Bikepacking and Climbing in Colorado: A 4-Day Adventure Through Telluride and Lizard Head

Colorado

Day 1

I am currently under a green spacious two people tent, at 3000m elevation next to the sound of a little river. Felipe had this idea of combining the bike with climbing to one special formation out in San Juan mountain range, Lizards Head. As somebody who loves the multi sports and the best way of approaching is the bike I got hooked up straight away and could find myself packing the bike a few days after arriving to Colorado.

We were sorting our bikes at Dolores bike hostel (thanks Jake for everything). Quite warm even if it is a town at 2000m elevation, this area it’s called the four corners and it’s in the south west of Colorado, and it’s very close to Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. This year they say it’s their driest season ever, and you can feel it on your mouth every time you ride and need to take a zip of water every five seconds.

We set off a little later than expected which was a bit tricky as monsoon season is here and sometimes it can get you off guard. A stretch of road before we turn right into Dunton road and it’s beautiful valley, more chill, less cars and even met a baby bear and a local rider who chatted with us until the paved finished. Seemed that he found the bike for mental health and the simplicity of getting out on the bike and ride is what really made him happy, it was very nice to see how no matter what age you have you can still ride and feel connected to it.

After a little stretch of gravel we can start feeling the first drops, drops followed by a very heavy rain and even a little hail, we shelter ourselves at the porch of a house that looked very much close, until it pretty much stopped. At the end this rolling storms was a bit the theme of the trip but we were lucky overall.

After riding mostly all day between forest of pines and junipers, red, yellow orange mountains on the horizon to a muddy top pass we descended back to the State Highway 145. Lizards trail base, our destination, where we decided to camp for the night eat our dry meals included the astronaut ice cream and have a good altitude sleep.

Day 2

Without connexion or knowledge of the weather we set up our alarm at the same time as always, 6:30am even do is been 2 days we woke up at 6:19am exact. Camp coffee always taste good for some reason. A big bowl of oats continued the brekky before we left our bikes hidden in a tree, our food stacked and sealed on different bags for the bears and Felipe carrying the rope and me the bag with treats and other gear straight into the trail.

The Lizzard’s head trail from this side starts at 3100m elevation, 9am is when we started walking up feeling our heavy breath, trying to be cautious on the snacks and water as up there was nothing at all. From deep forest to open wide black volcanic sand with a view to some stunning colorful mountains on our left, just before the last bit of rocky path up we take our Oreo snack on top of this nice red-ish rock with a stunning view. When you look at the photos the weather is so variant, we got all kind but while hiking up nothing really stopped us. As we take that last snack we started to feel the breeze was colder, and the first drops of rain came through. We decided to stop snacking and keep walking up to the base of the climb.

While walking that last bit of glass stone because it sounds so crazy and slides quite a lot I slip and cut a bit of my right hand, they are sharp I shout, but don’t let it stop me. The rock keeps changing over and over, colors, forms, and we make it to the base of our climbing route.

A bit more of rain making us hide right next to the wall while getting another snack, water and all the gear ready.

Felipe is an amazing climber, originally from Copiapo, Chile but currently living in the USA, he spends most of his time documenting some of the most insane climbs around the world, seeing him recently with Tommy Caldwell and Siebe Vanhee in Patagonia. With his history I was pretty chill he wasn’t taking me into a crazy climb, knowing my spaghetti arms would not hold. I check the conversion grades US to French before leaving and Lizzard’s head was a perfect one for me. We wanted to go minimalistic so we only brought the cycling helmets and approach shoes for the whole trip, so trust your feet is the way to go.

He makes it to the first pitch dry, and I start climbing when it drizzles a bit, after the first one and some loose rocks, he goes on onto the fun and second one, and as soon as I unclip from the belay I start to feel hail on my helmet. Defenetly is my first one rock climbing in the middle of nowhere with hail falling and wetting all the route, felt a bit like a joke, but I don’t stop.

A scramble up of very loose rock into our last pitch and for sure the most fun one, Felipe climbs it in dry conditions and guess what? I get some very intense hail, as he’s at the top of the route, I can’t see him, I feel the rope tight, and I guess I can go, but should I go? My thoughts were that if there was any thunder we should go down as fast as possible. The hail doesn’t need to stop us but being on the top of the top summit is very likely attractive to lightning. I start climbing despiste the situation as no thunder came, only hail hitting my helmet quite hard and making pools of little iceballs in the wall pockets.

We celebrate at the top of the climb, watching the other hidden side of the wall where a full grey storm was passing right next to us, lower clouds where starting to come over and on our left the sun was shining, a true monsoon season and its 4 season weather kind a day. Rappel down, snacks water and off we went back the trail we came from. Packed our bikes and hit the road on a beautiful light towards Telluride. One of the best descends Felipe ever had, he mentions as we enter the bike path towards the town.

We say a pizza bar full of people and we craved for it too as we had a bit low food in case we where running out of it, probably one of the best pizzas in a while we commented together, but I also said, things taste so good when you go backpacking and you have this rewards. As the sunset comes in we rush to the supermarket and try to find a place to sleep, our initial plan has gone completely sideways and we made another to climb more the next day near Telluride. And so we cycle up the rough gravel road towards the hiking path where we would enter the next day to climb and we just camped on a bend flat part next to the road and right at the trail. The night was so calm.

Day 3

We’re in Telluride valley, woke up a bit crooked as most of our body’s could feel the climb and bike and probably also altitude of yesterdays day. The coffee felt good, probably like every day after a tent sleep. Then the usual, oats, pack the tent, snacks and backpack to make our way into another climbing day. This was planed last night as we decided to shorten up the cycling route and instead add another climbing day to this super cool wall next to a waterfall in Telluride. It’s conglomerate rock and I’ve never climbed that before so was really exciting.

We got a bit the directions wrong as we enter the trail path exactly where we where sleeping and maybe that made us a bit confuse so we decided to go off trail and search a non path into bushwhacking and loose rock walking for like 1 hour until we see a path far into our rocks right. And it was a beautiful easy path lol.

We struggle a bit to see where the route started and when we find it we gear up and start climbing, this time we mix between Felipe in front and me, I felt pretty good climbing despite the new rock type. After 3 pitches we came back down and hiked the easy path straight back to our bikes, where just then Felipe found a good friend coming over for some climbing too, lucky he filled up some of our water bottles (thank you) because they said all water streams around have lots of minerals and is not really good for drinking.

I planned a route that continued up, first I thought we were going towards Ophir pass, for sure we wanted to reach Ophir town but maybe I got onto a more direct route. Fooled by the first bit passing a fens (open for hikers and cyclist) that said from here you’re at your own risk, we continue pedaling. It was already 2pm and storms as everyday were starting to approach. Slightly passing by our side and not on top of us meanwhile the thunder was pretty loud far away.

As we make our way up we start to hop off and on the bike and the drizzle rain we realize this was going to be a type 2 fun uphill. And so it was, I even decided to change my shoes into the approach hiking shoes as there was for sure a lot less riding than hiking. And from the pine forest, to some vast bush landscape, to some crazy orange rock we make our time, snacking every now and then, taking some photos, appreciating the landscape and laughing about our insane hike a bike moments.

When we reach the top we thought that was it, all downhill from here, but again fooled by the idea and not the reality we also had to hike some more going down, I tried to ride some sections but the cams, and climbing gear on my Tailfin was making it so heavy I was scared of doing a front flip more than anything. I remember Felipe saying: “date a ultra cyclist they say” and followed by “ I can’t believe you do this for living” I was like “oh yeah this is nothing, I love the type 2 fun, my life is filled by it”.

After some steep parts, hands hurting, and breaks squeaking we made it to Ophir town, even if our goal was further, it was already dark and so we decided to camp at the first spot we see. Crossed the river and found a flat patch of land, perfect for a quick dry meal and straight to bed because we had one more long day ahead!

Day 4

Without thinking about the tomorrow we woke up on this field, the sun rises behind the red mountains of Ophir pass until it give us some shine. This women and her dogswho owned the land came to us and ask if we wanted to stay longer, so cute. We packed our bikes and went down the road, soon we realize that there was another wall Felipe wanted to climb, so we stopped to check I out. I counted the amount of food we had left already having a very slim brekky we realize there was only a couple gummy’s, some trail mix and maybe a bar left and not much water, even if we starved we throw some dice we travel all around and never played yatzsi, and the one who got the higher number choose what to do, climb or continue.

I got a 5 and Felipe a 2, and it came on me the athlete side and thought that we should not deprive ourselves, and less in altitude, and less when im 2 weeks from another race… So I call it off and we start pedaling straight to the junction road we where coming down a few days ago and that headed back up the Lizzards head pass where all flowers where showing the best side of them, so I go ahead with some power to document this beautiful moment. Our mission, Rico’s town burger or coffee or anything that said food and so we pedal and pedal enjoying bit by bit the increase of degrees and the dry air of the desert filling up the valley.

Spent probably one hour filling up our belly with all kind of savory and sweets, together with coffee and milk chocolate shake, even do was all downhill from here, we did enjoy that resting supply moment. Oh and we both lost and broke our sunglasses so we treat ourselves with some gas station delight sunnies.

The trip is over, but I feel is just the start of more. I love combining the bike with this other sports, it takes you where you want and how you want, it makes you meet people you will never meet unless it was on the bike, to interact with others, to see nature at its finest, it makes pleasure and suffering, highs and lows, but is all thanks to your own power and at the end of the day you look back and realize how beautiful is this way of traveling.