DAY 25: MONARCH PASS!!!

194 km (120 miles) - total: 3586 km (2228 miles)

Canon City, Co to Gunnison, Co

Welcome to the defining moment of the trip.
I got it! I climbed the mountain! Today was by far the most satisfying day of my trip as I reached the highest point, the Great Divide! I knew I had a shot at the Monarch Pass today, I just needed a very long day to do it.

This morning I switched my mindframe. No more Mr. Nice guy, no longer a tourist, forget nice words, forget touring the US with the bicycle. Today I was a racer, today I wanted to gamble big, today it was do or die. No looking back, no bullshit, today it was pure adrenaline, a competition against myself dictated by the blind conviction that I will beat the road, I will beat myself, I will get where I want.

I was up at 5.45 when it was still pitch black outside. After going through my routine, breakfast and quick stretching exercises, I was on the road by 6.30 with the sun not out yet and the air still chilly. I could only hear my breath and the lulling sound of the tires rolling on the road surface. I left Canon City and I immediately began to climb. The road led to the mountains with a gentle but steady grade, it was a sort of warm-up for the big one later on. After 15 miles or so the road found its bearings into a beautiful canyon. I rolled through the first 50 km without worrying about speed, time, mileage or anything like that. The setting had me riveted, I kept looking around me at the scenic canyon, at the light, the colors, the details and, despite my intention to "be a racer" today, I kept stopping to take pictures. I have taken many and it was hard to select a few for today's report (take note of Highway 50 from Canon City to Salida, an enchanting ride that was). After a couple of hours, the canyon gradually widened and I found myself in a lush valley ringed by mountains and cattle and flowers. It vaguely reminded me of Switzerland. I kept a steady pace and before I knew it I entered Salida, the town where I had planned to spend the night. I reached Salida having cycled 95km and it wasn't even 11am, how could I stop? I stop to refuel on my energy intake, had some food and felt in superb shape so I studied the map and I set sights on a motel 12 miles from Salida, 6 miles before Monarch Pass. The climb to the pass from Salida is 18 miles long so I thought I could break that in two stages. Who was I kidding? The minute I got back on the bike, I stared at the mountain tops before me and adrenaline immediately began to pump in my veins. I reveled in the Colorado sun feeling free and happy. I was gonna forget about motels, miles, speed, time and weather conditions and I focused all my energies on reaching the Monarch Pass, from 7000ft at Salida to the 11312ft of the Pass, a pretty intense climb. The weather was ok, not perfect but not so nasty to hamper my ride. I just said to myself "freeze everything out and just focus on getting up there". Once I left Salida the air turned chilly and it was very breezy but I knew that on the climb the wind would subside as the mountains walls shielded the road from strong air currents. To be as light as possible I got rid of all the unnecessary items from my rucksack. In Salida I threw out a pair of socks my underwear and some power bars that I had bought in anticipation of a long day ahead. To go fast on a slope you have to be nimble, it is as simple as that so I got rid of all the unnecessary weight. I locked my gaze on the road and there I was on the climb, the bicycle wheels rolling gently on a steady white line and a few cars passing me by. The scenery was just incredible, mountainous and rugged, the more I climbed the less trees grew on the mountains around me. The road kept on going up, snaking through the mountains, surging steadily, winding, calm, silent, defiant. I tried not to look up too much, the sight of the steep grades could easily sap my energies and mess up my mind. I saw big trucks coming from the opposite direction in low gear which was a source of motivation. I was sweating a lot and the pace got slower as the grades got steeper. But I didn't want to stop. I wanted it to do it all in one go, I wanted to do it in style. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do the climb with 10kg on my back and many miles in my legs and still be as agile and elegant as I wanted to be. After it was my race! The road signs and the geography of the mountains were clear and telling, I was getting closer. At 2.10, after about 2 hours of slow grind I saw for the first time the Pass above me, a few turns away, maybe 400 feet, no more. I was getting tired and increasingly out of breath. Come on I said, actually I said come on many times on the 18-mile climb from Salida to the Pass. I talked, I whispered to myself, I imagined the moment I would see the pass, and how I would react at reaching it. I made one last effort to get up there, standing on the pedals, not feeling my rucksack anymore, sweat dripping down my face. My arms, legs light as a hound, I felt good, I felt beautiful, life made sense, all made sense, I got to the Pass teary-eyed but I could not actually let it out, at least not as I would have liked to, I don't know exactly how but maybe in some crazy theatrical way, it was all inside me, I could not shout it out, I just said to myself something like 'well done boy', I felt a bit stupid saying that actually! But I think I just may have reached the point of ecstasy! I knew I would have a memory to cherish forever. And it was all mine.

The experience of cycling to the Pass has been extremely poignant, certainly today has provided the most emotional moment of my trip. I had been thinking about this day for over 2 months and after so many doubts and uncertainties, after all that fear, fear of injuries and accidents, after the trip unfolding the way it did, the expectations, the pain, the obsession of getting to the Gran Canyon, the fear of failure, I managed not to be overwhelmed by it all. However silly, trivial or easy it might all be, it is my challenge and I am happy for it.

The fast ascent to 3448mt possibly caused me a slight headache but wasn't sure whether it was due to the altitude or lack of sleep - didn't get much sleep last night as I was too excited to ride to the Monarch Pass (actually I woke up at 3.15 and said to myself: let's go now!). On the Pass, which straddles on the Great Divide, I took the customary pictures by the sign and devoured 3 chocolate bars but I was keen to go down rapidly as I had a steep descent to deal with. The wind was really cold and by the time I began the descent I was literally shivering. My gear was soaked in sweat and I could not change so I had to go down as quickly as possible. The descent was incredibly tense as I had to cycle down the mountain for 9 miles on a single lane with cars and trucks behind me for most of the time as they had no road nor visibility to pass me. The gusts of wind made the back wheel of the bicycle skid a lot and I stopped a few times for fear of my brake pads melting and for the pain in my arms and the numbness in my fingers and toes. Descending took more out of me than the actual climb. After 14km I breathed a sigh of relief and I was glad to be back safely on flat terrain again. The scenery changed slightly as on the other side of the Pass land got drier and more rugged. My map confirmed that if I wanted a roof over my head tonight I had no choice but to ride on another 35 miles to the city of Gunnison. By that time it was almost 3pm, had covered 140km with the huge climb and had been on the bike since 6.30 am. So I dug deep and pressed on into a headwind of 15mph. I am not even gonna talk about the wind anymore, I am beyond frustrated, feels like I have been riding into headwinds for ever. The ride to the city was uneventful and felt very long but finally at 6pm, after almost 12 hours of cycling through the Rockies, I entered Gunnison a happy but exhausted man. My legs feel a bit heavy at the moment but after a good meal and a good night's sleep I will be back for more tomorrow.

Slight change of plans, tomorrow I am riding to Montrose and I will take a 20-mile detour to see the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, which as I have been told by a number of people that I bumped into in the past few days, it is really something worth seeing. I will spend the night in Montrose and then turn Southwest to make my way into Utah. Things are going my way, so it seems.

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Dedico la scalata del Monarch Pass ai miei cari nonni che domani 2 settembre festeggiano il 60esimo anniversario di matrimonio, nozze di diamante!


Leaving Canon City with the sun barely up


Early morning, my long shadow on the road


Entering the Blackhorn Sheep Canyon


The road snakes into the Bighorn Sheep Canyon


Bighorn Sheep Canyon


The peaceful and intimate Canyon


Arkansas river in the Canyon


Entering Salida


The steep road to the Monarch Pass


Total concentration on the way up


Up, up, up to the Pass


6 miles to go


On the Pass


The beginning of the descent from Monarch Pass


After a stressful descent from the Pass I am back on flat terrain


On the western side of the Great Divide land is more arid




Downtown Gunnison