Day 307
Hoosier Pass
Tom was up early to catch the frost and early sunlight on the eclectic mix of items Bill had on display. Then we wished the other Tom a great journey and headed for the hills. The altitude was definitely making breathing harder but the climbs weren’t too hard and the views inspired us to keep on going. After 45 miles we came to Fairplay, an old gold mining town. So called by prospectors who were turned away at gun point from other areas. It was like arriving in a wild west town. Tom had recommended we stay in the local B&B, the Hand Hotel. Reputed to be haunted, it was a fantastic building. We chatted with other guests after our best breakfast in the States so far, Sandra Maddux- Creech was there on a writing retreat, which explained why so many other guests were glued to their laptops. Another lady was there to escape modern life and find peace in the family cabin in the remote hills. With no services it was a bit too chilly to overnight in. She kindly gave Tom and I a tin of wine and beer to celebrate our successful climb of Hoosier Pass!
So off we went. We had a wide cycle path to ride on, up we went to the small wild west town of Alma. We pedalled straight through though as we were keen to get the climb up Hoosier Pass done. At 4 miles long, up to a height of 11,542 feet, it was long slow climb. Both of us struggled to get a deep breath but finally we reached the top. Deep snow covered the area, we got a few cheers, forgot to drink our celebration wine and beer, and headed downhill to the ski town of Breckenridge. Up to 12” of snow were forecast overnight and fortunately we had already booked ourselves a base for a few days to relax. The snow arrived as promised so it’s feet up after the blog is written, films edited and bikes serviced! Phew!
