141.47 Miles | 3:25 Riding Time

Today is Wednesday, May 8, 2024, and it’s Day 28 of my cross country motorcycle trip.

Finally, the winds died down to a reasonable level, and the ride to Pagosa Springs was really nice. Started off going over Poncha Pass (9,010 ft) and into the San Luis Valley, just west of the Sangre de Cristo Range. It’s one of the lowest passes in Colorado, and was very pretty.

In the valley, the road was flat and pretty straight, and lots and lots of cows. Turned onto State Highway 112 to Del Norte, then onto 160 South through South Fork and over the Wolf Creek Pass (10,857). That was a nice little adventure.

The pass is well-paved, and well-marked, except near the summit, where the lines on a road are a little hard to see. It wasn’t hard to just stay right, but it was hard to tell how many lanes there were in each direction.

I got to Pagosa Springs around 1:00 pm, visited the visitor center, and started looking for a place to stay. There are several hotels that have access to the hot springs. I thought that would be fun, but the hotels were super expensive—like $300-$400 a night for a small motel room. I didn’t think the springs would be worth it. Plus, I’m splurging for a nice hotel in downtown Durango.

So, I stayed at the Riverwalk Inn, which was perfect for what I wanted. I walked into town and wandered around a little, then walked back for dinner at Riff Raff Brewing Company, where the bartender recommended the jalepeño, cream cheese and bacon burger pictured above—highly recommend.

The Route