Day 3: Farmington to Gunnison

This day started out great. Got up early because Doug & Suzy were heading out.

The ride into Durango was beautiful. Temp was mid-70's and the traffic was light.

 I stopped in Durango to use the facilities and grab a cup of coffee. I know its a tourist trap, but I really like this town. The lady at the visitor center was really nice and asked lots of questions about Trigger. Asking me questions about Trigger is like asking most of my peers about their grandchildren. LOL Do you think Trigger has my DNA?

I ran into Suzy & Doug in Silverton. They were picking up Doug's brother and sister-in-law who had ridden the train from Durango. They threatened to take out a restraining order on me if I continued to stalk them.

I also ran into a guy on a BMW 1150GS. This is BMW's version of Trigger a few years ago. He was an engineering prof. at Kansas State! We talked awhile and he recommended an easy off road ride for me to test my skills before I tried anything too hard. There is a turnoff just north of Ridgeway through Owl Creek Pass and comes out on US-50 east of Cimarron. So I tried it, but half way through it started raining...HARD.

Now I can't even get off Trigger to put on my rainsuit because the road was too soft to support Trigger on the kickstand. I'm absolutely soaked to the bone until I get to US-50 and can switch into my rain gear. The ride into Gunnison was delayed by mudslides and construction delays. When I got into Gunnison all I wanted to do was strip out of the wet clothes, take a hot shower, and find some food. Unfortunately, I also had to grade papers for my online class as well. It was nearly 4 a.m. by the time I hit the pillow. Trigger was a very dirty boy.

This is not how vacation is supposed to go. But I've decided not to plan trips on dirt and gravel roads anymore. I can do it, but it isn't any fun.