Day 37 - Big Cones

Time to rest the moto and get on the mountain bike.  Within a short drive was one of the premier MTB trails in Southern California - Noble Canyon.  I'd pass a small town on the way, so this gave me a chance to re-fuel the moto & generator gas cans, and top off on groceries....maybe.

I brave the single lane road once again, but this time no trailer.  Backing up wouldn't be a problem.  I meet three jeeps on the way, and they seem eager to try out a steep embankment to get out of the way.  Otherwise it's clear sailing.  Lots of gas in the truck, so I decide to wait until after the ride to shop.

Most people shuttle the Noble Canyon bike trail, but a few are stupid enough to ride up.  So, let's begin.

The entire climb is an old paved road.  It's mostly used for service vehicles, and a few residents at the base.  I only saw one vehicle on the climb, and it was parked - park workers clearing deadfall.

The climb.  Very steep in parts, but all rideable.

 
It was a hot day - especially for January.  Glad I brought lots of water.

The GPS thermometer isn't 100% accurate,

 but this wasn't that far off.

Just after I stopped for a break in the shade, the road pitches up again.  It's a thankless, soul-sucking climb, and I expect to see a train of roadies at any moment.

Then, the unthinkable.  The road goes downhill.  Argggg.  This means the elevation I just gained will inevitably need to be re-gained.  And so I pedal up the next hill.  Then it goes down again!!!  I pass a fellow rider on the next uphill, and we exchange pleasantries.  Figured I wouldn't see him again.

Finally, after 80 minutes and 13.5 km, I reach the trailhead.

Remember these numbers.

Map of the area

I spot a couple of massive pine cones in the bushes

Just behind the trailhead sign, some snow lingers

from a big storm a couple of weeks before.

A hundred meters into the trail a pass another solo biker as the trail ascends for another kilometer.  But not before more snow.  Real snow this time, no riding trough it.

I reach the high point of the trail in 1:40, 14.6 km from the start.  The descent is smooth, fast, and flowy; no time for pictures.  I eventually pass the first biker I passed on the climb.  Realized that he didn't do the final climb up to the real trailhead, and was able to avoid the above snow.  Good move.

After about 4ish kms the trail turns into chunky jagged rocks.  Not easy to ride, but the Altitude cruises through without too many complaints.  A couple more flowy sections, then the trail starts to flatten out, then go up and down, traversing a ravine.  As it does, the terrain turns rocky once again.

One of many unrideable uphill sections 

 It's starting to become a slog, as more sections like above appear, and the hot sun is taking it's toll.  Next, the trail decides to go uphill through a sandy wash.  This would be a great section on horseback, not so much on the bike.  The terrain is too steep and sandy to ride, so I'm resigned to walking.

After 2:45 from the start, 27km into the ride, I take an extended break for water and food.  The sun is sapping my energy far faster than normal, and I can't wait for the trail to end.  I finally see a trail sign for the parking area, and the trail goes downhill.  After a short flowy section, the trail unfortunately, turns into more of a hiking trail.  Mostly big boulders you have to weave through.  Very slow riding.

I reach the truck in 3hrs 5 minutes, 29.6 kms or riding - felt like 5hrs.  I'd left a bottle of energy drink in the truck, and it goes down in couple of gulps.  The remainder of my food is washed down with the final sips from my hydration pack.  It was a hard ride.  Classic?  No chance.  It would be close if the final sections could be cut out.  Otherwise, the finish is just not worth it.

Recall when I said to 'remember these numbers'?  In case you didn't do the math yourself, here's why.

Ascent to trailhead: 1hr 20 minutes, 13.5km
Trail: 1hr 35 minutes, 16.1km

I'm a very fast descender, so you can see how long those uphill sections took on the 'descent'.

Profile of the ride

Time to hit the grocery store & gas station.  I look for my wallet, and it's nowhere to be found.  Damn, left it in the trailer!!!  I'll have to make another trip out of the campsite the next day, or no generator the next night.

Spend an hour or so catching up on email & writing a blog entry in the parking lot.  Did I mention there is no mobile phone coverage at the campsite?  A sign of things to come.  Well, can't expect much when the site is free.

Day 34-36 - Corral Canyonero

Get up early-ish, and head on up the road to the Corral Canyon OHV Area, hoping that I don't meet anyone on their way out.  Figured people should be on the way in, not on the way out in the morning.   I don't encounter anyone coming the other way until 2 minutes into the single lane part.  Seriously?  Two big trailers were coming my way.  I stopped, got out, and made an assessment.  I could back up about 40 feet where there was just enough room for two vehicles to pass.  This was greeted warmly by the big boys.  It was tight, but they managed to squeeze by without incident.

I drive another 5 minutes and see a motor home with a tow vehicle coming.  This section was on a steep cliff-side, and weaved back and forth.  Luckily we could see each other for a long ways this time.  As the uphill vehicle, I great found a spot to pull over, and wait for him to pass.  Another thankful traveller.

The rest of the drive was clear.  Got into the camping area and found it empty.  Assessed the sites, and picked out a nice one in the trees.

Best spot in the area :)

There were two campsites, and a main parking area.  All three had detailed maps of the area. Below is a blow-up of the OHV area.  There are two moto/atv trails not on this map - the Kernan Cycle Trail, and Spur Meadow Trail.  Both were out & backs.

Map of the trails

Trail difficulty ratings.

Note the differences depending on vehicle.  Nice touch.

As you can see, most of the trails are designated 4wd.  There are only two trails (stated above) that are moto/atv, and two that are moto only.  Though quite a few ATVs staged from the campsite throughout my stay, I never saw a single one on any of the trails.

Time to suit up.  First time on the trip that I'll need my moto boots, shin pads, and motocross helmet.  Let's to rock it! 

Moto is serious business

Wind power

Started out on a short moto trail that lead back to the main parking lot, and eventually the Kernan Cycle Trail.  The connector trail (#2 - Corral on the map) was an easy green trail with some small tabletop jumps.  Fun trail indeed.  Had to take it slow in case someone was coming in the other direction.  I was also re-acquainting myself with the 400 on trails.  An entirely different experience than road riding.

One of the few trails in the area for just motorcycles & quads

Most of the trail was moderately packed sand.  It was twisty, bermy, and a heck of a lot of fun.

Typical section of trail on the Kernan

Quality vistas

There were some great views of Lake Morena

Wasn't long before the 'red mist' took over, and I was up to near racing speed.  How could you resist, on such fun trails?  Only one part of the Kernan was a technical challenge.  It switchbacked up a steep hill, mostly on babyhead rocks for about 5 minutes of 2nd & 3rd gear climbing.  The rest of the trail was 3rd & a little 4th.  Descending this section was a blast.

A 4th gear section

And then the first breakage of the day.  Pulled over for a quick drink & snack and found my left rear signal light dangling.   It sticks out past the rack, should have know it would never survive.

First casualty.

Not street legal any more :(

Time to break out the tools

All better.  Should have taken them off BEFORE riding.

Back from the Kernan, and onto the OHV area trails.  I planned out a route that would take me through just about every trail on the map.  No big trees in the area, mostly junipers and lots of desert scrub.
 

There were also a few nice slick rock sections

These boulders appeared to have come from the sky.

There's nothing around here that's higher.

Technical section.

This was definitely a 'blue' trail move, but it was on a green trail.

...but the 400 easily climbed it

Onto some of the black diamond 4x4 trails.  These were not so fun on the bike.  The ascents weren't too bad, but I definitely lucked out on picking the right direction of travel.  Some of the downs were terrible, and may have been impossible to climb.

4x4 territory

easy peasy....riding down

Had to stop and look at this one for a few minutes.  It's about a 70 degree face, 4 feet high where the bike is.  The right line (left on picture) was far less steep, but riddled with big loose rocks.  I chose the line where the bike is.  Again, the XR was equal to the task.

More nice vistas

Fire!!!!! 

Wasn't that close, and was out by the next day.

Once I had my moto legs, I had to try one of the black diamond moto trails.

Time for something a little more challenging

This was the crux of the #9 trail.  A chunky rock face with a difficult entry - tight uphill corner with loose sand.  I made a couple of lame attempts, but eventually gave up.  Just wasn't worth the risk of injury or bike damage.

On the third day, I rode the trail in the downhill direction.  The rock face wasn't hard at all.  I ended up riding this trail about 5 times while I was at Corral Canyon - all in the downhill direction.  It also had a steep 8 foot uphill rock face that was a real confidence booster.  This was definitely one of the best trails in the area.  I never found the other black diamond moto trail - #7 on the map.

More to come on Corral.

Day 33 - Bye Bye Pacific

Last day I'll be on the coast for months, sad to see it in my rear view mirror, but looking forward to what's coming next.

Late to bed = late to rise.  Not a strong start for a travel day, but time is on my side.  Was planning on boondocking for an extended period, so there were many stops on the way out of town.  Food, gas, beer, and essentials for the trailer were on the shopping list. It was late-afternoon before I finally reached Hwy 8 on the East side of San Diego. 

The road wasn't busy, but the hills were steep.  It took about twice as long as the GPS estimate to arrive at my exit, and I arrived just after dark.  The road to the campsite was about 11 miles up the road.  The last four of which is twisty single lane.  I didn't fancy doing this in the dark, so I spent the night in the road-side Rest Area.  You're only supposed to spend eight hours maximum at rest areas, but the place was nearly empty.  Doubt they minded.  Guess time wasn't really on my side after all.

Time to make lemonade.  Spent the next three hours researching the area and trying to find other places to ride my bikes.  Didn't find much, but enough for at least a few days.  I'll have to research more tomorrow night.

Map of the day's drive