Lonn's Mountain Biking Ride History

Foresthill Divide - November 21, 2009

Stevens Canyon - November 20, 2009

A storm was set to blow in today, so I tried to get an early start at Stevens Canyon to get a ride in before the storm hit. In the interest of time, I started at Redwood Gulch and rode up Stevens Canyon Road and then the Canyon Trail and Indian Creek to the summit. I was the only person on the trail until I saw a ranger doing some repair work at the Backpackers' Camp. The trails were covered with leaves and the ferns and mosses were a brilliant green. It was great to be out on the trail with the autumn colors and the quiet.

The real story of the ride turned out to be the weather. My ride started with cool air (nothing that could not be solved with a long sleeve shirt) and it got moister the farther and highere I went. At first it was a very light mist, then a heavier mist, and then a slight drizzle that increased in denisty as I ascended. As I started up Indian Creek, the drizzle turned to light rain and a hint of wind appeared. As I broke out of the tree cover, the wind started picking up. By the time I got to the climb into Backpackers' Camp, the wind was howling. This was about the only time I can remember the wind actually helping push me up the hill. As I got there, I pass the ranger who complained about the cold, but I was doing fine with the heat being generated from climbing. As I got to the summit of Black Mountain, the wind was really howling and driving the rain horizontally. I didn't even bother to stop at the summit and returned to the Backpackers' Camp to put my windbreaker over my soaked shirt before heading down Bella Vista. The ranger was there again and trying to convince himself that it was not safe to be working under the trees in the high wind.

Now it was my turn to ride against the wind. As I headed down the singletrack, the wind was driving the rain into my face like an unending stream of needles. The gusts were so strong that it blew me off of the trail and up onto the hillside. At one point, I came around a corner and came to a complete stop as the wind blew directly into my face. I was completely wet and between the wind and my downhill speed, my hands were starting to get plenty cold. It was nice to reach the bottom and start pedaling again to generate some heat. At the bottom, the wind died down and there was a light rain, making the ride fast and enjoyable. The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful with the exception of meeting a different ranger walking along the trail at the creek crossing.

I really like riding in the fall. The colors on the trail are a real treat. The air is cool but not cold. The people are mostly gone and the animals are out. Everything is as it should be!

Sierra Azul - November 15, 2009

Coe - November 8, 2009

Alpine Road Night Ride - November 3, 2009

Some friends invited me on a night ride on Alpine Road. They said that the combination of good weather and a full moon was not to be missed. They were right!

We started in Portola Valley and rode up Alpine Road to the end, went through the gate, and continued on the dirt. This was quite a bit of fun as we rode with minimal lighting. I thought, and several others also commented, that the climbs on the detour seemed easier than usual. This was a bit surprising since the amount of trail one could see was very limited by the lights and the uphill, twisty trail on the detour. It would have been nice to get a picture of one of the guys ahead of me in the glow of his light as he rode through the trees, but I knew that my camera would not have taken a good picture.

We did some other riding (remember the first rule of Fight Club) before returning to the cars. Riding by moonlight was great. I really enjoyed this ride as I felt strong and rode well, I generally like night rides, the great weather and trail conditions, and the nearly full moon. Everything seemed to be in alignment!

Canada del Oro Night Ride - October 30, 2009

They announced the last Canada del Oro night ride for 2009, so I had to go. Unfortunately, most of my regular crew couldn't make it and one had to cut his ride short, so I ended up riding most of the way myself. It was a beautiful night with nearly a full moon, so we started the ride with the lights off until we got to the point were the trees blocked too much of the light to see the descents. This was a lot of fun and made it a bit more interesting, but there is certainly a place for lights in the dark sections.

To add a new challenge, I decided to try going up Catamount. I don't usually ride Catamount because it is steep and not really that fun coming down when compared to the alternatives, so I think this might have been the first time going up Catamount. Trying to do it in the dark added quite a bit of challenge as I was using just my small LED light which didn't allow me to see very far up the hill. I did not have any sense of what was coming and a few of the tight turn with water ruts were made more difficult with the handlebar-mounted light. I made it (a few minor dabs), but it was steep. I only saw two other riders on Catamount, and they were riding down.

I rode the length of Bald Peak and made it up to the summit where one guy was relaxing and we were soon joined by two others. After a short chat, I turned on my big light and headed down. It was such a nice night that I did not bother to put on my jacket and just stayed in shorts and a short-sleeve jersey for the whole ride. The descent on Longwall was fun, the climb up Mayfair was short and the descent on Mayfair was a blast. The coldest part of the ride was the blast of cold air as I returned to the parking lot.

I had a nice chat in the parking lot with 3 other riders. I was amazed that they had come from as far away as Martinez to do this ride. I shared some brownies with them and with the rangers, we had a beer or two over funny stories and then it was time to head back. The early start (end of daylight savings time) meant I got home a lot earlier than the summer rides.

I am going to miss not having any more of these rides this year. I hope the spring rides start soon!

Coe MTBR Fall Circus 2009 - October 24, 2009

It was time for the annual MTBR Henry Coe Fall Circus ride, so off I went. My usual riding crew didn't make it, so it was just me this time. In fact, I barely made it. I woke up early but was feeling pretty sick. I wasn't sure I should even get dressed, let alone go for a ride at Coe. I started feeling better after a while, but I ended up getting there about 1:15 late. It was very odd to have a big parking lot filled with empty cars with bike racks. I knew the route for the C group (we rode with the C group last year), so I set off following their tire prints. The weather was great: sunny, mild and a slight breeze. The trails were generally in great condition due to the recent rain, but there were some good sized water ruts on some of the smaller singletracks.

I headed up Coit Road, passing the usual our turnoff for the Anza and Jackson trails, and continuing up the mountain. I ended up catching the C group at the top of the mountain where they seemed to be taking a break. After chatting a while, everyone headed out. I kept riding at the same speed and the group soon disappeared behind me. I turned onto Wasno Road and rode along the ridgeline, which was very pleasant.

It was time to get off of the fireroads and onto singletrack, so I headed down Tule Pond. This was a fast descent through the oaks to Grizzly Gulch trail and Tule Pond. Grizzly Gulch starts climbing just past the pond, but the climbing really intensified when I turned uphill on Serpentine. This narrow single track went right up the hill. Not only was it steep and narrow, it also had a fairly deep rain gully down the center of what little usable trail existed. To make matters worse, there were a few giant horse hoof divets that made it even harder. I ended up having to push up parts of Serpentine. Near the top, I found a dead tree that squirrels or birds had poked holes into and then filled each hole with an acorn. It was very odd.

Serpentine takes you to the top of Willson Peak which offers a very nice view of the park. A short ride on Steer Ridge Road took me to Middle Steer Ridge. This is a narrow, steep singletrack that descends about 1600 feet in 2.25 miles to the bottom of the canyon. There were a few places that were steep, loose and rutted, making it very interesting. This was long, fun descent. The bottom empties onto Hunting Hollow Road that crosses creeks several times before depositing you back in the parking lot. Somehow, I sliced my tire in one of these creek crossings, but I was close to the end so it was not a big deal. I chatted with some of the other riders afterwards before heading home.

The weather was great and the trail conditions were generally very good. In spite of feeling sick in the morning, I had a much better ride than last year. I did not feel tired, a major change from last year. This was a lot of fun.

El Corte de Madera Creek - October 18, 2009

We got invited to ride with some of Anna's friends at El Corte de Madera Creek (Skeggs). We met Thomas, Vanessa, Yervan (sorry if I misspelled that) and Mel in the parking lot. Thomas brought a surprise: a brand new Ibis Mojo for Vanessa and Anna to try out. It was a pretty sweet black full carbon bike. After a bit of fitting and adjusting for Vanessa, we were off on the first of two loops.

We headed up Fir, down Manzanita and Timberview to Giant Salamander. We went down, crossed the creek and then up on Methuselah to North Leaf and the end of El Corte de Madera Creek. We returned to the parking lot by climbing up Resolution and Fir. It seemed like we made pretty good time but it was clear that Anna's friends are a bit faster than we are.

We returned to the parking lot to put Anna's bike in the truck, re-adjust the Mojo to fit her and talk a few people into doing another, shorter loop. In a few minutes we were back on the trails. This time we did a fast descent on El Corte de Madera Creek and returned on Resolution and Fir. A few people commented that they felt better on the second loop than on the first.

In spite of the heavy rains on Tuesday, the trails were in great condition today. There were only a few damp spots (though we avoided Sierra Morena on the assumption that it was still soaked) and no downed trees or branchs. There was plenty of leaf litter on the ground and the dust was completely gone, so it was clear that a storm had been through.

As a post-ride treat, we went to the Kings Mountain Volunteer Fire Department for a fish fry. We stuffed ourselves with halibut, fries, cole slaw and beer while listening to music and petting the local dog. I don't think any of us could eat any more when we left. Other than being unusually cold, we had a great time and supported a worthy cause.

Fremont Older - October 10, 2009

I had a bit of time so I went exploring. I crossed through Fremont Older and exited from Rim Trail and cross Steven Canyon Road and went through the open gate directly across the street. This opened into a good size open space with a fireroad at the back. This fireroad heads up the hill in a hurry! I started climbing but quickly got to the point where I couldn't sustain the climb and had to start pushing up the hill. It was so steep and covered with loose gravel that even walking got very difficult. I had to watch each step and use the brakes wisely to keep from sliding back. I checked the grade after the ride and it peaked at 80%! Once I got past this steep section, the grade settled in a more manageable(!) 10-30% range. Ouch!

The fireroad turned into singletrack through the brush with slight ups and downs as it went along the top of the ridge. I stayed on the back side of the ridge to avoid the shooting range below (they were shooting today). This eventually opened onto a well graded dirt road that quickly provided a view over the Steven Creek Quarry. Going a bit farther on another dirt road took me to the Hansen (formerly Kaiser) cement kiln which was in full operation.

I turned right at the kiln and headed up a hill and along another ridge top before descending a singletrack trail/rain gully down to the bottom. The trail disappeared in one direction in a creek bed and a tangle of trees and brush. I found a deer skull on the ground in the creek bed. The trail headed into a thicket of poison oak in the other direction, so I didn't want to go any further. Even though I knew I was close to Stevens Canyon Road, there was no easy way to get there, so I back tracked the entire length of the trail I had come in on.

This was an interesting addition to the standard Fremont Older ride, but the effort was probably not worth it. There are some other trails up there that might go somewhere interesting, but those are waiting for another day.

Grant - October 4, 2009

Ken and I went to Grant Ranch to enjoy one of the first hints of autumn. The air was crisp but the sun was shining as we headed out. Rather than follow one of our usual routes, I talked Ken into exploring a few bits that we somehow have managed to miss until now.

We started the ride by riding up Highway 130 to the base of Edwards Loop Trail. Shortly after hitting the dirt the trail started turning upwards. We were just getting into the swing of things and commenting about how few people were out when we saw a hiker. In a matter of moments, we started seeing several groups of 2 to 8 hikers coming down the hill as we went up. So much for being an isolated trail! As we got to the top of the climb, we notice a small singletrack, so we decided to explore a bit. This was a nice change from the fireroad, but there were about 3 places where the trail crossed places that had been torn up by wild pigs while wet and then dried into unridable clods of dirt. These were easily walked around. We continued onward and discovered two bikes lying on the side of the trail. There was no one visible and no tracks in the grass nearby. We assumed that it must have been nature lovers out for the day.

Canada del Oro/Blair Ranch - September 27, 2009

The Santa Clara Open Space Authority opened the Blair Ranch area today for one day of mountain bike access. This area is normally closed to everyone while they go through all of the procedures to put in new trails, assure compliance with watershed regulations and look for any endangered species, but they open this area once a year for mountain biking. They hope to have this area open with new trails in about four years, but for now they are allowing access to the existing ranch roads on these special access days.

The ride started with a check-in with the rangers in the overflow parking lot (not the main parking lot). This was fast and easy, so we started the ride pretty quickly. Once through the first gate near the parking lot, the trail starts climbing. It was not so bad at first, but it quickly steepened in the mid-part of the climb. Overall, the initial climb picked up about 740 feet in 1.3 miles with an average grade of over 10% and a peak grade of over 45% in the middle. This peak grade was steep enough to result in a bit of hike-a-bike for all of us. Once to the peak (the water tank), it was a short ways down to right turn through the first gate.

The next section ran along the ridgeline. This resulted in several short ups and downs with little net elevation gain as the trail traversed along the ridge up to the next trail junction (not signed or named since this section is not open yet). We turned left at the junction and pretty quickly started heading down. This was still old ranch road, but the we quickly got to sections with a 30% descent on loose gravel over dust. We managed our speed pretty well, but there is one righthand turn that we all went a bit wide on due to a bit too much speed. It seemed like we should be at the bottom and ready for a ride out along a creek, but instead the trail turned up. Steeply up. My GPS measured a maximum grade of about 65% over a fairly short distance. This was definitely a hike-a-bike section, but even hiking this part was pretty difficult. Just past this steep section was a nice stock pond that was a good place to take a few pictures and catch our breadth.

Once recovered, there was a short climb out from the pond and a short ride to the next trail junction. We were required to turn up the hill (the trail out to Uvas Road was closed) and start another good climb. We made it a pretty good ways up the hill, but when the incline hit 40% it was time to push again. Once we made it to the shade of some oak trees, the temperature dropped a few degrees and the trail flattened out a bit. Leaving the trees, we climbed about 400 feet in 0.9 miles back to the trail junction where we had turned left. From this point, it was back-tracking along the route we came in on. The long hill we had climbed initially was much faster coming down! What took 21 minutes to climb took about 4 minutes to descend.

After checking out with the rangers, the others decided that was enough for today. They were probably right since we had seen a temperature of 102 at one of the trail junctions. Since it was only a few minutes past 11:00, it was definitely going to be getting hotter. We agreed to just celebrate the new area and leave as heroes.

This was a fun ride, but it will be nice when they are able to build some trails rather than just ranch roads. This will make the rides longer and more enjoyable. I think there were several sections we could have seen but the roads didn't go there. Even as it was, there were ranch roads we weren't allowed on. We will have to be patient.

I thank the Santa Clara Open Space Authority for putting on this event and staffing the checkin/checkout table. They continue to set the standard for local support of mountain bikers!

Alpine Road - September 22, 2009

I went for a nice mid-week ride up Alpine Road with my Tuesday night group. Starting at Willowbrook Road, we rode to the end of the paved road and regrouped before passing through the gate and onto the dirt. I made good time riding up the trail. I felt strong going up the "detour" singletrack, a big improvement on a section that that I used to have to walk parts of. We pushed on to Page Mill Road.

Quicksilver - September 17, 2009

I noticed that I hadn't been to Quicksilver it quite a while, so it was time for a visit. The ride started on my normal route to the top: Mine Hill and Castillero up to the abandoned rotary furnace. I continued on Castillero, but rather than going all the way to the bottom, I turned on Providencia and took this down to Enriquita. This took me past Providencia Pond where I stopped to enjoy the view, snap a few pictures, and listen to the sounds. The abandoned Enriquita Mine is at the end of Enriquita trail, with various ironworks being the only remnant of what was once probably a thriving mine. There was a single track here that headed in the right direction and opened into an old road, but it was covered with poison oak and not worth the trouble. I headed back up to Providencia and continued heading west (down), which took me back to Mine Hill for the final descent to the reservoir.

Canada del Oro Night Ride - September 11, 2009

El Sereno - September 8, 2009

Wilder - August 30, 2009

After several days of over 100 degree temperatures, we decided it would be wise to head over to the cooler trails on the coast so we went to Wilder State Park. After paying our $10 parking fee, we chatted with the ranger to see if Wilder is on the closure list or what it would mean for a state park to be closed. He didn't know (or wouldn't say) anything, so we were only $10 poorer. I did feel a small comfort in doing the right thing, but increasing the parking fee from $6 to $10 seems pretty steep.

The ride was great. We rode up Wilder Ridge from the bottom to the junction with Enchanted Loop, bypassing the Zane Gray climb we often do. The climb up Wilder Ridge past the stables and the dump was better than usual and I cleared all of the steep climbs except a small loose section near the top. From the junction, we rolled down Enchanted Loop and then climbed to the junction with Eucalyptus Loop, which we rode up to the picnic tables. After a short break, we climbed Chinquapin up to the gate. We descended Mailboxes to the bottom and noticed that most of the wooded stunts have been removed.

We exited at the bottom of Long Meadow and rode Old Cabin, politely passing two equestrians (quite nice) at some wide spots on the single track, and then rode the lower portion of Eucalyptus Loop. Rather than going to the end, we cut over onto Twin Oaks, a trail that we have somehow never ridden before. We rode to the end at the junction with Wilder Loop, and turned up the hill. We stopped for a few minutes at the vista to get a great view of the ocean and Monterey Bay on a very clear day. We proceeded down the trail to descend Zane Gray and retranced our entry path on Wilder Ridge to return to the farmhouse.

As a special treat, park volunteers were serving home-made ice cream and apple crisp or pear cobbler. We stopped and bought some for each of us. The ice cream was so good! The volunteer had hand-cranked a 5 gallon canister for 25 minutes to make the ice cream. It was a real treat and reminded me of making home-made ice cream as a kid. This was a great way to end the ride!

Saratoga Gap - August 18, 2009

The Tuesday night group ride was at Saratoga Gap this week, so I tried a bit of a pre-ride before joining them. I parked at the base of Redwood Gulch and rode up to the top and then rode up Highway 9 to join the group at the Saratoga Gap parking lot. This route dispenses with any sort of a warmup by starting up a climb on Redwood Gulch that exceeds a 20% grade in several places. I was more than warm by the time I got to Highway 9, which seemed much easier in comparison. I made good time on both, including a new personal best on climbing rate on Redwood Gulch.

The ride on Saratoga Gap and Long Ridge was nice, as usual. The view of the fog rolling in as the sun was heading down was great. We rode down Long Ridge to Peters Creek, where we decided to turn around since it is starting to get dark earlier. Half of the group returned to the Gap parking lot while the others went back various other ways. The ride had a great ending as we all gather at Jakes for an apres ride meal.

Kennedy - August 14, 2009

I have been feeling a bit faster lately, so it was time to check this out again. I selected Kennedy, a long unrelenting climb that I have done several times in the past, as a reasonable and useful metric. I started at the trailhead and rode to the top where it flattens out.

I have done this climb several times starting with the Turkey Ride on Thanksgiving day 2002. This has always been a challenge to just make it to the top in any fashion, but I have finally started to show some serious improvement. I remember all of the places on the trail where I "normally" took a short break to catch my breath. This includes the psychological half-way point where the oak tree is in the middle of the trail (this point is actually a bit over halfway up). I have finally gotten to the point where I can ride past all of these. I can almost made to the top, but I broke traction in the soft dust at two places very near the top on a steep climb.

While the clock says I am riding much faster and I don't need the breaks I used to, I certainly don't feel like I am flying up the hill. There are lots of times I look at the speedometer to discover I am only holding a 3 mph speed. This is still a lot faster that I used to ride (or at least maintain balance), but it still seems so slow. It is very humbling to realize that some people are going twice as fast and summit in half the time it takes me. Still, I am improving and setting a personal best each time I go there lately, so I should savor my small successes.

Soquel Demo Forest - August 9, 2009

It was a warm day, so we headed up to SDF on the early side to get some mountain time. Rather than go the "standard" route, I convince Don and Anna to try a different route. Part of this was to get a good GPS track on one of the trails, but I think that changing the route keeps the locations "fresh".

Rather than climb Santa Rosalia Road, we headed down Hihns Mill and then up Sulphur Springs. This was a pretty fast climb, but it is pretty steep right at the end just before it gets to the helicopter landing pad. It seemed like a pretty fast climb, and a bit of analysis after the ride indicates this was my fastest climb rate to date. We took a short breather in the shade on the landing pad before we rode up Ridge. This was also different, since this was the first time we have ridden up Ridge. The lower part of Ridge is a pretty tough climb with a pretty steep grade and lots of rocks and roots to get over. There were a few short sections where we had to hike-a-bike.

We got to the top of Ridge and decided we should ride Canadian Bacon. Other than a small OTB incident, this was fun. We climbed back to the top of Ridge and rode down it this time (much easier and more fun). We rode past the helicopter landing pad and the picnic table and headed down Tractor and then up Hihns Mill back to the car. The parking lot was hot and the car was like an oven, so we got out of there quickly and headed down to the Summit Store for some cold drinks and snacks.

Harvey Bear Race - August 2, 2009

El Corte de Madera Creek - July 28, 2009

Rode the periphery of ECdM with the Which Way Riders group. This was billed as a gut ride, so only the fast guys showed up.

To save time, we rode along Skyline to the CM02 gate and rode up Sierra Morena, did a quick regroup, and headed down Fir and Tafoni to El Corte de Madera Creek. We did another quick regroup at the junction with Resolution and then headed out North Leaf. A regroup mid-trail and then we tackled South Leaf and Virginia Mill. Now it was time to suffer as we climbed up Lawrence Creek. We enjoyed a bit of downhill singletrack on Blue Blossom before climbing out on Gordon Mill.

I mentioned that we did a few quick regroups. Total break time across the ride was 9 minutes, pretty good for a group of about 15 riders. This was also my fastest pace at ECdM even though I pooped out at the end. Everyone seemed very tired by the time we got back to the cars. Even the meal at Alice's was quieter than usual.

Canada del Oro Night Ride - July 24, 2009

The Santa Clara Open Space Authority held another authorized night ride at Canada del Oro, so we had to go. These ride are always fun and it is a chance to ride at night. The OSA does a great job.

We started at sunset and did the usual route: up Mayfair and Longwall to the summit for a view of the lights in San Jose. I did an out and back to the boundary of Calero County Park on Bald Peak and then we descended Longwall and rode back on Mayfair. With the later start, most of the climb was in the dark which was pretty nice. Since most if it was climbing, I only used my small LED light until we got to the summit where I turned on the big light.

We were surprised by the number of ants we say, especially along the top. There were a many ant holes that were swarming with ants. I don't know if it was the cooler night weather, abundance of food (there were some beetles near some of the holes) or mating season, but some of the holes were had a 6 to 12 inch diameter solid black mass of ants at the openings. Some other riders also mentioned that they were surprised by the number of ants. We also saw several bats (it was neat to see and hear them fly right by us) and a small fox.

I suppose the most notable aspect of the ride was Don broke his Gravity Dropper seatpost. On the way down Longwall he said it bent backwards and then broke. There were no jumps, obstacles or other issues that might have over-stressed the seatpost and Don generally doesn't ride too agressively, so we couldn't explain why it broke. Don had to take the saddle off and put it in his pack and then strapped the remaining post to his water bottle holder (it was still cabled to the handlebar) and had to ride standing up the entire way back. He got quite a workout!

Once we were done, we ate sandwiches, chips, brownies and had a beer. The rangers were supportive of this, so they got some brownies too. It was a great way to end the ride.

Stevens Canyon - July 16, 2009

I got out after a couple of very hot days. The temperature still hit 100 degrees according to my thermometer, but it was definitely cooler than it had been. The route was nothing new: through Fremont Older, up Montebello Road, down Stevens Canyon trail, and back home via Mt. Eden Road.

At the top of Black Mountain I really noticed how it is now definitely summer now. All of the green grass is long since gone. What were once lush green carpets over the hills have now turned into "amber waves" that make California "the Golden State".

I have been watching the Tour de France bike race on TV. I noticed that some of the hills I climb are steeper, but I am so impressed by the speed that the racers climb the hills. They go up the hills 3-4 times faster than I do, their flat speeds are higher than my downhill, and their downhill speeds are strictly insane. They do this day after day, in good weather and bad. In my good form, I look like one of the exhausted riders on the tour. In fairness, my bike is quite a bit more rugged, I carry all of my own water, food and spare parts, I am much older, I seem to have fewer high speed falls and don't get to draft off of other people or ride on smooth paved roads with no traffic, but their performance is still pretty phenomenal.

This ride put me over 9,000 mountain bike miles. It also put me over 200,000 vertical feet this year. This is a new personal best for a single year and it is only July.

Alum Rock/Sierra Vista - July 9, 2009

Due to conflicting family obligations, I didn't make it to last Sunday morning's group ride. They went to Alum Rock park in San Jose, so I had to play catch-up and ride over there on my own time.

I started at the Alum Rock Road entrance because I knew how to get there and there is no parking fee (always a plus). I headed down the service road, passing nice looking singletrack entrances on both the left and right (they were all signed to prohibit bikes). The service road ends on the Penitencia Creek Trail and the creek itself. There are several picnic grounds and a couple of stone arch bridges crossing the creek here. This is the site of a luxury spa many years ago where people would come to "take the waters" that still percolate out of the hillsides.

I rode northeast out to the end of the ridable portion of Penitencia Creek. There is a small bridge here than ends in the middle of a tree and a stair case down. The trail continued but bikes are not allowed past this point, so I had to turn around. I crossed over the creek on one of the arched stone bridges to explore the other side. There are several active springs still percolating into what used to be stone soaking tubs, several of which still had visible carvings on them. It was a quick trip to a bygone era.

I crossed back over and rode west on Penitencia Creek to the end, where it crosses over a bridge onto the road and then connects to the North Rim Trail. I continued west to the end of this trail, but had to check the map a few times to figure out where I was. At the end (road), I turned around and retraced my path to Lariat Trail. There is a sign that indicates it goes up to Eagle Rock, so I thought I should explore. After a bit of climbing, I got to a part that was seriously uphill. I tried to ride up, but the combination of a steep grade and very loose soil got the better of me. My GPS indicated a grade of over 30% where I stopped. The trail was even steeper and looser ahead...I don't think I could have made much progress with a hike-a-bike, so I turned around and headed up North Rim to the Eagle Rock Trail. This took me up to the rock and the view. The other trail was hard to see due to the dropoff.

I descended and headed north a bit more on North Rim to the Todd Quick trail. I ascended the western side of the loop and went through the gate into the Sierra Vista Open Space, transitioning from a San Jose city park to Santa Clara County Open Space lands. After reading their sign boards (there are several, generally well written and informative), I headed up the west side of the Boccardo Loop trail to the top. This is trail takes you up to the top pretty quickly with an average grade in the 15-20% range, but there is one straight and steep section out in the sun that seems to reach a 35% grade. After passing through some trees, the Boccardo Spur takes you to the top of the hill for a very nice view of everything below. When I was there, there was a flock of vultures riding the wind currents at the top of the hill, swooping down to zoom just over the hill top very close to where I stood.

I descended on east sides of the Boccardo Loop, Todd Quick and Weather trails. The eastern routes have a more gentle grade due to quite a few switchbacks. The Todd Quick trail was pretty nice. I continued north on the North Rim trail, dropping me down to the picnic area again. There is a paved road near the bottom of North Rim that heads off into the hills, but is aggressively signed as a private road. I headed back up to the starting point, with a brief detour to something labelled as Inspiration Point. I didn't find any inspiration there.

This was a pretty nice ride. The western side of the Boccardo Loop is certainly steep. The picnic areas looked nice. I was surprised to get as much riding and hill climbing in as I did since the map made the trails look very short. This place is worth a try.

Pescadero Creek - July 5, 2009

Due to conflicting family obligations, I didn't make it to the usual Sunday morning group ride. However, I was able to work in a ride later in the afternoon. I wanted to explore around Old Haul Trail to see if it could be included in a long future ride. I headed over to the Old Haul trailhead at Wurr Road in Pescadero Creek park in San Mateo County.

I started riding southeast on Old Haul. This is a fireroad width route through the forest. It is a former railbed for a train that was used to haul lumber to the mill, hence the road's name. Since it was a rail route, it means that the grades are not too steep. I was able to maintain a pretty good speed as I zipped through the forest. I noted several side trails as I rode for investigation on the way back. I went past the Iverson Trail junction that leads into Portola Redwoods State Park and rode to the end of Old Haul. The road actually continues, but it is blocked by a gate at a bridge about a mile past the Iverson junction. The construction of the bridge is just being completed (there is still lumber on the ground). A sign on the gate indicates it is owned by the Santa Cruz Lumber Company, but it was interesting that the lumber was on the state park side of the gate while the bridge was beyond the gate.

Wilder - June 28, 2009

It was going to be very hot today. We checked temperature forecasts for several locations and they were at or over 100 degrees. It was time for another ride on the coast where it is cooler. We packed up the truck and left early, headed to Wilder. This turned out to a great decision as the inland weather was as hot as predicted and the coast was very moderate.

As usual, we headed up Wilder Ridge and Zane Gray. On the way up the first hill, I came across a complete snake skin (without the snake) that had recently been shed. It was probably about 4 feet long. Unlike the coastside parking lot, the top of the first hill was in full sunshine. We made pretty good time on these trails, so we headed down Enchanted Loop singletrack, which meant that we had to climb up the other side. To mix things up a bit, we rode the bottom of Eucalyptus Loop and Old Cabin and then climbed Long Meadow to the top.

We decided to avoid the potential for getting caught in an inland heat wave, so we headed down toward the coast. We went down Chinquapin, across the upper part of Enchanted Loop and down the north side of Baldwin Loop. As usual, Baldwin Loop was fast and bumpy. We made good time until we got very near the bottom where the weeds grew in over the trail and then trees with very low branches. We also encountered some stinging nettles in this section. It looked like very few people have been riding this section.

We capped off the ride with a cliff-top ride on the Ohlone Bluff Trail. It was still overcast along the coast, making this a very pleasant ride. There were lots of wildflowers out and we saw bunnies on the trail and a group of about 15 seals in the water and on the rocks.

We capped off the ride with tacos and beer before heading back into the heat of Silicon Valley. It seemed like it was well over 100 degrees when we unloaded the bikes. Good thing we went to the coast.

Fremont Older - June 20, 2009

I had only a short amount of time, so I did a quick ride at Fremont Older. Nothing notable about that since I have been there many, many times. What is notable is some evidence that I am getting in better shape.

The first bit of evidence was on Ranch Road. This trail, which bisects Seven Springs Loop, is a straight shot to the top of Seven Springs near Hunters Point. It starts off going up hill and increases as it goes. First it is a 10% grade, then it increases to about 20% and then to 30%. Steep! The last few feet are very steep and the main concern is keeping your weight forward on the nose of the saddle and keeping some forward momentum. It is usually too much and I end up having to walk. As a result, I don't usually ride this short trail to avoid the demoralizing effect. I decided to try it again and I finally made it! I discovered that I can remain upright at a speed of well under 2 mph, but I made it.

I also rode the length of Toyon from north to south (the opposite direction of usual). There are a few steep climbs here, but the real challenge is at the very end where there is another very steep slope. I made it up this one to the top where I had to stop for a closed gate.

The rest of the ride was uneventful, but I was glad to have made two tough climbs.

El Corte de Madera Creek - June 7, 2009

Harvey Bear - May 31, 2009

Big Basin - May 22, 2009

Canada del Oro Night Ride - May 15, 2009

I went to the night ride at Rancho Canada del Oro last night and had a great ride. About 28 people turned out for the ride sponosored by the Santa Clara Open Space Authority. The weather was just about perfect and ihe trails were in good shape. It was fun participating in an officially encouraged night ride!

Since this was an officially sanctioned night ride, we had to check-in, sign a waiver, get a glow stick for the bike and get a map (if needed) before starting the ride. The rangers were well organized and glad to talk to people and answer questions about the open space. After checking-in at the ranger table, a group of four started up Mayfair at about 7:40 PM. This was a bit early and it was still light out, but we couldn't hang around the parking lot any longer.

We made pretty good time up Mayfair. Just after going through the first gate, we discovered a herd of cattle across the trail. This was not too big a deal, but the last steer I passed decided that I needed to be chased. It was fun for a moment or two before he tired out. We continued up and over Mayfair and re-grouped at the Longwall junction. We decided that singletrack is always better, and turned left up Longwall. We made pretty good time on this trail too, regrouping at the picnic table just before the final climb to the summit.

We had a nice city light view of San Jose from the summit. Another rider was at the summit with his camera and a tripod taking pictures. After taking a few ourselves, it was time to turn on all of the lights for the descent. Rather than ride the fire road, we decided to retrace our tracks on the singletrack all the way down. This was a lot more fun as our field of vision was limited to what we could see in the beams of our lights. Surprisingly, we did not run into too many people still coming up. One surprise was the herd of cattle. I had forgotten about them. They were lying next to the trail, looking like boulders except for their eyes which glowed with the reflection of our headlights.

Purisima Creek - May 14, 2009

I went out to Purisima Creek for my "Bike to Work Day" ride and had a good time. The weather was in the high 60's and clear, so I could not have asked for nicer riding weather.

As usual, I started with a descent down Whittemore Gulch. I came across several hikers coming up the grade, but we didn't have any problems. The trail was in great condition and the forest floor was alive with spring growth. I wasn't trying to race down the hill, choosing to just enjoy the trail and the forest instead.

Once at the bottom, I started up Purisima Creek Trail. The bottom part runs along the creek, so everything was in bloom. I saw several large banana slugs on the trail and got a few good pictures. I needed to do some climbing, so I headed up Borden Hatch Mill. The trail was longer and steeper toward the top than I remembered, but I made it in pretty good time. I was the only person out here, so I enjoyed the solitude. After a very short stop for a Gu, I descended Grabtown Gulch, returning to Purisima Creek. I hadn't ridden up Purisima Creek in some time, so I headed up. The average grade on Purisima Creek is slightly higher than on Borden Hatch Mill, but it didn't seem like it. I think the difference is there are a few flat parts on Borden Hatch Mill between some very steep parts, while Purisima Creek is more of a steady ascent.

Since I had some other things to do, I decided to ride back to my car on Highway 35. Other than being passed by a roadie, this was pretty uneventful.

I really enjoy Purisima Creek. I think this is the prettiest place that I ride. It always leaves a smile on my face and joy in my heart.

Santa Teresa/Quicksilver - April 30, 2009

I hadn't been to Santa Teresa in a while, so I decided another visit was in order. The recent weather had allowed the trails to dry out a bit, but they weren't dusty yet. The weather was very cooperative and the grass was changing from green to "golden", making for a nice ride.

Harvey Bear/Coyote Lake - April 16, 2009

Stevens Canyon - April 8, 2009

The drizzle stopped and the threat of thunder had disappeared, so it was a good time for an afternoon ride up Stevens Canyon. I parked at Redwood Gulch and as I was preparing to leave another rider drove past and then backed up to ask for information. I invited him along for the ride, but I didn't remember his name.

It was fun riding up to the trailhead chatting with someone new. The ride itself was a typical route: Canyon Trail, Indian Creek and Montebello to the summit, and down Belle Vista and Canyon Trail. We rode together to the bottom of Indian Creek, where my new friend had to turn around due to time constraints (and perhaps a bit of fatigue!). I continued on up to the summit and back alone.

What made this ride more notable was the amount of wildlife I saw. I saw turkeys at the base of Mt. Eden Road on the way in and several more on the trail. I think it is turkey mating season, so there were several toms gobbling to define their territory and find some mates. We also saw lots of newts on and along the trail. I think the recent light rains had brought them out. We probably saw over a hundred and had to work hard to avoid a few that were crossing the trail. I also saw several herds of deer along the trail, including one herd near the top that I seem to have startled as a I came around a curve. I also saw a bobcat at the backpackers' camp at the top of Belle Vista. The combination of the weather and the lack of other riders (being a mid-week ride) resulted in lots of animals being out and about. There were several different types of wildflowers in bloom as well.

Ft. Ord - April 5, 2009

Don and Anna will be racing at the Sea Otter Classic this year, so we went to ride the course. I downloaded the course from the SOC website and installed it on my Edge 305 GPS unit. This was very handy since we did not need to refer to a printed map (though we had them) during the ride.

It was a beautiful spring day at Ft. Ord. The hills were a soft rolling green dotted with wildflowers. We were also treated to stock cars, "mini Forumula 1" racers and classic American muscle cars warming up on the track while we prepped for the ride. The start of the SOC course is on the actual race track, so we weren't able to ride this part of the course, but we did a close approximation.

The first part of the course is along Lookout Ridge, a fireroad that crosses the hills. There was nothing technical about it, but it offered very pretty views to the north across the velvety hills. We then took Trail 50, a singletrack that goes down the hillside through a light oak forest. This is a great trail to ride as it is fast and swooping, but it also extremely pretty with a wide variety of trees, multiple colors of wildflowers, plenty of green grass and some hanging moss. Ken also discovered a reddish green plant with shiny leaves (poison oak) hanging over the trail. We saw plenty of PO along all of the trails today. At the bottom of the descent, Trail 50 crosses Crescent Bluff Road and then climbs up the hill to Sandstone Bluff Road. A right turn takes you down "The Beach" (Trail 60) a descent with sand that is several inches deep. The trick here is to stay on your bike and keep enough speed to keep moving forward. It is very easy to plow into the sand and do an OTB here. At the bottom of this, we crossed Crescent Bluff again and then headed up Trail 82. This was the toughest climb of the day and it seemed to get steeper the farther we went. It was a good climb, but I felt better this time than in the past.

After a short downhill road ride on Eucalyptus Road, we turned on Pilarcitos Canyon. We notice lots of parked cars and then saw a bunch of popup canopy covers in the distance. It turns out that there was a Northern California high school mountain bike competition today. We stopped and watched a bit and thought we shouldn't ride on their course and screw up their race. We checked with some course marshals and the info desk, but no one had a map. We finally found one in the Los Gatos High School team area. We marked out their route and ours and determined that their course not only covered several of the trails on the SOC course, but that it also occupied all of the crossovers to the extended trail section. This meant that we would not be able to ride the full SOC course today. After a bit of grumbling, we returned to Pilarcitos Canyon and rode up the length of it back to the race track. We connected Guidotti to Skyline to Trail 47 to get back to the starting point.

Although our ride was abbreviated and we were not able to ride the whole course, we still had a good time. The spring scenery was worth the trip and it was fun to see the high school bike race (much faster than us) and the race cars. Ken also discovered that the water tube on a Camelbak has an inner liner that can separate from the outer blue tube and block the water flow if you keep removing the mouthpiece. Live and learn!

Canada del Oro - March 27, 2009

Spring is here and everything is green and in bloom. Since I hadn't been to Canada del Oro in a while, I thought I would give it a try. I drove there for an early evening ride and was a bit surprised to see only one other car in the parking lot.

The only way in (on a bike) is on Mayfair Ranch Trail, so this is where I started. It was very nice riding through the oak forest with young green grass all around. It is a reasonable climb from the entry to the first picnic table with two cattle gates to go through. The climb up is rewarded with a nice downhill ride to the creek and the junction with Longwall. There were lots of wildflowers blooming and the creek was particularly pretty. While I was riding along the creek, a large branch broke off of an oak tree for no apparent reason and started crashing down the hill toward me. It was exciting for a brief moment, but then it stopped when it hit some of the trees up the hill from me.

Shortly after crossing the creek, it was time to start ascending Longwall. This is another good climb, but it seemed easier than the initial climb for some reason. I climbed to the next picnic table and then continued up Bald Peaks Trail. This took me to the summit where I rode up to take some pictures. I continued along Bald Peaks past the junction with Catamount and up to the edge of Calero County Park (no bikes allowed). Rather than shoot down Catamount (a fire road), I turned around and retraced my path to take advantage of the Longwall single track.

I didn't see anyone else on the trail. I did run into a talkative guy in the parking lot, so we talked for a while. It was a very enjoyable solo ride at a very nice time of year.

El Sereno (Montevina) - March 22, 2009

It rained overnight and the forecast indicated possible rain in the morning, so we were back to El Sereno. Just for fun and to not over-stress Anna's still recovering knee, we tried yet another route to the top. Starting out in downtown Los Gatos, we rode along the Los Gatos Creek trail, passing lots of people out for a way. The only taxing part of this was the last climb up along the spillway (the previous route across the dam face is closed due to construction on a new drainage tunnel for the reservoir). We rode along the short trail that parallels Highway 17 to the Black Road overpass. This trail was a bit muddy with a few puddles. This allowed us to pack muddy into our knobbies for the following climb.

We ascended Montevina Road to the summit. This was the first time going up this way for the others. The vast majority is paved with an average grade of about 9.4%, though it seemed like less. The grade is much steeper (about 20%) at the end of the pavement. The weather varied from sunny to drizzly to cold and breezy as we ascended. We had a pretty good ride up. I felt pretty strong today.

We paused to reassemble at the gate at the end of the paved road, where we met another rider named Dave. We exchanged ideas on bikes and different trails, but decided to move on as we were getting chilled in the cool wind after the long climb up. We paused at the usual point to put on our jackets for the descent and Dave caught up with us again and came down the hill with us. We showed him the new route down La Mirada and he showed us a trail/path/road route that ends at the top of Main.

We finished of the ride with some coffee at Los Gatos Coffee Roasting. We saw some familiar faces (Sparky and Ram) there. Once again, it turned out to to be a great day and everyone had fun.

Kennedy and El Sereno - March 19, 2009

It was a nice day out, so I thought I would test myself with a longer ride. Starting in downtown Los Gatos, I went up Kennedy Road to the Kennedy trail. Knowing that this would be a longer ride, I took a moderate pace that kept me going up the hill. As usual, I took a brief stop at the oak tree before continuing to the summit. The wildflowers have started blooming. I descended on Priest Rock (Dogmeat) and Limekiln (Overgrown). It seem like there were more rocks than usual on these trails due to the recent rains, but it was still a fun descent.

Once back to town, I stopped briefly for a smoothie and then continued up Overlook and Sheldon to the Aquinas trail in El Sereno. I talked with a couple of rangers that showed up to put in a gate post on the new trail. They indicated that the trail is currently for ranger access to a place where they need to put in a fence on the preserve boundary. They hope that the trail can be opened and connected to the bottom of Serenity. They suggested that there is an existing old roadbed to do this (like along this access trail), make it a matter of clearing the brush and going through an accelerated approval process (since this would not be a new trail or require new cuts). They didn't have a timeframe for these changes. Once I finished talking with the rangers, I continued up to the summit and then back down.

This was a nice ride on one of the warmer days recently. I felt pretty good and have could have gone further. I think this ride increased my confidence in my sustained climbing. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my "moderate" pace turned out to be pretty fast (for me).

Russian Ridge - March 13, 2009

It was another beautiful spring day today and a few days of sunshine have dried out most of the trails. Since it had been a while, I decided to go up to Russian Ridge for a liesurely ride.

Rather than go one of the usual routes, I mixed things up a bit. I rode up to Borel Hill and then took Ridge along the hillside, across the ridge and to the end, riding the singletrack through the switchbacks to Rapley Road. They were doing some grading on the service road, so I turned around and rode the singletrack back up the hill. Since I don't usually do it, I descended Hawk which was very nice. I then rode the length of Mindego Trail, stopping in a meadow to explore a small path that ended at the edge of a steep dropoff. From the end of the trail, I rode out the old Mindego ranch road to the end. MROSD purchase this ranch last year with the intention of adding it into the Russion Ridge OSP, but this area is still closed. It looks like they have removed the old ranch house, but there is a new gate across the road. Being a good citizen, I turned around and headed back. I rode back up Mindego to Ancient Oak and back to the parking lot.

On the way back up Mindego I met a nice couple on their bikes who were exploring the same small path at the meadow that I had checked out. I suggested a few places for them to explore (Saratoga Gap and Wilder). It looked like they were having fun exploring.

Grant/Lick - March 8, 2009

It was a beautiful spring day today, but all the recent rain and associated trail closures limited our options. We decided that it would be fun to climb up to Lick Observatory from Grant Park to take advantage of both the cool weather (compared to summer) and the clear skies.

We started on Yerba Buena trail up to the point where it stops paralleling the road. The trail was very wet, so we crossed over the gate to "save the trail". We made pretty steady progress going up Mt. Hamilton Road all the way to the observatory at the top. Along the way, we stopped to watch a well fed coyote (larger than a good size dog) hunting in the open field just below the road. As we we riding, a large redtailed hawk fell just in front of me...I could almost reach it. I didn't get a picture of either.

While we made good progress, we were passed by a few groups of road riders. It was a bit frustrating, but they had light bikes and no packs. We did catch one of them when they stopped to rest and, apparently, turn around.

We were surprised to find a little bit of snow at the summit. While it has been wet for the last week, it hasn't been cold enough to snow. I guess the summit was quite a bit colder. After a brief stop at the top, we put on jackets and leggings to head down. A bit of post-ride calculating showed that we came down about 3.6x faster than we went up. We were glad to have the warmer clothing as it seemed like the temperature was dropping and the high wind chill due to sweaty shirts.

We detoured off the road onto Canada de Pala trail and headed back up that hill. We decided to drop down Los Huecos and call it a day. This trail was fun and fast, though we did watch our speed due to some wet spots, loose gravel and new rain ruts.

This was a nice ride after all of the rain lately. The air was cool, the sun was out, the grass was green, and the animals were out. We all had a good time.

El Sereno - March 1, 2009

It was raining today, but we decided to go out anyway rather than be rained out for the third week in a row. El Sereno is the best trail nearby for wet weather, so that was really the only responsible choice. Rather than ride up the trail, I took the other up Bohlman Road. As usual, the climb was steep and continuous. I decided not to put on my jacket since the weather was realatively warm. I think this was the right choice as I generated enough heat climbing to the summit to keep warm in spite of the rain and the high winds.

I was very glad that I brought some additional clothes. I put on a dry jersey, a jacket, a skully, and some wet weather gloves at the top and was warm and very comfortable for the entire ride down. The trails were in good condition, though we maintained speed to avoid potentially unpleasant surprises. We only saw one other person on the trails!

My new fenders worked great. Both Don and I have the plastic SKS fenders and they really did the job, keeping us clean and mostly dry (there was a bit of splash on the shoes and lower legs, but I'm not complaining). The lack of muddy spray in the face or the brown streak up the back (I know what you're thinking!) were a nice change. As you can see in the picture, Ken did not have fenders.

It looks like we are in for several days of rain. I may have to try some more rides like this.

Santa Teresa - February 20, 2009

I thought that I had been off the trails long enough to let everything dry completely, so it was time for another trail ride. Since I had not been able to complete my last ride at Santa Teresa due to a severe calf strain, I decided to go back and ride "the horse that threw me." The climb up Stiles Ranch was fun. I noticed that there was more loose rock this time, probably the result of all of the loose dirt being washed away in the rains. The trail was generally in good shape and I was enjoying being the only person on the trail.

I got to the bottom of Rocky Ridge and suddenly things got very wet. I thought this was just a short section, then just the section by the creek. I also thought it was just "dirty water" type mud, but it turned out to be very sticky mud that clings to anything it touches. My chain and derailer were encased in mud in no time at all. I thought about turning back, but that would have required going back through the same mud patch. Surely the trail be in better condition just a little ways up, I thought, but the trail turned out to be muddy quite a ways up (though not to the fence crossing). This made riding tough since my tires had collected as much sticky mud as they could hold, I was having chain suck problems, and wet spots made some of the rock crossings difficult. I finally made it to the fence crossing, where things got better and I made it to the top will few other problems though my tires still weighed several pounds more than normal due to the mud.

At the top of Rocky Ridge I discovered that the abandoned communications building has been demolished. I think this building used to hold electronics for a microwave transmitter, but it had been abandoned years ago and vandalized and covered with graffiti for some time. All that is left now is the concrete pad. Based on the tractor tire prints, this seems like a pretty recent change.

Since I have been trying to incorporate new routes recently, I decided to try something new (I also wasn't going to descend Rocky Ridge due to the mud). I had never noticed it before, but there is a gate just south of the communications building. I had looked at this in Google Earth, so I decided to explore a bit. The paved road (Country View Dr.) ends just beyond the gate, so I gave it a try. It seems like this road was built with the intention of building expensive homes in this area, but the only buildings are toward the bottom of the road. This was a nice ride with a few ups and downs that ends at McKean Road, so I rode back to Fortini Road and my car and called it a day.

By the way, it took about an hour to get most of the mud off of my bike and clean the drive train. This is another good reason to stay off of overly wet trails!

Sanborn Road - February 19, 2009

I thought most trails would still be wet, so I did a bit more road riding today. I climed up Pierce Road in Saratoga past the Mountain Winery and then up Highway 9 past Saratoga Springs to Sanborn Road. I have been this way in a car before, but never on a bike. It was a bit steeper than I recall, but it was a nice ride. I went past the hostel and the county park to the end of the road. There is a trail there that goes out to Ranch Lake, but it is signed as "No Bikes" for some reason so I didn't go any further.

It was cool and damp in the canyon, so I stopped to put on my jacket before starting the descent. A woman drove by asking for directions to "Diane's house" but without an address, just a vague recollection that it was up a hill. I finally got her straightened out, but is was rather humorous.

After a short detour through the public area in the county park (very pretty), I started the descent. There was no traffic and a pretty straight drop that allowed a lot of visibility. I tried to keep things a bit under control, but still managed to hit 40 mph on the way down. I also made good time coming down Pierce.

El Sereno (Bohlman & On Orbit) - February 18, 2009

Things are still drying out, so I decided to try something new. While I have climbed up Bohlman to the top of El Sereno before, I had not tried the On Orbit (another street) before. This loop splits from and later rejoins Bohlman toward the top. On Orbit involves slightly more climbing than staying on Bohlman and I think it is a bit shorter, but this means that it is also slightly steeper. Anyway, I made it to the top.

I also explored a bit of McGill Road at the top. I turned around at a "Private Road" sign, but Google Earth indicates it should connect into Sanborn Road eventually. After hitting the sign, I backtracked to the Bohlman junction.

El Sereno itself was in great shape. The ground was damp but very firm, with only one or two wet spots. I had a nice ride down.

Rather than return through Los Gatos like usual, I rode up Overlook Road to the Overlook Trail. It was a bit wetter on this side of the mountain. I rode the length of the trail and then descended Canon Drive.

I passed the 1,300,000 vertical ascent mark on this ride.

Rain - February 15, 2009

We finally got some serious rain this week. We had intermittent rain on Wednesday and Thursday, moderate rain on Friday, morning rain on Saturday and heavy rain all day Sunday and most of Monday. Finally! We have needed the rain. Hopefully, this means that that start of summer will be pushed out beyond February!

I did get a few mid-week rides in before the trails turned to mush. Nothing too notable and more roads than usual. I was the only person on the trails. Stevens Canyon was particularly nice along the creek and stopping to find newts in the undergrowth. The Sunday downpour cancelled our usual Sunday ride. This seems like the first rain-out in about 2 years.

I passed the 8,000 mile mark this week. I will pass the 1,300,000 vertical ascent mark this week.

El Sereno - February 8, 2009

We had heavy rain on Friday and it was supposed to rain today (Sunday) too, so we tried to get out before it hit. The day started clear and sunny with gray clouds along the ridgeline. Within half an hour, the weather was cool, dark and threatening. We were all feeling marginal with assorted (age related?) execuses. In spite of the negatives, we pushed on anyway.

Starting from our usual spot in downtown Los Gatos, we climbed up Overlook and Sheldon roads to the OSP entrance and headed up Aquinas trail. Everything was normal until we reached the first switchback and noticed that new trail junction at the apex of the switchback. Since this new trail was both singletrack and unexplored, we had to give it a try. MROSD has clearly been working on this connector since we found a 4-wheel ATV ranger vehicle and a small tractor just a short way down the trail. It was clear that they had been cutting some of the brush to make the connection. After getting through the recently cut section, we found ourselves on an older but apparently little used trail. There was still a bit of overgrown brush that kept us moving pretty slowly, but it was still fun. At one point there is a junction with the left path leading down and the right leading up. We went left first, which eventually took us to a clearing with a nice view. Shortly past that point, there was a sign in the middle of the trail about the preserve boundary and private property ahead. We were a bit reluctant to intrude on the property owner, so we head back to the left-right junction to go up the right side.

This side wound through the oak forest. At one point, there was a large green water tank at a gulley with some white plastice irrigation pipe running up the gully and more running along the trail. The pipes were broken in several place, so it was no longer in use. This looked very out of place and amateurishly done, so we thought it might have been a leftover from some marijuana farmers. We had no idea how they could have gotten such a large water tank to that point on the trail. A short ways past this was a small slide that required a portage since it was too sketchy to ride. After passing this, we rode on to the end of the trail. From there, we could see the powerline towers that mark the bottom of Serenity trail, but we could not find a trail that crossed the chasm between us and the bottom of Serenity. We did go down the hill a bit past some eucalyptus trees and into a forest of tiny oak trees, but the trail seemed to peter out. Since we seemed to be at the end, we retraced our steps back to Aquinas.

From there, we continued our climb to the top. This was uneventful, but we did see a ranger truck parked near the top. This was the first time we had seen a ranger truck in El Sereno and it was a brand new one. We put on jackets and dry gloves for the descent and started down, but the ranger truck was gone. We continued down and eventually passed the ranger truck (though we were careful to obey the speed limits while we passed him).

After going through the gate, we headed down Sheldon Road and took a right turn off the road rather than turning left on the paved road. This took us down behind some of the houses on the hillside, past what seemed to be a park, and onto Miranda Drive and the bottom of Overlook just before the stop sign. This was a nice change.

This was a fun ride. It was good to get out and the trails were generally in good shape. We saw quite a few other bike riders (maybe thats why the rangers were there?). Clearly the most fun was finding and exploring the new trail. This trail is so new that is not listed or mention on the MROSD web site yet. Judging by the looks of things, it should not be too much longer.

Quicksilver + El Sombroso - February 1, 2009

I'm back! After a week of hobbling about followed by more time slowly working my strained calf muscle back to health, I am on my bike again. I tried a couple of long, slow rides around town just to make sure things were OK. Surprisingly, walking felt worse than riding. However, I wanted it to recover before stressing it. I did a mid-week ride in Fremont Older just to test things out and everything was OK on a real trail, so I was back for our usual Sunday ride.

It seems like we are all suddenly getting old in a hurry. In addition to my muscle strain, Anna has been in therapy for knee problems and now Don's leg is bothering him. Getting older sucks.

Santa Teresa Injury - January 13, 2009

I have been off the bike for a while with a calf strain. I was doing well, getting in a lot of mileage and climbing in unseasonably warm January weather when it hit me. It looks like I will be off of my bike for a while.

The injury was rather odd. I was climbing up Rocky Ridge at Santa Teresa Park and making pretty good time. I had crossed over some rocks but apparently didn't have enough momentum to go up and over the next rock. When I went to put my foot down, it felt like a bad cramp in my calf. I sat down immediately and tried to stretch out the muscle to avoid a cramp and this seemed to work as I was able to avoid a full cramp. However, my calf really hurt so I took a few moments of rest. I tried walking it off, but this didn't seem to help so I decided to call it a day and head back to the car.

It was hurting quite a bit when I got home. I have been hobbling for about a week since this accident, so I haven't been riding. It seems to be getting better in terms of less hobbling, but it is still pretty sensitive to any pressure. I am not ready to ride yet.

Bummer.

Big Basin - January 11, 2009

It was time to go to Big Basin again, so we did. What a treat! The air was crisp at headquarters with a temperature in the mid-40s but this warmed up quite a bit just up the trail a ways. The sky was clear blue with almost no clouds and the air was about 70 F for most of the ride.

We rode down Gazos Creek from park headquarters all the way to the bottom at Cloverdale Road. The ride from Sandy Point to the lower gate reminded us how steep this trail is and why riding up it is so difficult. As always, riding along Gazos Creek is very pretty. We also noticed that it was very cold. Another thermocline was settled in the creek's canyon, bringing back the crisp air we experienced at headquarters. Temperatures returned to "normal" (it turns out this was a record temperature for this day) once we left the canyon.

We rode down Cloverdale Road to the bottom of Butano Fire Road and started our climb up. The first half of this ride was very enjoyable as we made pretty good time climbing up the hill at a reasonable grade. We took a brief break at the airstrip. It has been quite a while since we rode Butano Fire Road and our memories were a bit fuzzy. We thought we were near the top of the ridge, but it turned out that there was still plenty of up and down yet to come. We were less than half way to the top, but we didn't know that. We continued on, but we were all starting to feel the cumulative effects of a long ride. We finally got to the top at the junction with the Cutter Boy Scout Camp, regrouped, and then headed to the junction with Johansen Road. Here, we split, with Don and I riding down Middle Ridge back to headquarters while Ken and Anna returned via China Grade and North Escape. This way was a bit longer but had few uphill climbs, which was better for Anna since her knee was bothering her.

All in all, this was another nice ride at Big Basin. The weather was great, it was nice being in the forest, and there weren't many other people out.

Soquel Demo Forest - January 4, 2009

Our small group opened the year with a great ride at Soquel Demo Forest (SDF). This was a "California winter" ride. For those from other area, this does not involve snow, frozen rivers or lakes, or snowmobiles. This ride qualified for a winter ride by virtue of a frozen puddle and a temperature reading of 32 F at the low point. This did allow us to wear long sleeve jerseys and tights, but the rest of the summer wear was in evidence as well. For those of you suffering thought a long dark winter in other locations, it was a sunny day (but it dark on the shadowed side of the mountain).

The ride started off cold and we hit the low temperature almost immediately. A little bit of higher cadence pedalling was enough to generate some body heat to take the nip off. Once we got onto the dirt and started climbing, the jackets came off. The trails were in good condition, though a bit moister than I had expected since it has not rained for a while. We made our way up to the top, seeing only a few road riders on Highland and 4 teenagers being shuttled by their father (wimps!) in spite of quite a few cars in the parking lot.

Ridge trail was in fine form and the four of us zipped right through. After a short break at the helicopter pad (in the sun), we contined on past the picnic table and out to Sawpit. We did pretty well on this too and we all had a great ride down. The ride up Hihns Mill was the same as always.

All in all, it was a good ride. I felt pretty strong and the time proved this out. I noticed that I was 30-45 minutes faster on this route than the previous few times. I suppose the additional riding I have been getting in lately has paid off.

I tried to make a video of the ride. Everything seemed to be working on the trail, but there was nothing on the memory card when I got back. I am still trying to diagnose the problem. Oh well.

Mission Peak - December 31, 2008

I looked at my recent rides and decided that I had not done Mission Peak for quite a while, so I thought I should visit it. It was foggy and overcast this morning, so I waited to "get in the mood." My patience was rewarded with a very nice, sunny December day on Mission Peak.

I drove up to the trailhead where I have parked in the past. There were two mountain bikers on nice bikes right at the parking area. I drove in and discovered that parking is no longer permitted there (how odd!). Since these two guys were riding in I assumed they knew more about this than I did. I didn't want pay $2 to park in the empty college lot, so I drove out and across Mission Blvd. to park.

I had notice that the two riders did not go through the gate were I had tried to park and had instead continued up the road. I guessed this meant there was another trailhead up there, so I went for a look and found it. There was not a lot of improvement, but it did avoid two or three annoying cattle gates, so this is probably an improvement.

I continued my ride up the hill. Then I remembered why I don't go to Mission Peak too often. It was still all uphill. The trail was in pretty good shape except for one short section that was a bit soft due recent rains. I had seen some MTBR reports that the trails were torn up due by the cattle. If so, there has been a miraclulously rapid trail restoration because they were in good shape. The cow flops showed the cattle had been there, but it was not a problem.

I caught the two guys I had seen earlier at the foot of the summit peak. They are locals and seem to like this ride. We didn't exchange names, so I don't know who they are. I think they may have turned around at that point, but I continued on around the back and up to the summit. After a short break and a few pictures, I started down. Other than some cattle on one of the singletracks that did not want to move, this was pretty uneventful. It was a good ride.

December was a good riding month for me. It was my second best month for both distance and total ascent. November was better, but this was probably because the weather was better and I got in one more ride.

Fremont Older/Montebello Rd/Stevens Canyon - December 23, 2008

The poison oak is just about gone, so it is easier to ride again.

We caught a break between rain and drizzle today with a nice cold (high 40's) overcast day. Since the forecast is for more rain, I thought it would be a good idea to get in some riding. I started with a quick transit through Fremont Older, riding up to and then down Coyote Ridge and then exiting the park. A short ride on Stevens Creek Road and a bit of trailhead location and parking consulting for a newbie with new fancy clothes and a new Nomad brought me to Montebello Rd. It had been quite a while since I had gone up this hill, so I had to refresh my memory by riding up. It hasn't changed, but I think the cold weather makes it much easier than riding in the summer heat. I found that wearing tights and a short sleeve jersey combined with the climb exertion was sufficient to keep me warm on the ascent.

The ride up was pretty uneventful. It is a bit frustrating being passed by the road riders on the way up, but they never seem to make it out to the actual trail. Once at the summit, I put on my jacket and dry gloves, had a quick snack and snapped a few pictures. I was the only person up there or on the trails at all.

Rather than coming down the "normal" way on Belle Vista, I decided to try something new. In spite of the number of times I have ridden Stevens Canyon, I had never been on the Adobe Creek trail, so I decided to try it this time. I rode down old Montebello Road (toward Page Mill Road). I had not been on this section either, so this was fun. The Adobe Creek trailhead was well marked, so I turned right onto this trail. It is a fireroad width trail, but it does not seem to be heavily used based on the lack of foot or tire prints (it has been raining, so only very recent tracks would show up). It started off pretty easily rolling through some grasslands. It suddenly opened up with a very nice view of the entire south bay. It was pretty impressive, so I stopped for a few quick pictures and then continued on. The trail then entered a hardwood forest area. It looked like all of the leaves had recently fallen as the trail and forest floor were covered with a red carpet of fallen leaves. At a low point in the trail where it crosses a gully, the forest was a beautiful mix of red leaves on the ground, bright green moss-covered trunks, and a brown canopy above. It made me stop and take notice. I continued on. At the bottom of a decent there is a false exit onto Page Mill Road (about 20 feet away, but fenced off and signed). You have to turn left at this point and gear down to climb up the hill. This will eventually take you to a paved road (lower Montebello Road, I think). I turned right here and headed down to Page Mill Road. The entrance seems to be a legitimate trailhead, but it does not seem to be marked as more than a driveway. Ascending a ways on Page Mill takes you to the Stevens Canyon trailhead, for the "normal" return.

Stevens Canyon trail was in pretty good shape. It was moist but firm and only a few puddles. However, I did keep my speed in check to avoid potential for accidents since I was by myself and it was getting dark and cold quickly. I was able to cross the creek without getting wet. This was good since the only thing that was a bit cold were my toes.

The ride home was uneventful other than I was out too late and it got dark. I had my small 1W LED light, so I mounted this and turned it on when I left the trail. It did a good job.

This was a good ride. I liked riding the the cool weather and exploring a new trail in a familiar park. I should have started earlier to avoid getting home in the dark.

El Sereno - December 19, 2008

It is the rainy season, so I am trying to be a good citizen and ride trails that hold up well in the wet. It was raining this morning, so I went to El Sereno this afternoon after the rain stopped. I wanted something different, so this time I rode up to the summit via Bohlman Road in Saratoga. The route up is completely paved, but it is pretty steep. Looking at the GPS data, it does the same amount of climbing as the Los Gatos side in 4 miles rather than 5 miles. It was a nice steady ride. Even though the temperatures were around 50 degrees, I was wearing tights and a short sleeve jersey on the way up and was plenty warm. I added a long sleeve jersey and a windbreaker at the top for the descent and the cooling evening temperature. Other than the climb up Bohlman, this was like a lot of El Sereno rides. I saw 4 other bikers on the trail and no one else.

The real story this week was poison oak. I have been riding tame places like El Sereno in the middle of winter, yet I still found a way to get a raging case of poison oak. All over both lower legs, above my right knee and a little on my right arm. I am not talking about a few itchy bumps, but something that looks like a bright red, oozing chemical burn. I tried to take a few pictures, but they didn't capture the intensity of the color or the nasty look. This was definitely a case that warranted a trip to the doctor. A shot of something, some prednizone and a perspription cream seem to have things on the way to recovery, but what a pain (literally and figuratively). I wonder if I am getting more sensitive to poison oak because my contact does not seem like it could have been that much but it was such a large and severe reaction.

How did I do this? Who knows. It is the middle of winter, I have been riding fireroads, I have been wearing tights fairly frequently ...they all should make it hard to get such a bad case. I suppose it is bound to happen sooner or later, but...

El Sereno - December 14, 2008

This was my third ride at El Sereno OSP this week. I didn't plan this, but the weather dictated El Sereno as a good choice. It was cold and windy and threatening rain at any time, so El Sereno is a good choice since we can easily return from any point. Each ride has more and more people, with Ken, Don, Anna and Curtis in the crew this time.

The cold weather (low 40's) allowed us to play with layers and some cold weather gear. In one week, I have worn a jersey and shorts, a long sleeve jersey and tights, and multiple jerseys, wool socks and a jacket on the same trails. I have been able to work up a sweat every time going up the hill, but it was nice to put on fresh, dry gloves and a skull cap at the top for the descent today.

As usual for a cold weather Los Gatos ride, we did our "warm down" at Los Gatos Coffee Roasting. This combined a bit of warmth with conversation. It was nice to change into some dry clothes and start warming up.

El Sereno - December 10, 2008

I did a couple of mid-week rides in El Sereno OSP this week. We often ride here in the wet weather, so it has been a while since I have been here. Fortunately, Don was able to join me on one of these rides.

I explored a couple of trails that I had not previously ridden. Overlook is a short trail at the end of Overlook Road. There is not much parking on Overlook, so we parked in the residential area at the bottom of the hill and rode to the upper end of the road where there is a small gate on the right side. The trail is really a fireroad that based on the number of tire marks and footprints does not get too much use. The fireroad is a very easy ride that is also pretty as it rolls through the hillside forest. There is a very slight grade, but it quite appropriate for a young beginner. At the far end is a gate, a permit-only parking lot, another gate and an employee's house. There is a road beyond this but it is marked as private and "No Cyclists". This is a reasonable point to turn around and head back to Sheldon Road to the main trail.

Heading up the main Aquinas trail was nice. As it was mid-week, there was no one else on the trails. I did spot a mushroom (Amanita vaginata?) on the side of the trail. It seemed to have a mushroom shape on the crown and I thought it was interesting the way it had pushed up the leaves and twigs covering the edges of the trail.

About halfway up the Aquinas trail, I took the Serenity at the first major junction on the left side. This trail seems to be a PG&E service access route as it goes down to two of the high tension towers lower on the hill. There is a nice view of Lexington Reservoir from here, but otherwise it is not too notable.

Don and I rode to the top and did a bit of exploring on the top of Bolhman Road. We went to McGill Road, which Google Earth indicates will head downhill toward Sanborn Park. It was late in the afternoon, so we didn't explore this path this time.

The weather on Monday was overcast, breezy and cold so I was wearing two layers of everything. Today's ride was still cool (temperatures were between 52 and 60 on different parts of the trail), but I rode up in my "all seasons" gear (shorts and a jersey). There was no wind and it was sunny, so this seemed just right. I put on some tights and a jacket for the ride down. As usual, the ride down was fast and fun.

Waterdog - December 7, 2008

Went to Waterdog in Belmont today. Waterdog is usually fun since it has a lot to offer in terms of tight trails, switchbacks, a few tricky roots and other things to make it interesting. The weather was about 50 degrees, so we bundled up a bit more than usual. This made me a bit warm on some of the climbs and a bit cool when we stopped for any length of time, so this was probably about the right amount of clothing.

Most of the ride was on familiar trails: Lake Road, Upper Lake Road (out and back), John Brooks, Chaparral, Ohlone, Finch and Upper Creek to Hastings Drive.

Here, we detoured and crossed Hastings over to the Carlmont side. The top of the hill is behind the houses on the east side of Hastings. The hillside has a pretty extensive network of trails leading down. This area is a favorite of downhillers and stunt riders and they have build quite a few jumps and banked curves in a lot of places. Some of the jumps are moderate size that the riders are able to catch quite a bit of air. Others are gap jumps with both lead-in and landing ramps. These are often grouped into sequences of two or more gap jumps. We spotted a pretty large gap jump over a very large gully that was about 15 across and deep. We didn't even think about this as we are older and wiser (at least we would like to attribute our decision to these factors), but some people had put some effort into building this jump. We also discovered some large ramps on steep hillsides that seemed to launch riders into the air as the hillside drops away below them, allowing them to land about 20 feet lower. Not for us!

We noticed that most of the riders here either were shuttled to the top by their parent (!) or pushed their large downhill bikes up to the middle of the hill from the bottom by foot. Except for a short steep and loose section right at the bottom, we all rode the whole way back up to the top without too much problem. Go old guys!

We came back on the familiar trails: Raccoon Run, Elevator, Chaparral, Rambler and Berry. We all did a good job coming down the ramp at the lake (nice job Anna!). Ken was riding his Klein (rear hub on the Ventana is being serviced) and decided to try to ride up the ramp. He forgot that the shifting on old bike is opposite to the newer bike and stalled out on the way up. At first, he started rolling backwards and the tipped over and slid down the rest of the way. He was able to stop his slide by applying his helmet to a steel post with a very impressive thud. A quick check at the scene showed no serious damage to the head, the helment or the post, so we headed back to the truck. We discovered a large lump behind Ken's right ear when we got to the truck. He seems OK and we were all glad it wasn't worse.

Stevens Canyon - November 30, 2008

Ken's back! He has been a bit under the weather, so we took it easy on him and went up Stevens Canyon trail to Black Mountain. Welcome back!

The ride itself was pretty uneventful. We had held a moderate pace, took a break at the bottom of Indian Creek and then rode to the top. I did get a few good pictures of autumn colors, fungi and a newt. The weather was coolish in Redwood Gulch and the road up to the gate, but it was shorts and a short sleeve shirt the rest of the way. Ken did a good job of going all the way to top considering he has been sick.

I did some work on my bike to try to eliminate the creaking noise. All the normal maintenance was done (crank removed, chainring removed and cleaned, rear axle cleaned and greased, main pivot cleaned and greased, new front brake pads, etc.), but the creak is still there. I may have to take it into the shop.

My knees have been hurting the last couple of weeks. I raised my saddle today and it seems better. I'll check again in the morning. It is odd that a small adjustment (a half inch) could make that much difference.

November was my biggest riding month so far. Total ascent was 31,500 feet and total distance was 193 miles, both personal bests by quite a bit. I am feeling stronger, but still have quite a ways to go.

Kennedy/Los Gatos Turkey Ride - November 27, 2008

Its Thanksgiving, so that means it is time for our annual Los Gatos Turkey Ride up to the top of Kennedy. This was my sixth year in a row, so it is definitely on my calendar every year. This year it was Don, Anna, Curtis and me riding. Ken apparently had a bit "too much" vacation and wasn't feeling up to it this year.

It rained quite a bit yesterday. It didn't rain today, but the clouds were still lingering and the air was still moist. We met downtown on Main Street at about 7:40 AM. There were already quite a few people there and they kept coming, so our arrival timing was good. After getting the equipment assembled, some stretching for Don and Anna and the other prepatory rituals, we headed out. We thought we going by ourselves, but quite a few other people had the same idea at the same time.

The ride up to the trail head was unremarkable. As always, the trailhead is the place to take off your jacket (if you're wearing one) and any other unnecessary gear. This is also the place for a last minute loo-stop, some more stretching and a bit more chit chat with all of the other riders. In spite of yesterday's rain, the trails were in pretty good condition with a few soft spots. There were lots of riders, but the incline kept everyone at a pretty slow pace.

About a third of the way up, Curtis volunteered to pull the trailer containing a full suckling pig up to the top. A bit of fiddling to attach the trail to his bike and off he went toward the top. Very impressive. It was also very humiliating since he was still faster than me.

I was plenty warm on the way up, wearing my standard summer wear. The top was cool and misty, so I had to put on my sleeves and jacket after I reached the top and cooled off a bit. Unfortunately, I seemed to continue cooling off after I had my jacket on. After a bit more mingling, I was ready to head down and warm up. We had a good ride down Dog Meat and Limekiln, making much better time than our ascent.

The others headed for coffee after the ride, but I headed home to help out with the Thanksgiving preparations.

Wilder/Pogonip - November 23, 2008

Don, Anna and I had a great ride today (Ken was on vacation and missed out). It was a sunny but cool fall day and perfect for riding. We did our normal ascent up to the top of the hill at the edge of campus and then rode along the ridge. We had a lot of fun exploring some new trails that we found. It seems like the students have been out recently because we came across the remains of a beer party and a "wish tree" in the middle of the forest. Both were kind of a mess. The beer party had lots of empty cans scattered on the ground even through they had hauled two large wheeled garbage cans up to the spot. Maybe they were full. The wish tree had "wishes" written on pieces of paper and then stuck on the branches and trunk of the tree. We cleaned this stuff up and carted it out. Maybe this means their wishes won't come true.

After our bit of exploration, we rode out to the playground and then over to Wilder where we rode in a large loop before heading back over to campus. We rode singletrack back to the cars.

Other than the party remains, this sounds like a typical ride here. So what made it the "great ride" we all agreed it was? There was no clear factor that stood out. I think it was a combination of newness, energy and flow. I already mentioned riding new trails. It is always fun to explore new trails and it is even more fun to do it in a place you have ridden many times before. It keeps things fresh. On the energy factor, it seemed like we all rode strong today. It seemed like we kept a good pace (and I didn't burn out by riding too fast at the start), but looking at the numbers shows that we were riding much faster today than we usually do. All of us rode in the front and held a pretty good pace and the others were pretty close behind.

I think the biggest factor in making this a "great ride" was flow. It seemed like we all had one of those days where the riding was both effortless and fun. Swooping from curve to curve, up and over the obstacles, holding speed up the small steep inclines, building speed when the trail was clear and good breaking into the tight turns allowing us to come out of them fast, and nearly perfect trail and weather conditions all contributed to great flow. I personally am feeling much stronger now that I am riding more, and I think this has a big effect on both speed and flow for me. Not feeling drained means I have energy to apply to more aggressively riding these sections.

Saratoga Gap to Russian Ridge - November 16, 2008

I enjoyed the fall colors at Saratoga Gap on Tuesday, so I talked Don and Anna into riding there again on Sunday. The weather was completely different today with an unseasonably warm day in the mid-80's, about 30 degrees warmer than last time. We got there earlier but the parking lot was already packed with cars, many sporting bike racks. We ended up going at a bit faster pace due to this other traffic. The warm weather brought out the "fair weather" riders, so there were quite a few slower novices that we had to pass.

We went pretty much on the standard route (the same as the Tuesday ride) from Saratoga Gap to the entrance of Russian Ridge. We explored a side trail from the top of the hill climb in Skyline Ridge to near the abandoned tennis courts and the ranger housing, but the trail was pretty unexciting. We decided to turn around at the entrance to Russian Ridge since I was a bit low on water.

The climb over the hills in Skyline Ridge was easier this time. Perhaps it was due to not riding to the far end of Russian Ridge and back, more snacks, or I am just getting into better shape. I felt much stronger today than on Tuesday. Don and Anna commented and suggested that they may need to change their pre-ride breakfast to my bagel and creamcheese. We made it back with just a short stop at the Jikoji gate.

We all enjoyed this ride. Anna got some good pictures on her new camera. The reddish leaves are still on the ground but some of the trees are a brillant yellow. In the forest, there is a nice contrast between these colors, the dark green leaves, and the bright light green leaves where the sun is shining through them. We also got some good shots at Horseshoe Lake.

Saratoga Gap to Rapley Road - November 11, 2008

Since the weather was nice and cool, I went for a ride at Saratoga Gap to catch some of the fall colors. I was by myself, so I decided to focus on holding a sustainable pace. I didn't have a particular destination in mind. We usually get to the Christmas Tree Farm and head back, but I felt good and kept going. I got to Alpine Road, but I felt good and kept going. I went all the way to Rapley Road before I took a break (excluding a few momentary stops for pictures). I held a pretty good pace but I wasn't trying to set a speed or time record.

On the return, I felt pretty good through Russian Ridge, but I started feel it on the hills in Skyline Ridge. Maybe it was because I was 3 hours into a ride with few breaks, maybe it was the fact that I didn't have breakfast or lunch, maybe I am just a whiner. But I pushed on. I did stop for short breaks in a few places, but I rode all the way back at a sustainable pace. Most of the time, I wasn't really breathing that hard, but my legs were tired. It was nice to get back to the car (especially since it was about to get dark), but I could have pushed on further if I needed to. I have certainly felt worse at the end of other Saratoga Gap rides.

So I started this ride with the goal of finding some autumn colors. I wasn't disappointed. I got several good photos of leaf-covered singletrack with lots of red and yellow leaves contrasting with the dark trail and the green moss-covered trees. Pretty nice. As an added bonus, I also saw quite a few animals. As I came up the initial climb in Russian Ridge, I spotted a coyote on the ridgeline. I continued to ride forward but the coyote didn't move until I was within about 20 feet. He slowly moved off while I took several pictures. I also came across several groups of deer, including some that I passed within 10 feet of. I was looking for newts, but I didn't spot any on the trail. I didn't really stop to look in likely places (had to keep moving), but I thought they might be on trails since everything was pretty moist.

I really enjoyed this ride. I held a good pace and pushed myself a bit in terms of endurance, especially with minimal breaks. I also enjoyed the autumn colors that I was looking for.

Grant - November 9, 2008

We went to Joseph D. Grant county park today because these fire roads are usually pretty good after a rain and it came down a bit last night. It was a nice day at my house, but it looked ominous over by Grant.

Things started out well as we saw a deer, a fox, and a flock of turkeys before we even started riding. We were also pleasantly surprised to be told that we didn't have to pay for parking if we parked in the Lake or Twin Gates parking areas. The new policy is to charge only for the picnic area. This was an easy choice, especially since the trails on the south side were temporarily closed due to the rains. This is the first time any of us could remember that use fees have been eliminated or reduced, but we aren't complaining!

We rode up Halls Valley trail. This was nice with a bit of forest. It was cool, but this made the climbing much easier. Unlike hot summer days, we didn't need any rest stops except for a short mechanical repair. We continued up Canada de Pala and Pala Seca trails to Antler Point. Along the way we passed a few horse riders and one hiker with a dog. We were at the high point at Antler Point for only a few minutes when the dog came running up. We ended up talking with the hiker who was interested in getting a new mountain bike. After a few more pictures and talk, we decided to head down before we got chilled (it was cold and windy at the top).

We were having a good ride down the fire road when we detoured on a singletrack shortcut. I was paying attention and notice a large hawk sitting on the ground about 50 feet from the trail. We stopped and watched him for a few moments. I got a picture of it on the ground and two more as it flew by. I thought it was gone, but it landed on a fence post just over a small crest from us. I very slowly approached it, taking more pictures. I ended up getting about 15 feet from it and got several good pictures. I took one more as it flew a little ways off and then we left.

We continued along Canada de Pala down to the next junction. The rest of us were surprised when Ken suggested that we go down Los Huecos trail instead of continuing on up the hill to Yerba Buena trail. This turned out to be a pretty reasonable decision as Los Huecos was in perhaps the best shape we have ever seen it. The dirt was tacky and the gravel was under control. This made descending some of the steeper parts much easier than when things are bone dry and the gravel is like a layer of marbles over the hard dirt.

This was a good ride for all of us. We all seemed to be able to climb pretty well and did not take any breaks other than at Antler Point. The highlight was clearly all of the wildlife we saw, especially the large hawk.

Kennedy - November 2, 2008

It has been raining for the last three days, so we thought we would "save the trails" and ride something that has better drainage. Between this thinking and the upcoming Turkey Ride, we settled on Kennedy.

We started a bit later to let the surface water evaporate or run off. It turns out that the trails were in great shape and the impact of the rain was not usually very noticable other than the complete absence of dust. The few places it was wet enough to leave a tire print showed the biggest prints to be from ranger trucks. The weather started off nice, but got cooler, so maybe some more rain is blowing in.

There wasn't too much notable about the ride. As another rider I met on the way up said, "It is a relentless climb." We made it to the top, paused to talk a bit and take a picture, and then headed back (we assumed that some of the other trails would have more water issues). A warm coffee usually hits the spot, but I started to get a chill. It was nice to put on a few dry, warm clothes at the car.

Coe MTBR Fall Circus 2008 - October 26, 2008

Soquel Demo Forest - October 19, 2008

The weather was great today. Autumn is here with a slight hint of coolness in the morning and a very light breeze. We agreed that this is perfect riding weather. In spite of the great weather, the number of people riding is down considerably from the summer crowds.

Highland Road is still closed, but there has been significant progress. Where there used to be a giant hole, the road seems to be close to ready. They have put in some supporting beams, but it also looks like they have installed some anchors into the hillside that now anchor the structure. It seems like this should be sufficient for minor slides, but the whole thing will go down if there is a major slide.

The climb up was pretty standard: Highland/Buzzard Lagoon/Pig and a few little single tracks. However, one of us got separated from the others somehow. This should serve as a reminder about 2 important group ride practices:

1. Regroup at trail junctions unless everyone explicity agrees on the route. This would avoid most separations, eliminating the need for item 2.
2. If you get separated, retrace your steps to the last regrouping point. Don't keep going forward, don't go back to the start, don't try another trail. This avoids a lot of wasted time and "emotional wear".

Our descent was Ridge and Tractor. In addition to the usual fun, I filmed the rides with my VholdR video camera that I won at Sea Otter. The videos are too big to post (about 330 MB)...just your bad luck. While I have had the camera for quite a while, they did not have a mount for a vented helmet until now. I was pretty impressed with the video quality. I followed Ken on Ridge and had an open path on Tractor. I thought the video was more interesting with a person in the frame, but others may have different opinions. The camera is pretty easy to use in all you have to do is turn it on, put it in the mount, adjust the angle and rotation using the built-in lasers, and use the slider to start and stop recording. It is small and light weight, so I didn't really notice it on the ride. Since it mounted on top of my helmet, I have to be much more careful about trees and large branches that have to be ridden under and small branches and vines that hang out over the trail.

Sierra Azul - October 12, 2008

Autumn has set in. While the sky was clear, the air was crisp and the breeze has changed from refreshing to slightly chilling. This also means that instead of being covered with a few inches of dust, the trails are now covered with leaves. This is a nice change from the summer conditions for both the change in conditions and the reduction in effort since the body does not have to work as hard to cool off.

Starting in downtown Los Gatos, we rode up Jones Trail to Alma Bridge Road. The water level in Lexington Reservoir is still very low, but this may be due the recent construction. It seems like it may almost be done. We rode up Limekiln all the way to the top (the upper part is also known as Power Poles). It is still a good steady climb interspersed with steep climbs. Even though the weather was cooler, it is still hard work. The lower portions of Limekiln had a lot of leaf color. Once at the top, we rode the "woop de doos" on Kennedy Trail to the junction with Priest Rock (aka Dog Meat). We got a bit spread out, and we were surprised when a guy showed up when we were expecting Anna. We chatted with Ben for a few minutes and inspected his Klein Rascal that has been set up for hill climbing (including a 20-tooth chainring only 3 sprockets in the rear). We descended Dog Meat and Limekiln and finished off on Los Gatos Creek to avoid the hikers on Jones.

I wonder if the recent rides will allow us to write all of our bike expenses as medical expenses. We are in the middle of a stock market crash and the rides seem therapeutic. Doesn't anyone want to write a prescription for us to make sure there is no question about the deductibility?

Santa Teresa - October 5, 2008

We had the first brief rain of the season yesterday, so the dust was knocked down for the first time in quite a while. Ken and I headed over to Santa Teresa for a quick morning spin. The weather had cooled off a bit, but it was clear and a great day for riding. I was slow and steady up Stiles Ranch (more slow than steady), but Ken dropped me climbing up Rocky Ridge.

We explored a bit of a service road and a double track just down the road from the former transmission station at the top of Rocky Ridge. Although we took a detour back over to Rocky Ridge, it looked like the service road might be a fast, easier way up to the top. We decided to ride down Rocky Ridge (that's why we were there!) and not explore this route.

After descending Rocky Ridge and returning via Stiles Ranch, we rode back up Fortini to see if we could find the bottom of the doubletrack. We couldn't find it, but we came across a good size 4-point buck who was not too concerned about us. After a couple of pictures, we continued on. He was still there when we returned. GoogleEarth indicates the doubletrack drops out onto Shillingsburg Ave, so we should be able to get back to the trail entrance via San Vicente Ave.

El Sereno - September 30, 2008

This was the last WWR ride of the year as it is getting dark too early. The suggestion was to climb up Montevina Road to El Sereno. This a fairly steady 9% grade. I discovered that slow and steady loses to fast and steady. I was the slow and steady and was the last one to the top.

To make up for the slow climb, my descent down El Sereno was the slowest ever. I felt like I went down as fast as I went up due to darkness. I could barely make out the trail (the lighter section in the moonlight, often the darker section under the trees). This was an unplanned adventure. I should have brought my lights.

We capped off the ride with a pasta and beer a Willow Street in Los Gatos. It was a big crowd and everyone had a good time.

Wilder/Pogonip - September 28, 2008

The weather report was for hot weather in the valley, so we headed to the coast. We were greeted by a coastal fog that did not burn off the whole day. There was sunshine inland, but the fog kept things comfortable.

We did a combination of the usual trails in Wilder and in the UCSC area. We didn't set any personal bests, but we all felt a bit stronger with less than 2 days of rest after our night ride at Canada del Oro. The ride was fun but uneventful except for one "non-endo" from Don who met up with a sapling stump as he went over the far side of a log. Don claimed this was not a fall since he landed on his feet, but after reviewing the instant replay the judges decided otherwise.

We capped off the ride with a tacos and beer a La Cabana in Santa Cruz. We always enjoy this part of the ride!

Canada del Oro Night Ride - September 26, 2008

Saratoga Gap - September 21, 2008

Our last minute decision process resulted in choosing Saratoga Gap this week to make sure Ken could get to an appointment later. We decided to mix things up a bit this time, so we started from the bottom of Redwood Gulch. We agreed that warming up was overrated, so we started with some immediate hill climbing up the road, picking up 600 feet in 1.1 miles. We turned onto Highway 9 and picked up another 1200 feet in 3.2 miles. This was all road work but none of us are in a hurry to enter the Tour de France.

Once at the top, we hit the dirt through Saratoga Gap, Long Ridge and Skyline Ridge OSPs. In the interest of time, we rode exited at the Skyline Ridge parking lot and rode up Highway 35 to Page Mill and went to Montebello OSP to ride Ancient Oak, Skid Road, and Stevens Canyon trail to get back to our starting point. Highlights included:

1. While taking a short break at the Charcoal Road intersection, another rider came down the trail. We were well out of the way but he must have been distracted by Anna as he ran directly into the short signpost (about 2 feet high) as he came into the open area. He managed to save it, but it looked like it had to hurt quite a bit. Better luck next time!
2. We saw quite a few newts (or salamanders) from the bridge over Peters Creek. With just a bit of looking we saw 6-7 hidden in the water.
3. We saw a huge bobcat at the bottom of the downhill section at the Christmas Tree Farm. It brownish-red in color with a fairly short tail, so we thought it must be a bobcat even though it was so big and oddly colored. It quickly disappeared into the brush, so we could not get a picture.
4. Ken developed problems with his front brake that caused them to drag and even lockup. We suspect that he needs to clean the brake pistons to clear out some of the dust that has probably accumulated over the very dry summer.
5. We noticed lots of downed trees (at least 4 had fallen across different trails). There has not been a major storm lately, so we suspect that it is so dry that the trees are suffering and are susceptible to problems that would not normally be an issue for them.

There were quite a few people on the trails today (Hi Anne!). It was a good ride for all of us. Everyone was satisfied that we got in enough hill climbing. Cold beer and Doritos hit the spot afterwards!

El Corte de Madera Creek - September 14, 2008