Other rides

Silver Plume to Waldorf: Another historical journey, the old Argentine Central Railway route starts in Silver Plume and climbs to the old mining town of Waldorf. The first three miles of single and double track are beautifully overgrown and lined with aspen trees, crisscrossing a mountainside above Interstate 70 to join Road 248. From here, it is a sustained and steady 6 percent climb above the Guanella Pass Scenic Byway and up to the historic mining town of Waldorf at 11,666 feet. The return route is the same and reviewed as one of the best downhill rides in the country by a national bike magazine. Take I-70 west past Georgetown to the Silver Plume exit. Turn left, going under the highway, and immediately turn right on the westbound dirt road. Go about a -mile and look for parking and the road/trail climbing up the mountain.

-Other rides from Waldorf: Like Geneva City, the Waldorf area has a maze of historical roads worth investigating. Argentine Pass and the Continental Divide are about three miles southwest of Waldorf on an obvious trail. Once over the divide, the trail descends into the town of Montezuma near Keystone. Another road follows the McClellan Mountain Railroad grade west, switchbacking about five miles up to the base of Mount McClellan at 12,900 feet.

E-mail Ted Crawford at tcrawford@dslbroadband.com. His column is also available online at RockyMountainNews.com.