Day 2 (Monday): Steamboat Lake to Sylvan Lake
Steamboat Lake: 8,156'
Mileage: 179
Today would be a day of detours and reroutes. We woke up to rain. We had cell service and could see the radar and that the rain would push out late morning. So, we waited out the rain until about 11:00. Since we got a late start we decided to slab it for a direct route into Steamboat Springs. Once in Steamboat Springs we hit the Wal-Mart for supplies and then grabbed a bite to eat in town before picking the planned route back up outside of town.
Just as we left town I could feel my clutch fading. I pulled off to troubleshoot while we were still close to Steamboat Springs where we would have a fair chance at getting parts and materials, or even a mechanic if it came to it. The roadside diagnostics revealed the clutch was low on mineral oil. I got on the phone and started searching shops. Being a Monday most of the shops were closed though. I eventually found a bicycle shop that was open and had mineral oil. We turned back toward town but before we could make it to the shop I lost my clutch completely. Shannon rode ahead to the shop and retrieved the mineral oil while we waited. Once back, we bled the clutch and things returned to normal. We concluded that the slave cylinder was going out and leaking fluid into the crankcase. I would monitor the reservoir going forward, checking the level each morning and topping off as needed.
A few more hours behind schedule we were back on the route. Despite the pretty route along the Colorado River not a lot of pictures today as it became a bit of a heads down day for me. We make a few more reroutes to save time. Notably, we bypassed the off-road section to Gypsum to avoid the possible slow slog through the silt and powdery dust.
Mileage: 179
Today would be a day of detours and reroutes. We woke up to rain. We had cell service and could see the radar and that the rain would push out late morning. So, we waited out the rain until about 11:00. Since we got a late start we decided to slab it for a direct route into Steamboat Springs. Once in Steamboat Springs we hit the Wal-Mart for supplies and then grabbed a bite to eat in town before picking the planned route back up outside of town.
Just as we left town I could feel my clutch fading. I pulled off to troubleshoot while we were still close to Steamboat Springs where we would have a fair chance at getting parts and materials, or even a mechanic if it came to it. The roadside diagnostics revealed the clutch was low on mineral oil. I got on the phone and started searching shops. Being a Monday most of the shops were closed though. I eventually found a bicycle shop that was open and had mineral oil. We turned back toward town but before we could make it to the shop I lost my clutch completely. Shannon rode ahead to the shop and retrieved the mineral oil while we waited. Once back, we bled the clutch and things returned to normal. We concluded that the slave cylinder was going out and leaking fluid into the crankcase. I would monitor the reservoir going forward, checking the level each morning and topping off as needed.
A few more hours behind schedule we were back on the route. Despite the pretty route along the Colorado River not a lot of pictures today as it became a bit of a heads down day for me. We make a few more reroutes to save time. Notably, we bypassed the off-road section to Gypsum to avoid the possible slow slog through the silt and powdery dust.
We enter the White River National Forest working our way toward Sylvan Lake. We passed a couple decent backcountry campsites north of Sylvan Lake but they might have been a challenge finding enough tent space for four and the convenience of a shower house was appealing.
We rolled into the Sylvan Lake campground around 6:30 after a long day. We set up camp and fixed dinner in the dark. At least dinner included some fresh ingredients - homemade black bean burritos with cheese and fresh limes.
The campground host came to greet us and talked to us about some hunters that had taken a bear nearby. They had also taken a elk. Makes you wonder whether your elk will still be there by the time you get back to carry it out.
This area had been closed for a good while as a result of the Sylvan fire and was just opened a few days prior to our trip. I had even mapped out a couple options to route around the closure. The evidence of the fire was obvious with scorched trees and scorched earth as we got closer to the Sylvan Lake.
We rolled into the Sylvan Lake campground around 6:30 after a long day. We set up camp and fixed dinner in the dark. At least dinner included some fresh ingredients - homemade black bean burritos with cheese and fresh limes.
The campground host came to greet us and talked to us about some hunters that had taken a bear nearby. They had also taken a elk. Makes you wonder whether your elk will still be there by the time you get back to carry it out.
This area had been closed for a good while as a result of the Sylvan fire and was just opened a few days prior to our trip. I had even mapped out a couple options to route around the closure. The evidence of the fire was obvious with scorched trees and scorched earth as we got closer to the Sylvan Lake.