I made my way down to Durango and grabbed some lunch at Zia Taqueria, hard to not stop there!! This would be the last night of the roadtrip and I was staying with some friends, Audrey & Jack, who have graciously hosted me on a few other bike trips.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivFiGPukMGvFaiW1kPbNiZqT1XkWRoUjt6VYflH0bsTaOb0iQDZa_UyaW4hebylh0u2K8p2iqaYv8im40yt1zK5hWI23Zx7Jp4ArWjEFBy7gD7ppj7_3GYfNclhRXCm7lWgatE6kJzwuGm/w400-h225/PXL_20210626_195307012.jpg) |
Welcoming crew at the house. |
I settled in while they went up to the Purgatory bike park for the afternoon. I reached out to another friend, Liz, who was getting ready for her Colorado Trail Race in a couple of weeks. She was free to meet up for a beer in a couple hours, so I looked at Trailforks for a nearby ride to fill the time.
There were a mix of trails right in town, looping up and around Fort Lewis College. That'll work.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhML5x7SRoAvBIsydpSgQGxwCeDK9dKz1azux4lWyGnqAHli1deuWUx11xhAkVGexUbUAKxDB0qCE_Ieac2JZ0JydKvX3r8S4ZJIjJh1bmXh2jSmdfQHV9a3SKDFKtFO8hYl8xrNusBSmzC/w400-h225/PXL_20210626_210103757.jpg) |
The River trail was a bit thick, my squealing brakes kept me safe around the blind curves!! Ha! The Animas River can barely be seen on the right. |
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I located the beginning of Lions Den trail and began climbing. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiElotdiU8xN6q9XrBHZe2sfKU_hqZhHhoCFoKwp-UUaCYFYI_Lo2De8outm5h2jQEKsDDoQsETyK9HZi3b1rRVlUZFqV-v5RGrfwNoKmORxEI-InzmX0dYnFMbdT65mC_dkeN8WITEm97a/w400-h225/PXL_20210626_211815918.jpg) |
It was a nice grade, the distant San Juan Mtns. and brewing storms all around. |
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Looking mighty dark back towards Silverton. |
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Fun trail gaining the rim. |
I was a bit ambitious and missed a couple of turns up on the rim: bonus miles!! That's what happens when I don't follow a track, but it's all good and didn't take but a minute to figure it out.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ZlKj5Kesm_Qr9FVlAplUI2QBbNDRVpYoZW_JIjFKzVPR1NaUdyH5cGV2khuz0RYIWZViiIErM4pMJ_cUHL5DRBVUXmnEBZbiXxiumxyDuwMR9rMUJgYJ9FW5yxwbmpkosAiUc8H8ZDOP/w400-h225/PXL_20210626_213357916.jpg) |
Up near the college the singletrack continued in a more urban setting. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbzBwJtaRuRCqANqOlngNhqZ2xWL7LV3IVhpuGAqEny4qKPdkifdAk_nJ6cGg6EUnlbYsJUo9QhyFi929gNqX-SCZ6VNEmoqleAd6KSMyRKjQCR-A8Wzxe-GJ7o_1JsMYe9Fxnugbnrcn4/w400-h225/PXL_20210626_213718465.jpg) |
Tucked between roads and campus, it weaved in & out of the trees. There were a few play areas with jumps, etc. as well. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3wCZk-SSMJg5N5xMe9I8xptrycVszPiFI35ZeSCViYm_sJcric4Nzqk-MXVPX3mRA2g2XhRzJX8NCpWOaqNlAl-OWOlewbHRiV2sO_g3a4y97oRyy_VBUtxUK8T8axmzOYNfziS2CtwXn/w400-h211/PXL_20210626_214411559.jpg) |
Fort Lewis College has a solid cycling team too. |
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Checking the time, I circled around the rim ready to descend back to town. |
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Ruh-roh! Re-calculating.... I had planned to take a much shorter path down, but had to divert back to Lions Den. |
I had to get my phone out a few times to find the quickest way back to the house. Sorry, Liz, didn't mean to keep you waiting!! Eventually I found my way back to the neighborhood streets and quickly drove over to
Animas Brewing Co. to meet Liz for some suds & CTR beta swapping. Had I been smart, I would've simply rode to the brewery as it was practically on my route. :headslap:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9AYkwk_JIpq4VQh_ro5PdN2e2Jk_pcvtJALTQAy38QfY62GR_FAvX-RwZECoSmJ2Wy-LSLz0TBwB_9lxGPkM3zSRV7LnOPRHVYCD31atmcwGLBjGSh6cbZmjszxHdU2nVr8LNdpJ8nGIg/w400-h225/PXL_20210626_221327211.jpg) |
Post-ride greeting too! |
This was a fun route right in town if you have an hour or so to kill. Maybe at the end of a day and you could always finish right in downtown too.