Ike Tunnel to Glenwood Springs is great an architectural highway as anyplace.

[roadscum]

If ya got the time take the round trip train ride from Durango to Silverton and enjoy the backcountry beauty of that area. You'll need to make reservations in advance, take a look: http://www.durangotrain.com/

Be sure to ride the Million Dollar Hwy and a visit to Silverton either by train or on the bike.

Paul

[PJPR01]

Oh...and make sure to visit the Great Sand Dunes National Park in the southern part of the state...that's also nice riding down into New Mexico...but now we're digressing!  ha ha.  If it's not too hot, a hike to the top of the dunes is a wonderful thing to do.

There is a relatively easy to progressively hard 4x4 trail over Medano Pass on the backside of the Sand Dunes that you could go pretty far on a bike until you get to the top rocky section and then drop down towards Pueblo, narrow but beautiful if you're looking for some Dual Sport adventure riding.

[Sheepdog]

There is another narrow gauge rail day trip that goes from Antonito, CO to Chama, NM called the Cumbres Toltec Scenic RR. The route is primarily in the Carson National forest. It is very pristine and there is little modern stuff to ruin the views. Highly recommended...

https://cumbrestoltec.com

[Dharma Bum]

It's pretty hard to go wrong anywhere in the mountains in Colorado.  All of the above listed roads are excellent suggestions.  You might want to come relatively soon as I've heard that the aspens are already starting to change at the higher elevations, weather could influence your route on some of the higher passes.  Feel free to PM me if you need anything while you are out here.

[Texas Turnip]

Lots of good recommendations.
 this Texan is lucky as my youngest brother lived in Craig, Minturn, Leadville and now Salada I'd visit and make trips from his places and back for free meals and lodging. (Guzzi content)

"all interstates are the same"  WRONG. I-70 from the tunnel to Glenwood Springs is an engineering masterpiece. Aspen and Vail,just to say you have been there. Two good museums in Leadville to visit.

Early Sept is a good time as some tourists have departed. Make reservations early if staying in motels..

Again, stay out of Denver.

Tex

[Rainrider]

I like the Poudre river area west of fort Collins. Most
of the tourism is from fishermen. They stay off the roads and in the creek

+1 on the Poudre recommendation. Beautiful road. I've only been up it in a car, but it's on my list.

[Lannis]

Lots of good recommendations.
 this Texan is lucky as my youngest brother lived in Craig, Minturn, Leadville and now Salada I'd visit and make trips from his places and back for free meals and lodging. (Guzzi content)

"all interstates are the same"  WRONG. I-70 from the tunnel to Glenwood Springs is an engineering masterpiece. Aspen and Vail,just to say you have been there. Two good museums in Leadville to visit.

Early Sept is a good time as some tourists have departed. Make reservations early if staying in motels..

Again, stay out of Denver.

Tex

I lived in Denver in 2013, working there.   Bought a Honda PC800 to ride while I was there.

Yes on avoiding Denver, Yes on stopping in Leadville - really historical spot at 10,000 feet altitude, neat little museums and restaurant, Yes on I-70 being one of the few "fun to ride" Interstates in the country!

Lannis

[oldbike54]

 Do visit Montrose and eat at The Red Barn restaurant . Just trust me on this 

 Dusty

[Guzzistajohn]

I usually stay at my sister in laws wolf sanctuary near Lake George a night or two. The night time howling is a treat you just don't get at your average domicile 

[LowRyter]

Do visit Montrose and eat at The Red Barn restaurant . Just trust me on this 

 Dusty

BTDT.  The mex joint on the road east from there ain't bad neither. 

[twowheeladdict]

Yup.  Thinking about making one of the old bucket trips out yonder.  Would take me 2 days from Louisville just to get there.  Off the top of my head I know I'd want to ride the Peak to Peak road and also the San Juan Skyway.  Seems like a million amazing roads out there but any further advice?

Hopefully you are going soon.  At the elevations the temps are definitely cool and getting colder. 

I find the Smoky Mountains area to just as nice as Colorado except that Colorado had more vertical mountains and is much cooler because of the elevation.  For uniqueness you can't beat Utah.

[oldbike54]

BTDT.  The mex joint on the road east from there ain't bad neither.

 It ain't the food I'm talking about 

 Dusty

[Guzzistajohn]

Message Testrossa (Seth) before your trip. He'll show you the ropes! Him and Gail are nice folks. Don't wait too long, I got stuck is a sleet storm in mid September on trail ridge road one time. Slippery on a LeMans 

[yogidozer]

I usually stay at my sister in laws wolf sanctuary near Lake George a night or two. The night time howling is a treat you just don't get at your average domicile 

Wow! Lucky you!!!

[yogidozer]

Bring a few John Denver CDs

[blackbuell]

Brian,

Lots of great suggestions already. I take long rides in Colorado at least once, but usually twice per year; one of my daughters lives in Fort Collins.  Here are a few of my favorite routes:

550 between Durango and Montrose is truly spectacular, but often is congested with slow moving RV's; it might be late enough in the year for  it to be less crowded than it is in mid-summer. It really is worth checking out sometime.

Already mentioned: rt. 14 between Fort Collins and Steamboat Springs

Great loop: Salida to Gunnison (over Monarch Pass) to Lake City to Monte Vista (over Slumgullion Pass) and back to Salida (also go over Poncha Pass). Salida is a good home base. A good side-trip is rt. 114 between Saguache and Gunnison. IMO, the mountains around Lake City are among the most scenic in the state. This route takes you along the headwaters of the Rio Grande, which is truly beautiful before it reaches New Mexico.

A few lesser known great rides:
In the NW part of the state: Craig to Meeker to Rangely to Grand Junction.
Grand Junction to Naturita (via rt. 141) to ridgeway to Montrose and back to Grand Junction. Montrose is another good home base.

If you plan to do it this year, you better hurry; you might run into snow on some of these high passes in the not-too-distant future.


Jon

[yogidozer]

I usually stay at my sister in laws wolf sanctuary near Lake George a night or two. The night time howling is a treat you just don't get at your average domicile 

Like camping in the Adirondacks, hearing Loons all night 

[LowRyter]

It ain't the food I'm talking about 

 Dusty

The restaurant is closed down.

[Guzzistajohn]

Wow! Lucky you!!!

We can ride out there next spring......you can clean the bear pens too