I'm planning a motorcycle trip to CO and was thinking Aurora might be a decent location to HQ and take day rides. Foothills BMW sponsors a ride in August that visits several passes in one day so for that reason and a quick googlemaps route recon I think I can plan 5 days of riding and not see the same roads twice. I also think I'd like to ride down to Colorado Springs and checkout Pikes Peak.

I'm planning my trip for about 10 days and leaving after July 4th to avoid holiday traffic and tourists. The plan is to throw my bike in the bed of my truck and drive to CO in 2 days.

If you're familiar with interesting roads and scenery around Aurora please chime in. I'm looking for paved roads only, no off road stuff mainly because I have no off road riding experience and I'll be riding solo. I'd like to take day rides of 150-300 miles per day. I'd also like to hear from anyone who has ridden Pikes Peak and if it's worth the ride from Aurora to check it out. I'll probably ride my GS because I can carry extra gear in the panniers and top case but I'm also tempted to take my ZX14R.

All opinions are welcome

Aurora? Bring guns and friends with guns. That's the bad part of town.
Also, the Denver metro area which is about a 40 mile diameter bubble is just about as populated and congested as LA. Not sure that would be my ideal area to safely travel on a motorbike.
I don't ride here anymore but I'd look somewhere far from Denver.

Why Aurora? Aurora is a megasuburb right in the middle of traffic and nothing. There is too much traffic and no good roads.
I would look at Lakewood, a city right next to the foothills and the mountains, or pretty much anywhere in Colorado Springs. In the Springs you are centrally located to hit good roads to the north south and west.
I would avoid Aurora at all costs.

There's not much to see on the east side of Denver. You're better off on the South or Western sides.

Lakewood, Englewood, Wheatridge... Easy access to I70 and I25.

Pikes Peak is definitely worth it. Taking I70 all the way to grand junction is nice( minus the traffic).
Taking HWY 50, south of Colorado Springs, west all the way to Montrose. Then south to Ouray and it will blow your mind. Google Million Dollar Highway. Again, stay away from aurora.

HWY 24 From Colorado SPrings to Buena Vista is fun as well.

Don't stay in A-Town. Are you staying in a motel? Look for something in the SW corner, Ken Caryl (Littleton) area, say near C-470 & Ken Caryl Blvd, or up in Golden.

I live in Conifer, which is in the foothills in the SW corner (off of Hwy 285). My email is in my profile. Shoot me an email and we can talk on the phone if you'd like. I've had motorcycles for most of my life, but sold my last one a few years ago.

I could give you a nice day trip in the SW area (Deer Creek canyon, Deckers, Buffalo Creek)

I'd suggest Loveland or Fort Collins. They are both far north of Denver, are in a more rural and less populated part of CO, and are 10 minutes from awesome canyon roads up into the Rockies.

My dad lives in Woodland Park, CO which is a little past Pike's Peak from Colorado Springs. one nice drive is up 67 from Woodland Park which eventually leads back to south of Denver area.

Out 24 west from Woodland Park, you eventually will hit Lake George. There, Tarryall Rd takes you through really pretty country to where you hit 285. Then you can take 285 back into the Denver area.

On Tarryall Rd, I saw a golden eagle and a bald eagle within 30 minutes of each other. There is a small reservoir on Terryall Rd with a waterfall.

Also, another drive is Mt Evans, which is the highest paved road in North America. Also, Estes Park is where you get into Rocky Mountain National Park(maybe closed during shutdown?). The drive through the park is really nice. You enter in Estes Park, follow the highway through the park and then exit at the other entrance.

A little longer drive related to Tarryall Rd or 285 is 9 from Fair Play up through Breckinridge to Frisco/Silverthorne area then back 70 to Denver area.

This is all just the tip of the bucket. Yes, the Million Dollar drive is pretty, but a little far for day trips from Denver area.

quote:

Originally posted by Ryanp225:
Aurora? Bring guns and friends with guns. That's the bad part of town.
Also, the Denver metro area which is about a 40 mile diameter bubble is just about as populated and congested as LA. Not sure that would be my ideal area to safely travel on a motorbike.
I don't ride here anymore but I'd look somewhere far from Denver.

I picked Aurora because I can stay at Buckley AFB and Buckley AFB is only 25 miles or so east of Lakewood. I can also stay at Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs but my number one priority is to be within close proximity to good roads. I don't want to have to ride an hour or more from where I'm lodging to get to good roads if that's possible and I'd like to stay on a military installation because it's cheaper and safer.

I’d sure advise Colorado Springs over Denver.

quote:

Originally posted by calugo:

quote:

Originally posted by Ryanp225:
Aurora? Bring guns and friends with guns. That's the bad part of town.
Also, the Denver metro area which is about a 40 mile diameter bubble is just about as populated and congested as LA. Not sure that would be my ideal area to safely travel on a motorbike.
I don't ride here anymore but I'd look somewhere far from Denver.

I picked Aurora because I can stay at Buckley AFB and Buckley AFB is only 25 miles or so east of Lakewood. I can also stay at Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs but my number one priority is to be within close proximity to good roads. I don't want to have to ride an hour or more from where I'm lodging to get to good roads if that's possible and I'd like to stay on a military installation because it's cheaper and safer.

25 miles through Aurora will be miserable. Stay at Pete Field. Less Traffic, closer to good riding and All around better. Buckley is on the far east side with flat boring roads and tons of traffic.

HOw about Fort Carson? Can you stay there? It's on the south side of the Springs and infinitely closer to better riding.

In 2012 I did an auto trip that included areas in Colorado. I spent several nights in Avon, west of Denver, and drove one day down US-24, which was a very nice, scenic road. I wasn't able to go all the way because there were fires in the area. https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631018571878/

The next day I went down to Leadville--US-24 goes there but because of the road closure I had to use CO-91. Leadville is an interesting town and there's a nice little train ride available as well as a good mining museum. https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631070925666/ and https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631039816880/

US-50 west out of Colorado Springs has some nice scenery. https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631554645812/

If you want a longer ride, US-50 farther west junctions with US-550 which heads south to Telluride. https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631545442569/

If you like airplanes, there is a nice Air Museum in Pueblo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157632945196284/ and of course there's the Air and Space Museum at Peterson Field https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157630998438104/

flashguy

Stay at Pete AFB if you can.

Good access to where ever you want to go, Pikes Peak for instance. Traffic in Aurora/Denver is a bitch!

quote:

Originally posted by jeffxjet:

quote:

Originally posted by calugo:

quote:

Originally posted by Ryanp225:
Aurora? Bring guns and friends with guns. That's the bad part of town.
Also, the Denver metro area which is about a 40 mile diameter bubble is just about as populated and congested as LA. Not sure that would be my ideal area to safely travel on a motorbike.
I don't ride here anymore but I'd look somewhere far from Denver.

I picked Aurora because I can stay at Buckley AFB and Buckley AFB is only 25 miles or so east of Lakewood. I can also stay at Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs but my number one priority is to be within close proximity to good roads. I don't want to have to ride an hour or more from where I'm lodging to get to good roads if that's possible and I'd like to stay on a military installation because it's cheaper and safer.

25 miles through Aurora will be miserable. Stay at Pete Field. Less Traffic, closer to good riding and All around better. Buckley is on the far east side with flat boring roads and tons of traffic.

I can stay on any military installation, If Peterson AFB is closer to good riding areas and safer then I will stay at Peterson. I can stay at FT Carson also but the rooms on Army bases can be considerably more expensive than rooms on AF bases but both are cheaper and safer than civilian hotels.

^^^^^ Will they allow you to park your bike inside?

flashguy

There are tons of great day rides from the Denver metro area. I avoid the interstates at all costs. A couple of my favorites are going from Denver to Woodland Park, the reverse route already mentioned. 285 to highway 9 into Breckinridge for lunch is a mandatory summer ride for me. I frequently take a long weekend to continue that route to Steamboat Springs along the Blue River.

A short hop is over Guanella Pass to Georgetown. Since it was paved a few years ago it’s really nice. Highway 6 to 93 to 72 in to Nederland then Estes Park is another favorite though it can get crowded on weekends (lunch at the Wapiti Restaurant), never had problems after the holidays during weekdays.

I’m on a ‘13 Road King so definitely only paved roads for me lol.

My older son’s Army National Guard unit (Aviation) is based at Buckley-it’s a pain in the ass to get through the Denver traffic mess from there fyi. Feel free to reach out if any other info is requested. Also BMW of Denver is on the southeast side of the metro area near I-25 and Arapahoe Rd.

quote:

Originally posted by calugo:
I can stay on any military installation, If Peterson AFB is closer to good riding areas and safer then I will stay at Peterson. I can stay at FT Carson also but the rooms on Army bases can be considerably more expensive than rooms on AF bases but both are cheaper and safer than civilian hotels.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but won't you have to travel without guns in order to drive onto a military base? If so, then you are trading your security while traveling for your security while sleeping. Surely you can find some relatively safe hotels in the area that won't break the bank.

quote:

Originally posted by RichN:

quote:

Originally posted by calugo:
I can stay on any military installation, If Peterson AFB is closer to good riding areas and safer then I will stay at Peterson. I can stay at FT Carson also but the rooms on Army bases can be considerably more expensive than rooms on AF bases but both are cheaper and safer than civilian hotels.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but won't you have to travel without guns in order to drive onto a military base? If so, then you are trading your security while traveling for your security while sleeping. Surely you can find some relatively safe hotels in the area that won't break the bank.

Generally firearms are prohibited but I could probably bring a firearm on base but it's more trouble than it's worth. While I'd prefer to be armed I only travel/ride during the day so the risk of something bad happening is reduced. Theres more than safety to consider with the decision to stay on base.

Military installations are self contained cities so once on base everything I need to live is on the installation to include a shopping center, gas station, supermarket, gym, bank, eateries and lodging cost per night can be considerably cheaper. I paid 60 bucks a night, 420 bucks for 7 days at Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson, AZ. Lodging off base was 100-150 a night which would have been significantly more expensive and made my trip unaffordable.

For me the trade off of not carrying a firearm in order to take advantage of the benefits of staying on base is a worthwhile trade.