From anywhere east of Colorado, here's something you might want to experience.
Highway 141 from Gateway, CO to Naturita, CO is one bad-ass road for motorcycling. It's a 52 mile stretch of twists, curves, canyons, rivers, and mesa's. 141 turns into 145, then into 62 on its way into Ouray, CO - where you can jump onto the Million Dollar Highway south towards Durango, CO - which also kicks ass. From Durango, you can hit Monument Valley and The Grand Canyon if your'e up to it. That entire part of the country is endless with jaw-dropping scenery.
Another great road is highway 133 from Carbondale, CO(just south of Glenwood Springs) to Delta, CO. And finally, highway 92 through the Black Canyon of Gunnison National Park is also an amazing road for rolling on two wheels. If you can make time, it's worth it, SouthWestern Colorado will blow you away - and if you choose to hit any of these roads or even all of them in one long zig-zagging day - it won't take you much time or be out of your way traveling to SoCal. Traffic isn't an issue, neither are cops, so speed has no limits.
Gateway, CO is nothing in the middle of nowhere, if you blink you'll miss it. There is one small, recently built community that you can't miss right off of 141 before leaving town heading south. It's completely out of place because it looks like an upscale retirement community in a shit-box of a town. The founder of The Discovery Channel built this community, where he put condos, a restaurant, and most importantly, an Auto Museum. This Museum is amazing, having some of the rarest and coolest cars I've ever seen. It's $8 to get in and see this guy's personal collection, well worth it.
Here's a few pics from 141 -