After a lifetime of being out of the loop, and often not even knowing where the loop is, today is loop day.

We are riding from Gunnison to Gunnison. Call it a Gunny Sack loop. Two hundred sixty-seven miles.

The loop begins by riding west on US-50 out of Gunnison for 10 miles, then turning south at the Blue Mesa Reservoir on CO-149, a twisty route through the San Juan Mountains.

The San Juan Mountains are Colorado’s largest mountain range. Major towns, every one an old mining camp, include Creede, Lake City, Silverton, Ouray and Telluride – all of which we will visit on this trip. The highest point in the San Juan Mountains is Uncompahgre Peak, at 14,309 feet.

The San Juan Mountains have the distinction of having the highest U.S. airport with scheduled airline service – Telluride Airport, at an elevation of 9,070 feet. You can fly to Telluride on United, Frontier, or Great Lakes Airlines. Or, in your own Gulfstream V, aka G5, if that’s how you roll.

The San Juan and Uncompahgre National Forests cover a large portion of the San Juan Mountains.

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Visiting old ghost towns in the San Juan Mountains is a popular tourist activity.

In search of ghost towns, we follow CO-149 for 86 miles, passing by Lake City, the Hinsdale County Museum and Lake San Cristobal, a high mountain lake that sits at 9,003 feet.

The road is spectacular, but it’s drizzling and much colder than we expected. So we stop in Lake City to warm up, dry out, and get something hot to drink.

A local auto repair shop recommends Mean Jean’s, a cozy little place that is Lake City’s version of a Starbucks — but even better. Mean Jean’s offers free wi-fi, and makes me a mean cuppa hot chocolate. The barista adds whipped cream, and soon I’m warm again, ready to ride to our highest elevation on our trip so far.

Lake San Cristobal is the second largest natural lake in Colorado. San Cristobal means Saint Christopher, in Spanish. Saint Christopher is a patron saint of travelers. We need all the help we can get. We dressed for 60-degree weather, and it’s in the low 40s. Brrrrr!

From Lake City, the road climbs quickly and steeply. In 10 miles, we ride over Slumgallion Pass — at 11,530 feet, a new high for our ride. The north side of Slumgallion Pass has the steepest grade (9%) of any continuously paved road in Colorado.

The weather clears — a little — and soon we cross the Continental Divide at 10,901-foot Spring Creek Pass.

Near the Rio Grande River, we turn north, staying on CO-149. The Rio Grande flows from southwestern Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico, along the way forming part of the Mexico-U.S. border.

We follow the Rio Grande on CO-149, passing through Creede, a historic old mining town in appropriately named Mineral County. Creede’s motto: “There is no night in Creede!”

Creede, elevation 8,800 feet, has been featured in a number of Hollywood films, including:

• The Shootist in 1976 with John Wayne, about a dying gunfighter who spends his last days looking for a way to die with the least pain and the most dignity.
• The final scene in the 2007 drama, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, takes place in a saloon in Creede, where outlaw Robert Ford (played by Casey Affleck) is gunned down by Edward O’Kelley. The scene was shot on a set in Edmonton, Alberta, that recreated much of 19^th century Creede. Earlier in the film, Ford had killed Jesse James, played by Brad Pitt.
• Scenes from the 2013 western, Lone Ranger, starring Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp, were filmed in and around Creede.

We snap a few photos in Creede, then continue our ride along the Rio Grande. In the town of South Fork, we turn east on US-160. Here in South Fork, the Griswold family spends the night at a campground as part of the 1983 Harold Ramis movie, National Lampoon’s Vacation. The movie starred Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, and is considered to be one of the 50 greatest comedy films of all time. Number one on many lists: Airplane (“What’s your vector, Victor?”).

After 15 miles on US-160, we roll into Del Norte, named after the river Rio Grande del Norte – “Grand River of the North.” Del Norte, elevation 7,884, is a good place to stop for gas, and a snack at the Three Barrel Brewing Company.

It’s a sleepy little town, home to Patriot Bible University, an independent Baptist correspondence school. The unaccredited school issues religious degrees only, and has been criticized as a “degree mill,” with low graduation requirements and high graduation rates. You can prepay for a degree ($1,899) and walk away with a Doctor of Ministry in a matter of months.

In Del Norte, we skip Bible study, instead gassing up and stopping at Boogie’s Restaurant. Ray has his usual hamburger, and calls this one the best burger he’s has in a long while. For desert, Ray has cherry pie, which he devours.

Boogies, like much of Colorado culture, has Denver Broncos paraphernalia throughout the restaurant. The Broncos may have sucked in this year’s Super Bowl, but they rock the house at Boogies.

We turn north on US-285, not far from Monte Vista. With 4,500 residents, it’s the most populous city in Rio Grande County. Unusual for a Rocky Mountain ride, the road is a straight line for 25 miles. No turns, not even a bend in the road.

At the junction of CO-114, we veer west for 62 miles, and enjoy some mountain curves for a change. In the distance, we see Razor Creek Dome (11,530 feet) and Sawtooth Mountain (12,304 feet).

Well, we would see them if the skies hadn’t dramatically darkened and dropped buckets of rain on us for much of the ride back to Gunnison. It is cold, windy, wet and not as much fun as it should be. Good thing we thought to bring our rain suits — and wear them.

At US-50, we turn west and ride the remaining eight miles to Gunnison, which completes our loop.

We arrive cold and wet — and very glad to be parking the bikes for the night.

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Day Nine Summary: Living the high life, flying your G5, looking for ghost towns, no night in Creede.

To view today’s route from Gunnison to Gunnison, click here.

What will tomorrow bring?