A different kind of canyon country

I've been meaning to post some photos of a beautiful and relaxing quick trip taken last weekend. The time to actually do this has been illusive, but today I had a bit of a revelation after returning from an exhausting ride well before dark. Late November generally signals the return to some form of a structured training regiment for me, and with no big races (i.e., Tour Divide big) on the horizon for next summer, that means training is going to include more short, hard efforts. That means I don't need to be on the bike all day every weekend. Huh.

Anyway, last weekend Caroline and I headed to the rather unknown canyon country of southeastern Colorado. It's been on my list of areas to visit for a while now, and fall seemed like a perfect time to go. Here's a bit of what it looked like...

Apatosaur tracks!

Not bad. Most of the canyons are near La Junta. The dino tracks are in Picketwire Canyon, and there are some other trails in that area and plenty of scenic dirt road riding in remote country to be had. The last few photos are from Pueblo Reservoir State Park. The trail network there is a gem. Check it out...you'll be glad you did.