Sweet trip report so far!  Very inspiring.  Yep, gotta do a TransAlp ride now!  lol
Looking forward to more.

Wow, what a beautiful lake!  Looks like it was a good trip.  Start 'em young!  Sounds like a very successful trip. 
Thanks for posting.

I've used 661 Raji gloves for years, and love them.  They're not the most durable, but I've gotten two years worth out of the current ones I have.  They're like the Dakines mentioned earlier.  Thin material, no real padding, but reinforced in a few spots, and one of the things i like the most is the material on the outside of the thumb area.  Perfect for wiping sweat from your brow.  Have been great for me for a long time.  I love the minimal feel of them, especially for the warm months.

When you say you "tightened the bolt", are you meaning the top cap bolt, the single bolt going through a coin shaped/sized disc?  The one on top of your stem?  All that does is set the load on the headset bearings.  Sounds like your stem pinch bolts are loose.  First, loosen/tighten the top cap till the stearing is snug, but with no play.  Not too tight.  Then, line up your stem with the front tire, and tighten the stem pince bolts.  That should take care of your problems. 
This website picture shows the different bolts and stuff if you're unsure. 
http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40073&t=12689155

Hope that helps out. 

Nice bike.  Interesting having an endomorph front on a regular frame.  How does it ride/handle?  Beautiful picture, is that in Grand Junction?  Wow, I'm moving there!  Haven't seen mountains like for a minute!  Must be some amazing riding there.

No experience with it, but that looks pretty cool.  Looks really nice and light, should pack pretty small also.  And great price.  Can't tell if a hose can fit on it though, looks like just a regular push/pull type cap.  Good idea though.

I have the X-Alp Seek.  In my opinion, they're good enough.  They're not exactly like the dedicated mtb shoes, but for me that's a good thing.  Too many of the dedicated shoes are too narrow.  But the soles are plenty stiff enough for proper riding, but not too stiff that you can't walk around in them.  And the upper gives support.  The upper does have the padding around the ankle area and such, but for the parts around the rest of the foot seems to be thin enough to provide good drainage.  I'm not 100% sure though.  Haven't put much thought towards that.  If you can, check them out at a store and see how you think the drainage will work.  In my opinion it's a very good compromise to have a little bit of everything. 

Check out the Pearl Izumi X-Alp series.  Good, comfy shoes with cleat attachemnts.  Depending on the model, the top is very breathable, with a normal-type midsole for comfortable walking and such.  Good, grippy tread would be good for possible hiking situations.  For me, they're the best option for a multi-purpose use shoe: stiff enough for biking, comfortable for walking around, and a thin, breathable type upper which should drain fairly well when wet.

I've also been using a Topeak Mt. Morph, and not problems in a few years.  It's big enough that you're not pumping all day long, but light enough that it's not a big deal, to me anyways.  But it's big.  So, if that's a concern, try the smaller Morphs.  Very durable line of pumps, IMO.

Good writeup and nice pictures.  Glad to see some more writeups of some southeast rides.  I don't have all the stuff to do a proper overnighter yet, but this is definitely now on my short list of places.  Thanks.

Nice ride, and photos.  I read your website, and your review of the Canon camera.  I've been debating on whether to get that camera, or a Panasonic.  I may just go ahead with that camera.  Thanks for sharing.

Nice pics.  Looks like a fun, albeit, cold ride.  Looks like you had a visitor following your tracks in the one pic.  How low did the temerature get on you out there? 

I've been reading "Two Wheels On My Wagon" by Paul Howard.  Basically about the author, who's British, doing the Tour Divide, from never even riding a mountain bike to finishing it.  I'm only part of the way through, but it's interesting so far.  Worth checking out.

Thanks a lot for the info about the membership, Kerry.  I went ahead and signed up.  I've been to the site before, some very interesting stuff.

I've actually heard of a trick you can do with the cable routing to maybe get it working.  On the pinch bolt on the derailleur, instead of running the cable in the little groove, run it on the other side of the bolt.  That supposedly compinsates for the difference in chainring spacing.  Haven't tried it myself, so can't speak from experience.  If you try it, let us know how it works.

That looks really good!  Thanks for the directions on how you went about it.  I've been contemplating making one myself, but was unsure of how to go about it.  This helps a lot.  Good photos also.

Looks like an awesome ride.  I can't wait until I can get out there and ride.  Chalk another place up to ride in my lifetime.  Thanks for the pics and writeup.

Great pictures.  I used to live up there, just northeast in Cumberland, Md.  Wish I knew about the area back then.  Thanks for sharing.

Great pictures of an awesome looking ride.  Man, I want to go to Colorado so bad! 

Anyone seen these front panniers on ebay?  There's one that goes on the stem, and another one that goes on the top tube.  Anyone tried their luck on one of these?  They don't even give a manufacturer name or anything, so there's no way to look them up.  Seems like they may be a good idea though.  Your thoughts?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Bike-Bicycle-Front-Stem-PannierTube-Bag_W0QQitemZ310221191335QQcategoryZ62131QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3907.m263QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DSIC%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%252BDDSIC%26otn%3D8%26pmod%3D270572325701%26po%3DLWI%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D8004347762364772652

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Cycling-Bicycle-Frame-Pannier-Front-Tube-Bag-Bike_W0QQitemZ130389619122QQcategoryZ62131QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3907.m263QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DSIC%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%252BDDSIC%26otn%3D8%26pmod%3D270572325701%26po%3DLWI%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D8004209085116305388