Colorado
Colorado lived up to its reputations of incredible beauty and difficulty. One is always going up or down, never staying flat. It was perfect timing to see the aspens yellow the mountainsides across the state and for snow and cold weather to be an everlasting concern. I left the GDMBR in Salida and attempted to ride the Colorado Trail but was turned around by impenetrable mud and the threat of snow. The alternative route to Durango over Cinnamon Pass took me to my highest elevation, 12,640 ft.