Naturalist Enos A. Mills, known as the father of Rocky Mountain National Park, homesteaded this site adjacent to Colorado Highway 7 in 1885. Story and photos by John Aronson.

Peak to Peak Scenic Byway: Fifty-five miles of Colorado Bliss.

The Front Range of Colorado?s Rocky Mountains was definitely created for the benefit of motorcyclists, although it?s been more than 40 million years since tectonic forces elevated these massive peaks. Like the siren?s song to a sailor at sea, I?m motivated to explore this sublime elevated landscape close to my home along the urban corridor that includes Denver and Boulder, Colorado. An hour from my driveway is the 55-mile Peak to Peak Scenic Byway, established by the state of Colorado in 1918. A mecca for motorcyclists, the Byway is just two lanes and it follows the trails originally forged by Native Americans, fur traders and later miners in search of gold and other precious metals.
Map by Bill Tipton (Compartmaps.com)

My Peak to Peak day ride begins where U.S. Highway 6 meets Colorado Highway 119 near the former mining settlement of Black Hawk, Colorado. Hungry riders will find designated motorcycle parking at The Last Shot. Nearby is the gold rush town of Central City, where the downtown storefronts have been restored to emulate their 19th-century origins. Most silver and gold prospecting in Central City and Black Hawk is now done in a bevy of legal gambling casinos. I only want to twist the throttle of my 2012 Triumph Tiger ...