Continental Divide (for REAL this time!)

Well, Breckenridge was a great place for a rest day! It's basically a ski town but it's still lots of fun in the summer offering rafting, hiking and mountain biking. I, of course, did none of that. I mean, really! I'm out in the "fresh air and sunshine" every day on my bike so when I take a rest day all I really want to do is relax, eat and maybe watch some TV. This didn't stop me, however, from making some new friends at the Fireside B&B which also has some hostel style bunk rooms for travelers like me. While there I met Ben, an Outward Bound instructor who is hiking the Colorado trail (seated center in the above picture), Hazel, who is taking a week to hike around the Brekenridge area before starting a job in Denver teaching English as a second language, and Martin, who is a Swedish truck driver visiting Colorado and taking in all of the wonderful natural scenery. These were fun folks to hang out with and Andy, a retired British military man who is the owner of the Fireside, added to the fun with his generosity and great sense of humor. The next day I took off for the final push up into the mountains. Within about 10 miles south of Breckenridge I arrived at Hoosier Pass which is another point on the Continental Divide and the highest point on my trip. I just had to stand there for a moment and ponder the fact that, in addition to the many miles I've ridden my bike so far, I've also gained the equivalent of over TWO MILES of altitude! While I was excited to see the Divide the first time, this one was really special and it marks the transition from a very mountainous part of my trip into the flatter country of eastern Colorado and Kansas. While it's not really "all downhill from here", it does feel like I've made it past a huge milestone.

Total mileage so far: 1,650

Please consider making a small donation to help cancer survivors (sadly, my mom was not one of them) http://www.livestrong.org/grassroots2008/steveonhisbike