We started the day hoping to do a gravel ride out to Cliff and Wade Lakes but once we got to the road we found it closed due to fire activity. Plan B, we drove back to Raynolds Pass and rode the Continental Divide Trail out and back towards Nemesis Mountain. Our ride was 15 miles with 2214′ of climbing.
It’s the Continental Divide Trail and the sign at Raynolds Pass reminded us that everything on one side of the divide flows to the Pacific Ocean and the other side of the divide drains to the Atlantic Ocean. We started right off the highway on some VERY seldom used singletrack that climbed up through the aspens and Douglas Firs. The trail was overgrown and very tight and twisty so I had to keep my eye out for the CDT markers and signs. After a couple miles we turned right on the Divide Creek Road and took this dirt/gravel road up and up and up. Looking at the map, it looks like we crossed over from Idaho to Montana and back multiple times!
The views of the Centennial Mountains are on full display at the upper reaches of this ride and we truly felt like we were in the middle of nowhere. This isn’t technical riding since 10 of the miles are on dirt road, but it’s the big open remoteness that makes this special. Once again, we didn’t come across anyone else out here.
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