I'm interested in riding the Plateau Passage route beginning late May, but with the impressive snowpack totals across Utah and Colorado's western slope, I'm having second thoughts, and wanted to get some additional opinions here. With the route pushing 10k feet elevation through the high mesas and mountains of southern Utah, I'm not so sure these zones will be sufficiently melted out enough for fluid and fast riding. I guess the only means of knowing is to pay close attention to the Snowtel data.. I'd love to depart late May rather than a fall departure, mostly because of obligations later in the year. If I'm being overly paranoid here, please say so and convince me I should give it a go as planned.

Rode into Picketpost at 6:12 this morning. I won’t be continuing forward to Utah, as the last 300 miles were plenty for me to digest and reflect on for a while. I got absolutely roasted  down by the Gila yesterday afternoon. That was seriously harsh and mind-numbing for a good while.  Barely kept it together heading up The Hill and ran out of water soon after. Dehydration really got the best of me. Serious congrats to those who’ve finished the 300 thus far, and to those pressing forward, you’re seriously tough.

- Paul Hamilton

I'm interested, date depending.

Got out for a counter-clockwise tour of the Grand Loop starting this past Sunday morning, departing around 8:45am from Dewey. I decided to ride the same route as Neil, thinking that it seemed more reasonable to detour into Nucla for resupply, and I also wanted to get through the high points of the route before moisture/snow moved into the area late Monday/early Tues. I had a blast, mostly(!), fully invested in the experience, enjoying ticking off miles through sweeping and ever-changing landscapes, from the desert to the high desert, to the sub alpine and back, it was wild to ride through the beautifully diverse Colorado Plateau. I'm still being haunted by the specter of my experience on the Grand Loop, but god damn, it felt good to rip and romp around on the bike through such beautiful country. What a blessing to call Colorado home! I packed way too much water (120 oz) and food (2 days worth) from the start, my bike weighing more than I care to remember. Definitely felt the burden by the end of the 100 mile day, succumbing to sleep fairly early, around 10:30. Wasn't motivated to begin riding in the cold and dark morning, so I woke with the sun after laying down for 8 hours. I was less than 2 hours out from Nucla, so I rallied into town for resupply, and was on my way to tackle the Plateau. A long, grind of a climb took me up to Columbine Pass, and then what seemed like endless riding across the plateau, with short shots descending into watersheds and then the steep, chunky climb out. Rode hard on the gravel service road through a snow squall in the middle of the night, snowflakes blazing by in the glow of my K-Lite, loving every second. Got in 140 miles before I laid down to sleep around 2. Woke at 7 having slept poorly, and thought it would be a fairly quick ride into GJ. After descending down a ways and crossing HY141, I didn't realize the extent of the rough and tough stretch of the Tabaguache, before FINALLY dropping into GJ. A quick resupply and lunch and I was off, heading to Loma and then south, as it looked like the route had me riding the Interstate(?). Started on the Kokopelli around 2pm, and was LOVING the views of the Colorado river and canyons from the cliff shelves, and I guess the single track was ok too after mostly 300 miles of double-track and gravel roads. Rode hard this final stretch, mashing away, as I still had a 3.5 hour drive home and work waiting for me at 10am the next morning. In my haste and discomfort, I bailed off the route proper when I hit CR128, opting to ride 5-6 miles of pavement back to where I started. Finished around 11pm, and was super psyched to be done, but not so psyched to drive home.

This route is rad, thanks to everyone who established it!

- Paul H

Anyone have the gpx file that Neil is riding?

Past starters,
Can you assist me in your start location? It kinda sounds like there were a few different start locations depending on the year. I was either thinking Lunch Loops, or perhaps Westwater. Both have their pros and cons. I will be traveling counter clockwise if that makes a difference.
Also, I'm aware that water will be sparse, I'm just wondering if folks know of any reliable water on the Paradox or Tab trails that I should know of.

Thanks,
Neil

Neil, would you mind sharing your reasoning for riding counter-clockwise? I'm going to assume it has to do with a potential resupply in Nucla. Or are you gonna rip the loop without resupply?

Looks rowdy and awesome Aaron, especially coupled with the solar eclipse. Definitely gonna try hard hard to make it happen.

I'm in! Last year was a serious learning experience and so, so humbling,  and though I dropped in Silverton and didn't complete the line, I had a blast and am anxious to give it another go. Looking forward to the Durango-->Front Range direction this time around.

- Paul H