Every July/August, the valleys of the BC interior experience intense heat (average temps around 35C) and as a result, forest fires ensue. In addition, tourists from Vancouver and Calgary, on their summer vacation, descend on our town and the population seems like it doubles, causing congestion on the roads as RVs and boat trailers clog up what little road infrastructure we have.
We've been here long enough that we know this is the best time to skip town. The idea is to head to higher ground and take advantage of the altitude and elevation of the Rocky Mountains to take the edge off this summer heat.
Also, it doesn't hurt that some of the best motorcycle roads are in the same places where the mountains are, and the tallest ranges are along what's called the Continental Divide.
What is the Continental Divide?
It's a ridge that separates the continent's river systems. If water were to fall on this imaginary line, anything to the west of this line would find its way to the Pacific Ocean and anything east would eventually wind up in the Atlantic Ocean.
While there are many famous roads along the divide, like Loveland Pass and Independence Pass, we're on enduros for this trip, so our plan is to ride more of the off-road trails instead of tarmac. Less traffic and a lot more fun!
There's a reason why we chose Colorado for this trip, instead of other states and provinces along the Continental Divide. Back in 2009, Neda was part of a charity ride for breast cancer called
Adventures for the Cure, involving twelve women riding dual sport bikes around the state. One of the sponsors was Progressive Insurance, and she was asked to be involved in their marketing campaign. The ad was run in many motorcycle magazines in print:
She also got to meet Flo!
Neda and I got into dirt-biking shortly after the ride and she's always wanted to show me some of the trails that she did with the Dirty Dozen. As a result, she's been excitedly doing the majority of the route planning for this Colorado trip.
