Ride & Hike: Old Flowers Road to Flowers Trail

It was a chilly night, I forgot to bring my altimeter which has a thermometer so I don’t know how low the temp dropped over night, but there was frost on the picnic table in the morning, so the overnight temps did get below freezing.



Al getting the "bear proofed" food out of the tree



Breakfast: a Red Bull and a swooshed banana nut muffin

This whole ride was an experiment since I‘ve never done an overnight camping trip on the XT before that didn't involve towing the bike. Today was the second part of experiment, a ride and hike. There were lots of hiking trails out here and lots of dirt roads. Today we were going to ride out to one of the trailheads and do a hike from there.

But how do you ride a motorcycle to a trailhead and hike from there? That’s what I wanted to find out. The trail we were going to hike today was the Flowers Trail located just a few miles from Jack’s Gulch Campground.

I struggled making up my mind on how to prepare for the ride to the trailhead. Should I ride in all my dirt riding gear, some how secure all of it to the bike with a cable and padlock? The only thing that I couldn’t secure to my bike with a cable and lock were my motorcycle boots. I thought of carrying them in my pack on the hike, but unfortunately they wouldn’t fit inside my small Camelbak daypack. After doing some thinking I decided to leave my motorcycle boots inside my tent. I figured they would be safer out of sight, and ride with my hiking boots, which had some ankle protection but obviously not as much as my awesome BMW Santiago boots.

If Old Flowers Road was like some of the roads we rode yesterday that would be fine. Unfortunately Old Flowers Road was not like the roads we were on yesterday. I’ve only been on the section of Old Flowers Road near Stove Prairie Road, where it’s just a mellow dirt road. I knew Old Flowers is a local favorite for the dual-sport riders, so I figured that further down up it probably got more rugged and technical.

We geared up and took off from our campsite. A mile or some behind Jack’s Gulch Campground there are a few trailheads and Old Flowers Road. At first the road was narrow but not technical, a mile further we started to encounter rocks, small hills, some sand. We weren’t actually sure how far we had to ride Old Flowers before getting to the trailhead. We thought it was about 2 miles but after about a mile and half of riding we saw a sign posted that said “2 miles to Flowers Trailhead”.



Old Flowers Road



A meadow on Old Flowers Road



Horses on Old Flowers Road

The road got a bit rougher with large rocks in the road and tree roots sticking out, all I kept thinking was, were my hiking boots going to protect my ankles if I dropped the bike on my foot. Not a good thing to think about while you are riding a bumpy and rocky road trying to navigate between ruts, rocks and tree roots.







A rocky section on Old Flowers Road











Al chekcing out a fork in the road that went no where







Leaving the bike behind and starting the hike

We arrived at a meadow and decided to leave the bikes here and hike to the trailhead. We wanted the exercise anyway. And we already knew we couldn’t be hiking for too long, because we had to vacate the campsite in a few hours anyway.



The sky is so blue in the mountains



Flowers Trail Trailhead sign



Commemorative plaque at the Flowers Trailhead



Hiking the Flowers Trail



It was very sunny and warm now, about 45 minutes later we arrived at the Flowers Trailhead. The trail entered the forest and we started to hike among the trees, where it was much cooler. The trail gently was climbing but was mostly straight. This trail is rated as “difficult” and it’s 18.4 miles long and travels all the way to the junction of the Big South Trail, gaining an additional 1,184 feet of elevation from the 8,159 foot elevation start at the trailhead. We didn’t see anyone else on the trail except for two horses and their riders. Not sure how far we hiked, but after 45 minutes we decided to turn around. We passed a few more horses and their rides and arrived at the bikes.

The ride on Old Flowers Road back to Jack’s Gulch Campground was just a bit rougher, then when we rode it a few hours ago. The soil had dried out in the sun, the puddles shark and there was a lot more sandy areas.

I really did enjoy the ride and hike, but next time I want to ride out to the trailhead in my motorcycle boots, so I have to figure out what to do with them while I‘m hiking. Maybe I'll have to bring my larger pack so I can carry them since hiking in my dual-sport boots is not an option.



Heading toward highway 14 on Pingree Park Road





Lots of curves on Pingree Park Road

Back at the campsite, we had lunch, packed up and headed out. I ended up pouring all the gas that Al’s had in the MSR bottle in to my tank, figuring with the extra gas in my tank now, I was just going to make it to the gas station on highway 14 at 287 near Ted’s Place.



Getting chased by some dark clouds, no rain today though



Some nice views of the mountains from Pingree Park Road

The clouds started to roll in as we headed out. Descending down the curves on Pingree Park Road, the road appeared much steeper than when we rode up yesterday. Most of the traffic was heading out of Fort Collins, as we were riding into town, so that was nice.

This was a very fun two daysand I'm glad I didn't have to ride out here alone. I definitely have to do some more rides like this and I’ll definitely be coming back to Jack’s Gulch area and do some more riding, camping and hiking here. The total mileage for the two days was 140 miles. The only items I forgot to bring were the altimeter, rain pants, pen and knife. I didn’t actually need the knife but I like to have it on all my camping trips just in case.

Pingree Park, Sky Ranch & Crown Point Rd

At around noon my friend Al and I departed Fort Collins. My XT felt pretty sluggish with the added weight of the tent and saddle bags. After all, the XT only puts out about 20HP’s.



Threatening clouds in the distance as we ride west on highway 14 out of Fort Collins

The forecast for today and tomorrow in Fort Collins called for sunshine and temps in the 80’s. The temps in Estes Park were slightly cooler but it was still supposed to be sunny there. Jack’s Gulch Campground is west of Fort Collins and just north of Estes Park. As we rode west on highway 14, I started to notice the dark clouds in the distance. They only grew darker and more menacing the further west we rode. About 10 miles from where we were supposed to turn off on Pingree Park Road, the rain started to fall and the wind started to pick up. I had to pull over and throw two layers on, the temps dropped instantly from 80 to 60 degrees.



Rain on Pingree Park Road



Highway 14 and the twisty and steep beginning of Pinegree Park Road

We continued riding in the rain and turned south on Pingree Park Road (County Road 63E), which is wide dirt and gravel road. The road immediately started climbing with numerous switchbacks. I was surprised how many cars turned off on this road. It took me several miles to adjust to riding dirt, especially with the extra weight. The road leveled off a bit. There is a lot of amazing scenery here, but don’t get too distracted, or you’ll ride straight off a cliff.

Jack’s Gulch Campground is located just a bit over 6 miles from highway 14 on Pingree Park Road. After choosing a campsite, we headed back out for a ride. I was glad to take the saddle bags and the extra weight off my bike.



Pingree Park Road near the CSU campus



CSU campus buildings, more like cabins, ahead



The curvy road to the CSU campus



That’s the Mummy Mountain Range behind me

We still had the whole afternoon to explore. First we rode Pingree Park Road all the way to the end, where Colorado State University's Pingree Park Campus and Conference Center is located at some 9,000 feet in elevation in the Mummy Mountain Range. From the Pingree Park mountain valley you can see Rocky Mountain National Park, the Comanche Peak Wilderness Area, and Roosevelt National Forest. There are also five mountain summits accessible form this area: Signal Mountain (11,262‘), Stormy Peaks (12,148’), Fall Mountain (12,258’), Comanche Peak (12,702‘) and Hagues Peak (13,560’).

At the CSU campus we turned around and headed back the other way on Pingree Park Road. The rain started up again, at times, like it does so often in the mountains, the rain would fall and the sun would shine simultaneously.






Sky Ranch Road



Nice views from Sky Ranch Road



Pingree Park Road (63E) and Sky Ranch Road (CR145)

We turned off on the road to Sky Ranch (Country Road 145). This road was much narrower, twistier and rockier. I liked it a lot more then Pingree Park Road, I guess in dirt I like to ride slower, and on Pingree Park Road even though the speed limit is posted at 30MPH, many of the section can be ridden much faster. Sky Ranch road didn’t go very far and ended at some camp.



Pingree Park Road and the south fork of the Poudre River



Pingree Park Road and the south fork of the Poudre River, shot from the river



Al climbed that big rock next to the road and took some cool pictures from the top



Back on Pingree Park Road, next stop was next to the south fork of the Poudre Rider. Then we rode past Jack’s Gulch Campground, waiting for the deer to cross in two places and turned on to the Crown Point Road. This road goes all the way to the Zimmerman Lake trail, near Cameron Pass. By now it was raining steady and harder at times. By now we realized that this was not of those a noon-time passing mountain rain showers. This was some kind of rain storm. One cloud would go past us, and another one would come. The rain continued on and off all afternoon. So far Crown Point Road was my favorite today. Narrower then Pingree Park Road, no traffic on here what so ever, also a bit bumpy and rocky n some places. We did pass two tents on the side of the road. That’s what I love about Colorado, you can set up a tent almost anywhere for free.



Where we turned around on Crown Point Road



Crown Point Road, Jack's Gulch Campground is located at way point #7

Crown Point Road is about 20 miles long, we only got to about 1/3 of it when the snow appeared on the side of the road. With the rain and the higher elevation here, it was actually cold. We decided to turn back around and head back to the campsite. What a fun day, and I only rode about 85 miles.



Todays route 85 mile route

First Overnight Ride on the XT225 with Camping

I was looking for something else on the web when I found a website with a list of the best campsites in Colorado. It seems like the best campsites were way off the beaten path. Immediately the little wheels in my head started to spin. I have a dual-sport motorcycle. How fun would it be to pack up all my camping gear and ride out to one of those amazing campgrounds via amazing dirt roads, and also do some hiking while I‘m there.

The one campground that I’ve come across a few times that is highly recommended is located some 400 miles from here in the Elk Mountain Range, on a very long dirt road, far away from everything. Before I could head out there on my bike, I‘d have to see if I could even carry all my camping gear on my little XT225. Having enough gas to get to the remote areas is always an issue when riding the XT, the tank is very small on the bike, only 2.1 gallon.

I was already kind of thinking of getting on my ST3 and taking an overnight ride somewhere to camp and hike, the weather was supposed to be nice for the next two days. But I thought it would also be nice to take the XT somewhere, and a two day ride on the XT was definitely cheaper, then a two day ride on the ST3.

I found a campground not to far away from Fort Collins, which was surrounded by many dirt roads and many hiking trails. Jack’s Gulch Campground seemed like the perfect location to test out my dual-sport touring and camping capabilities.

I started to plan my departure for the following day, I was totally prepared to ride and camp alone since it was a week day and everyone was working.

Today was Wednesday, and the local Fort Collins ADV Rider beer night. I had to inform my buddies that I couldn’t make it out there tonight. Instead I was heading out to REI to attend a clinic on climbing Colorado 14ers.

Then I remembered that one of my beer night buddies is also unemployed, rides a dual sport, and likes to camp and hike. Thinking it was too short of a notice, since I was planning on leaving tomorrow, I sent a message out anyway. You just never know. By the time I got home from REI, I had a reply and Al was in for the ride, the camping and some hiking as well.

I have done a multi-day ride on the XT, but stayed in motels. And I have camped with the XT many times, but I didn’t ride the bike there, it was towed to the campsite. This would be the first time I was going to be riding my XT with all my camping gear.



From my 2006 SW Texas trip: Fieldsheer tailbag (too bad I left the gas can in IL in storage, I think I could really use that can for this trip)



The FS tailbag looks huge on the little XT, but the Nelson-Rigg saddle bags have more packing space and sit lower on the bike, which is nice since it doesn't make the bike as top heavy



From my 3 day ride around Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee in 2007, lots of gas stations in the east, I didn't need the gas can

I needed more luggage space for this ride. Jack’s Gulch was located at 8,100 feet in elevation, I would need all my cold camping gear. In the past I used my Fieldsheer tailbag on the XT, but the tailbag wouldn’t hold all the stuff I needed to take for camping. I tried on my Nelson-Rigg saddle bags that I use on the 954RR, and they fit fine on the XT. The only concern I had was the right saddle bag had vinyl backing and the vinyl was resting on the exhaust, although the exhaust can had a heat shield. Would it stay cool enough not melt a hole in my saddle bag?



The XT225 ready for it's first overnight ride with camping using the Nelson-Rigg saddlebags


Packing list:

Camping Gear:
Sierra Design Light Year 1 person tent & footprint
+15 degree REI down sleeping bag
Sleeping bag liner
Inflatable camping pillow
Big Agnes insulated inflatable sleeping pad
Camping head lamp

Clothes & MC gear:
Dirt riding gear
Helmet
Gloves
DS Boots
Hiking boots
Light waterproof jacket shell
Fleece shirt
Down jacket
Fleece thermal pants
Fleece hat and gloves
Down camping booties

Food:
2L water
I can Red Bull
2 packets of tuna
Crackers
1 piece French bread
2 apples
Trail mix
2 banana muffins

Misc:
Camelbak daypack
Bowl and spoon/fork/knife
Sunscreen
Lip balms
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Hand sanitizer
Zip-ties
Bicycle cable and pad lock
Matches