Can You Identify This Western Colorado Location?
Grand Junction business owner Chris Brown went on a bike ride last week, a very long bike ride. This Western Colorado location was one of the stops on his route. Do you know where this is?
I was born and raised in Grand Junction and must admit I didn't recognize the location. Chris Brown posted the photo to his Facebook page, and asked people to chime in with their answers. Oddly, many people recognized it right off the bat.
I've run into Chris Brown many a time during his biking adventures. When this guy goes for a bike ride, he really goes for a bike ride. On numerous occassions I've run into him in Delta, Montrose, and even farther south. In each case, he, and sometimes his family, set out from Grand Junction.
I'll give you a hint. This location, according to Google Maps, is 74.6 miles from Grand Junction. Here's another hint: it's southeast of Grand Junction.
Have you figured it out? I couldn't have. The correct answer is: Highway 133 near Paonia.
According to Wikipedia, Mount Lamborn is a mountain summit in the West Elk Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The 11,402-foot peak is located in Gunnison National Forest, 5.9 miles southeast of the Town of Paonia in Delta County. The summit of Mount Lamborn is the highest point in Delta County.
Think about this for a minute. Even if Chris turned around at this point and headed back to Grand Junction (which he didn't) the total round-trip distance would be 149.2 miles. Can you imagine doing 149.2 miles on a bike in a single day?
According to Chris, this was part of what he calls "The annual Ride around De Mesa Loop. GJ to Paonia, to Glenwood, to GJ."
I believe I'll have to pay a visit to Mt. Lamborn... in my car. In years past I would ride my bike from our old studio on Horizon Drive up to my house on Little Park Road. Until now, I thought this was a huge deal.
A big shout out to Chris Brown and all the other avid cyclists out there. The idea of a 149-mile bike ride is almost incomprehensible.