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OK, this is now months after the fact but I've been meaning to finish off the blog entries from NYC to SF for a while now. The ride from the Grand Canyon was memorable for one reason, it was hot, really hot. Of course I was fully expecting it to be hot and I was mentally prepared for it but when the heat actually came on it was still quite a shock.

So I got I bit slack about updating my blog at the end of July. Keeping the updates going on the road is hard because by the end of the day you're physically and mentally exhausted.

The ride out of Ouray to Grand Canyon was yet another gem. The road from Ouray to Durango consists of never ending switchbacks - seriously I was riding for hours on these beautiful banked lefts and rights up and over the mountains - it was the first time I really saw many sportsbikes.

If you ever have a chance to pass through he Rocky Mountain region in the summer you must make time to visit Ouray. Ouray, known as the Switzerland of America, is nestled between two large mountains and fun twisty roads that lead in and out of the area which alone would be enough reason to pass through but on top of this there's great food, good bars and loads of outdoor activity stuff to do, but I digress...

Umm, I got stuck here a few days...

• I thought the passage through the Rocky Mountains National Park and Independence Pass were both quite amazing but they were only preparation for what I was to see across Engineer Pass and since I got lost along the way, the Corkscrew Pass and everything in-between.
• The dirt roads are sign posted as suitable for 4x4 vehicles only and certainly the roads were the most extreme I'd traveled thus far.
  

• Crossed up over Independence Pass from Aspen which is again another beautiful pass all on sealed roads.
• Stopped in Gunnison for some minor work on the bike at Gunnison Motorsports. The team there where extremely helpful and accommodating and where happy to help me out even though I'd just dropped in on them without any notice. They also insisted I went over Engineer Pass to Ouray which as turned out to be the best advice I've received on the whole trip thus far.
  

• Got up early on Saturday to find a motorcycle repair shop to deal with my rear tyre before things closed early on Saturday. I was lucky enough to find Hi Point Motorsports who really helped me out a lot given I just dropped in on them at the last moment on a Saturday without a booking. They immediately understood my need and without even asking they squeezed me into their schedule to get me back out on the road again. Kudos goes to Hi Point.
  

• 321 miles and at least 100 miles of that was on dirt roads varying from well maintained to roads with one foot deep ruts.
• Got up at 5:30am to go over (and back) the Rocky Mountain National Park again without traffic. It really is an amazing park with the kind of spectacular views you'd expect at ~12,000 ft. I was one of the first people up on the mountain and the wildlife was out playing on the roads without looking both ways before crossing. Got a few good photos of the elk and other things with antlers attached to their heads.
  

• I knew I was in for some incredible roads when I pulled into the fuel station and noticed 100 Octane rated fuel for sale, mind you it was more than double the price of normal fuel but it was there as if to say, "You're going to want this for the road ahead..."
• I had to take cover for 20 minutes from a thunderstorm with brilliant lightning strikes and heavy rain that appeared as quickly as it disappeared.