Starting out from the Copper ski resort heading up towards Fremont pass. It was 33 degrees, so it was a good thing I had a 1,600′ foot climb in front of me.

Incredible views the whole way!

Still frozen over about 11,000 ft in June!

The Climax Mine. On the one hand I can’t believe that anyone would rip open a beautiful mountain like this. On the other hand, I have cars made of chrome/molly steel. It had to come from somewhere.

Right next to it is still super pretty though…

And 1 (of 3) passes down for the day.

A long descent down to Leadville.

The one flat(ish) part of the ride. Of course it had a headwind. And you are still near 10,000 feet high!

2 (of 3) passes down. Of course the 3rd pass is far and away the biggest.

The character of every side of every pass is different. On the way down from Tennessee Pass.

The town of Red Cliff – just off the main road. This marks another “small” climb that doesn’t count as 1 of the 3 passes.

Minturn Colorado. Getting close to the low point (in elevation) of the day.

The snow melt is running full steam this time of year.

The low point of the ride. Both literally of figuratively. All of a sudden you are back in the land of people and traffic.

Vail!

The GoPro mountain games were going on, so Vail was super busy. Can you believe they had competitive fly fishing! I guess you can make a competitive sport out of anything,

Still right next to I70, but you’d never know it. The bike paths in Colorado are truly amazing, Tax dollars well spent.

Vail Pass in the books. No more climbing, just a beautiful descent down the bike path back to Copper.