Spooner Snow Biking, Sisyphus to Valhalla

February 2022

Posted by Doug

Mashed potato snow. You know. The kind that you're doing 200+ watts just pushing through. Then it turns uphill, with little to no track. Sisyphus. Yeah that. You feel slightly validated realizing your partners are pushing too.

Then you camp. A still, cold, quiet night. You toast each other from your individual islands in the snow with a small flask. Then when you get up at 2am to pee, you still notice how beautiful it is despite wanting to burrow back into your nest. 

Dawn comes.  But sunshine is still an hour or more away. You can't help but think about getting on the trail back the way you came the previous day. All the while praying it took hold of the freeze and you'll avoid the push... finally, desire to take advantage of hoped for conditions overrides the warmth of the sleeping bag. Thawing your crappy boots over the stove you actually revel in the crispness of the still shadowed morning.Your partners are engrossed in their own morning rituals to prepare themselves for what comes next.

Fully packed and ready to ride now, dressed in your action suit you wallow out of the deep snow you camped in back to yesterday's broken in track and gingerly mount up and push off into the question. It's narrow, it's steep downhill, it's...RIDEABLE!! Inwardly you're giddy with delight but the narrow track is demanding all of your attention. In the unavoidable instances that you fall of the track you instantly nose in like a shot down fighter jet. In due course you descend to a point where the skiers and snowshoers have packed out the track somewhat. You are able to widen your focus a bit and the Viking roar is welling up, unstoppable within you. "UNTIL VALHALLA!!!" bursts from your throat and you feel nearer to glory!

Yeah. All of that. 

 

Photo credit: Kurstin Graham

 

Photo credit: Marc Pfister

Photo credit: Marc Pfister

 

Photo credit Mark Yakushev

Bike Setup: Salsa Mukluk rigid. 45 North studded Wraithchild front, 45 North studded Dillinger 5  rear.

Trip Participants: Mark Yakushev - trip organizer, Marc Pfister, Kurstin Graham, myself. Organized via BurritoPackingNV Facebook group. 

Bikepacking: The Gabbs Valley Range Loop

 

Feb 2022 

Posted by Doug

Mitch from the BurritoPackingNV  Facebook group and I got out for a short but sweet overnighter bikepacking trip just before a weather system blew into Northern Nevada. The ride included all things great about bikepacking in Nevada. A dark, starry and fairly cold night, remote high desert scenery, open seemingly endless basin and range type territory. Tight rocky canyon with a lush riparian area, abandoned mining camps and of course range cattle and wild horses. I saw tracks of antelope as well but didn't see any animals. We traversed well graded backcountry roads, snowy/muddy 2 track and barely there sandy track. The trip also included the mandatory hike a bike sections. Best of all it included an enthusiastic and capable partner. All things great.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stats according to my Wahoo Element Bolt

42 miles, 3100 ft climbing.

 

Bike set up Doug: 

2017 Salsa Mukluk fat bike fully ridgid, with Surly Edna 4.3 tires setup tubeless.

2x10 drivetrain.

Full bikepacking bags setup.

 

Bike setup Mitch:

Framed Alaskan alloy fat bike fully rigid, 29+ wheels with Bontrager XR4 tires.

2x10 drivetrain.  

Rear rack with bikepacking bags.

If It's February It Must Be Arizona.

 

Feb 2022

Legs ready? No. Butt ready? No. Ok all systems nominal. A little bit of tough, a little bit of tour.

Joannie and I hadn't been to see our oldest son's (Kirk) new condo in Scottsdale yet since buying it during the pandemic. It seemed an appropriate time for a trip. Joannie ever obliging and knowing, mostly from experience, that 5 days of visiting and being a tourist is pretty over my limit so to drop in a 3 day variation of bikepacking the Fool's Loop would work perfect! We made the LONG drive from our home in Nevada Monday and got there in time to visit and have Kirk show us around his new digs.  Early Tuesday morning, Joannie drove me out to the Brown's Ranch trailhead. The plan was to start there and ride the loop over to Black Canyon City and she would pick me up there Thursday. 

The ride went pretty much as planned but I was a little too slow to get picked up in Black Canyon City at a reasonable time so I texted for a pickup at Bumblebee Ranch. Brown's Ranch trail system is a gem and I want to go back there to ride more of the trails. The walkway under the spillway of Horseshoe Dam was easy to find and a unique experience! Sheep bridge is another highlight.  The climb out of Bloody Basin in itself wasn't that bad but all the climbs between Sheep Bridge and the final climb took it's toll, not to mention I'm out of cycling shape having ridden only a tiny bit since November. (That's my story and I'm sticking to it!) The Black Canyon trail has some really excellent riding as well as sections of rather ho-hum. Sadly, I didn't get to the lower portion below Bumblebee Ranch. Planning wise, I think I carried 4 liters of water at the start. I topped off at Sheep Bridge and grabbed another liter at the seasonal Tangle creek which had flowing water at each of the several crossings. I re-filled again in Cordes Lake at the 50's Diner and RV park. I wanted to eat lunch there but I was feeling the time pressure and reluctantly pressed on to the Black Canyon trail at the Big Bug trailhead. There are plenty of water options along the BCT including Hidden Treasure Mine trailhead. I never carried more than 5 liters total throughout the ride and that was more than enough. It was a great ride and far different desert scenery than my home Nevada desert.

 

Brown's Ranch Trailhead

Walkway under the spillway of Horseshoe Dam

Filtering water under Sheep Bridge

Sheep Bridge

Sheep Bridge

 

Tangle Cr.

The Black Canyon Trail

Bumble Bee Ranch office

 

Friday Joannie, Kirk, and I jumped on our bikes (Kirk has a couple bikes and Joannie used one of his) and Kirk took us bike sightseeing. It was a wonderful tour around on the canal trails and bike paths. We started off riding over to Water Mark. In reality it's a flood control project but unique in that it's a series of equine sculptures that during flash flood events pour water from the horses mouths. Here is a good description of the installation. 

From there we rode back through Old Town and picked up another trail leading to Arizona Falls. A historic location on the Arizona Canal where there is a 20 ft drop. In the late 1800's it was apparently a popular place to picnic and socialize. More here and here. 

Arizona Falls

We weren't done yet. We continued on the canal trail to Ohso's. A restaurant bar located right on the trail that welcomes trail users like us. What a super fun venue! Lunch and a beer and we were off retracing our route back to Old Town to meet up with Laura, Kirk's friend and owner of Bella Bridesmaids. She pulled out her bike and we rode off to get an Ice Cream at the Sugar Shack. After the fun tour we finally rode back to Kirk's place where Laura joined us bit later. Following a couple drinks he and Laura grilled a fantastic steak dinner that capped a perfect 'touristy' day. 

Wyatt was not neglected... 

 

Ohso's

Bella Bridesmaids

Laura and Kirk

Kirk entertaining Wyatt

  

Saturday we had to leave but drove over to Southern California to visit Joannie's family and stayed Sunday. Superbowl Sunday started with a trip to the beach so Wyatt could run. Wyatt was able to visit his cousins Duke and Pearl. They all had great fun chasing each other and their beach toys which Wyatt sort of commandeered. Following that I met nephew Brian in Ojai for a rip around the local trail system. There are some really nice trails out there, especially this time of year when everything is green and fresh. I would have never known all those trails existed! By the time I got back to Joannie's sister and brother in laws place Superbowl was well underway. Of course what's Superbowl without a couple beers and snacks? It was a great visit, me not having been down there in over 2 yrs.  

And that was that. Monday we had a pleasant drive home. 

 

Bikepacking stats per my Wahoo Element Bolt:

104.5 miles, 11,221 ft climbing

Bike setup: 

Bridgit (29+ Trek Stache hardtail copy in carbon)

29x3" tubeless tires, Reba 120mm front suspension.

Experimental 11/50 10 speed 1x drivetrain.

I'll leave you with photos of happy dogs.