Wake up this morning to rain. Not a surprise, it rained all night. It stops after breakfast, but the trails will probably still be too wet to ride. Argh! Ok, let’s hit some bike shops, there’s one here in Grand Junction, and another in Fruita, so we’ll hit them both. We go to the first place:

Bicycle Outfitters, and we meet a very helpful guy – sorry, didn’t get the name – and he tells us about all kinds of local trails, sells us a map, and gives us another. We also get some gels, and decide to take him up on a suggestion – get to Fruita through the Colorado National Monument. I wasn’t sure I wanted to do that, as it’s still VERY cloudy – what kind of photos can I get? Well, rare ones. It doesn’t rain much here, so photos with clouds are rare ones. We’re off!

Ok, I’ve punched all of these up a bit, or else I should have just desaturated them to black and white. It’s dreary out there, but when the light pokes through, this is what it looks like.

Then there’s this:

Great shot of Grand Junction in the distance.

Big valley down there.

I love the geology out here. I get a kick out of how these layers stack.

And here, a little sun! We finally get to Fruita, and take another suggestion from the guy at the bike shop – the best pizza in the valley is at the Hot Tomato, so that’s where we go. We opt for the Kokopelli, with added jalapeños:

It’s pretty awesome! Not quite up to Fatty’z in Mountain Home, but close. After lunch, it’s off to the bike shop, just down the street. This one is Over the Edge Sports, and we are met by a very energetic fellow named Max. Also very helpful, he gives trial and food advice. We can’t try out the food just yet, we have to get back to GJ, but we do take his suggestion to go to The Tap, a microbrewery just down the street, where he suggests we try the Oatmeal Stout. Good suggestion!

Soon enough, we’ve had our brew, and it’s time to get back home, because we’re going through the park again, and it’s slow going, but the light should be better, lower in the sky. I’m right:

Yes! Sunlight AND a rainbow!

A bit later, it’s darker and cloudier, but there’s also a double rainbow – that’s two within a week!

Not sure which of those shows it better, so there they both are.

A little later, sun lower in the sky, and the rainbow changes direction, so I get a shot of it. Beautiful! What’s not so beautiful is the forecast – rain tomorrow. Argh!