Denver...

[strollingbones]

i think i am blowing off the cave of the winds...

 

[strollingbones]

Canon Shooter update please..how was train...we have reservations for that

 

[Canon Shooter]

Canon Shooter update please..how was train...we have reservations for that

I would probably not do the train again.

Make sure you buy water before arriving at the train depot. The only water they were selling yesterday was reusable Cog Railway water bottles at a cost of $35. Fuck that. Water's a bit more affordable at the summit snack bar at $3.50 a bottle.

The seats on the train are narrow; three seats on one side and two on the other. My right ass cheek had the seat edge digging into it the whole time. Also, forget about hearing the conductor's narration. It's too noisy and the train sound system is just too anemic.

I guess my biggest beef with it all is that the train is a hour and ten minutes each way, and you only have about 40 minutes to explore the summit. You can use up that amount of time just going through the line in the cafe and going to take a leak.

Lastly, be aware of the symptoms of altitude sickness. I got a headache, was a little and disoriented for a little while.

Oh, and take a jacket. It was fuckin' cold...

 

[strollingbones]

oo o that is the pikes peak train...sorry i am taking the durango to silverton train..i know pikes peak if cold..how did you deal with lack of oxygen? Canon Shooter

 

[strollingbones]

did you really say a bottle of water was 35 dollars Canon Shooter

 

[ABikerSailor]

oo o that is the pikes peak train...sorry i am taking the durango to silverton train..i know pikes peak if cold..how did you deal with lack of oxygen? Canon Shooter

At the minimum, bring a sweatshirt, hoodie or light jacket as the trains can get chilly (even in the late summer) going through the mountains since the cars are open with no windows. If the weather looks like there is a chance of rain, bring a poncho. As far as altitude sickness? You shouldn't have much of a problem as the train ride is a lot lower than Pike's Peak. I know that when I rode to Silverton, didn't have any problems at all, and I was coming up from Amarillo which was at a lower elevation.

 

[ABikerSailor]

did you really say a bottle of water was 35 dollars Canon Shooter

The prices on Pikes Peak for ANYTHING are outrageous, as they are the only game in town.

The stuff in the town of Silverton, while it IS a tourist spot and the prices reflect that, it's not too bad of a price gouge.

 

[Canon Shooter]

oo o that is the pikes peak train...sorry i am taking the durango to silverton train..i know pikes peak if cold..how did you deal with lack of oxygen? Canon Shooter

The train we took was the Cog Railway.

I definitely felt the effects of altitude sickness; Dizziness, mild disorientation. It was weird...

 

[Canon Shooter]

did you really say a bottle of water was 35 dollars Canon Shooter

That's a fact.

The bottles were aluminum reusable bottles with graphics and such of Pike's Peak and the Cog Railway. Hell, I dunno', maybe a water bottle like that is actually worth that. But when all you're looking to do is grab a couple of bottles of water for, maybe, four bucks a pop, it came as quite a shock...

 

[Canon Shooter]

The prices on Pikes Peak for ANYTHING are outrageous, as they are the only game in town.

The stuff in the town of Silverton, while it IS a tourist spot and the prices reflect that, it's not too bad of a price gouge.

I always buy two things when I travel: pins and refrigerator magnets. I bought two magnets at Garden of The Gods for $7 a piece. A magnet at the Pike's Peak Visitor Center was $16 (I didn't buy it)...

 

[themirrorthief]

I always buy two things when I travel: pins and refrigerator magnets. I bought two magnets at Garden of The Gods for $7 a piece. A magnet at the Pike's Peak Visitor Center was $16 (I didn't buy it)...

I have lived in colorado...very scenic but it gets damned cold there and snows like crazy

 

[Canon Shooter]

i think i am blowing off the cave of the winds...

I wouldn't blame you. My smokin' hot Puerto Rican girlfriend wanted to go, though, so we went.

Don't get me wrong, it was cool and all, but it really does look a Helluva' lot like every other cave system you've ever seen...

 

[strollingbones]

why are there no pics? you know when i go..there will be pics..lots of pics...i am like an asian tourist

 

[Canon Shooter]

why are there no pics? you know when i go..there will be pics..lots of pics...i am like an asian tourist

LOL! I'm workin' on it, Bro!

We got home at 1:30am! Cut a brutha' some slack!!

 

[ABikerSailor]

I always buy two things when I travel: pins and refrigerator magnets. I bought two magnets at Garden of The Gods for $7 a piece. A magnet at the Pike's Peak Visitor Center was $16 (I didn't buy it)...

Back in 2002 they were charging 12 bucks for a small round patch with a motorcycle on it that said "I rode the peak" with the elevation on it. Was a mediocre patch at best, only 3 colors (white, black and an orange background), and would have passed on it, but damn it, I rode my Harley (with an S and S carb) all the way to the top and it didn't sputter once! My friend Dano who had fuel injection on his bike kept staring at me with a funny look on his face all the way up. When we got to the top, I asked him why all the strange stares up the mountain, and he said that I must have done some serious magic to my scooter, as carb engines AREN'T supposed to run as smooth as mine did at elevations like that. Yeah, I tuned my bike myself for that ride.

 

[Canon Shooter]

Back in 2002 they were charging 12 bucks for a small round patch with a motorcycle on it that said "I rode the peak" with the elevation on it. Was a mediocre patch at best, only 3 colors (white, black and an orange background), and would have passed on it, but damn it, I rode my Harley (with an S and S carb) all the way to the top and it didn't sputter once! My friend Dano who had fuel injection on his bike kept staring at me with a funny look on his face all the way up. When we got to the top, I asked him why all the strange stares up the mountain, and he said that I must have done some serious magic to my scooter, as carb engines AREN'T supposed to run as smooth as mine did at elevations like that. Yeah, I tuned my bike myself for that ride.

I would love to take the Harley up there. I spoke with a number of folks who'd ridden to the top and they loved it...

 

[ABikerSailor]

I would love to take the Harley up there. I spoke with a number of folks who'd ridden to the top and they loved it...

The ride now would probably be a lot better now than when I did it. When I rode to the top, it was gravel road from the visitor's center at the bottom all the way to the top. Gravel road was a bit sketchy in some of the switchback areas, but now that it's paved all the way up, I'm pretty sure the ride would be a lot of fun. But, remember...............if you've got fuel injection, nothing to worry about as you've got a computer that will control your fuel/air mix, but if you're running a carb, you might experience some hiccups along the way, as it is at over 14 thousand feet at the top.