Climbing Big Thompson

After an early morning swim I rode one of my favorite climbing routes today with a few friends (Chris McDonald, Marilyn MacDonald - engaged, but similar last names & Billy Edwards) up Big Thompson canyon to Estes Park and down through Lyons. The ride has stunning scenery, less traffic than the other canyons and features a series of short, steep switch backs at the end. The view at the top of this long climb is stellar and the gradual descent down into Estes Park provides a chance to take in the surrounding mountains. We saw a herd of Elk today grazing in a large, open field before reaching our refueling stop. From there, it was a short climb out of Estes Park then a screaming descent down to Lyons. Note of interest...riding to our starting point a bird made a deposit on my shoulder. I thought to myself, "Is this a sign of what to expect on this ride?" We had a great weather and I rode well today, despite having to walk my bike up a portion of the steep switch backs on account of a trashed hub. It was good for some laughs though with Chris shouting as he passed me, "Dude, you are walking faster than I am riding."

Injury update...I have a follow-up appointment with the orthopaedic tomorrow afternoon to review my bone scan and the radiologist report. More on that later.

Keep it smooth...