Give Me Patience

Each of the four seasons is theoretically 1/4 of the year and should therefore last three months.  This year we've got more than our share of winter, something that is probably pretty obvious to anyone living in the Northeast.  It started being winter sometime in November, even though the calendar says that winter doesn't start till after the middle of December.  So we've had half of November, all of December, January and February - and now it's March and I'm still looking out my window at snow.

Lord, give me patience.

Patience to wait out the days as the temps slowly start to warm and the snow shrinks and finally vanishes.  Patience to wait out the 'mud season' so that the trails will be firm enough to ride.  Patience to wait until the conditions are finally just right for a great mountain bike ride, or whitewater kayak run, or maybe even a backpacking trip.  Just take a deep breath and relax - that time is definitely coming soon.

But I've been trying to get out and do what I can to get some fresh air and exercise.  I've been doing quite a bit of trail work this winter, cutting new corridor to finish up the phase 3 trail at North Road Nature Preserve.  Last summer we built a section of trail through the mature woods that line the creek.  This is a beautiful area, and pretty easy to make trails through, as the canopy keeps the undergrowth down to a reasonable level. 



Flagging a new section of trail in the more mature woods.

 

But in the fall I started working in an area with a much younger woods, and another area of dense scrub.  This stuff is HARD to build trail through - I call it 'the most work for the least return'.  Thankfully the distance through this scrub is not that long on this loop, so a couple more work days should at least let me cut the corridor all the way through.  Then as the weather improves and the ground eventually dries up we'll be able to start getting the stumps out and filling in the low spots.  We hope to finish this trail loop by early summer, and spend the rest of the year improving the existing trails and possibly adding a new trail extension.  Even though these are beginner level trails, it is absolutely a GREAT thing to have a mountain bike trail less than five miles from my house.

I headed out a couple of weeks ago to try and get in a ride on the rural roads in northern Trumbull County.  The roads were clear of snow, but any place that I was legally allowed to park was still covered with 8" of soft snow.  So that pretty much ended that days riding before it even started.  But by last weekend there had been a few days where the temps got above freezing, so the snow cover had lessened, and I had hopes that I could park in one of the rail trail parking lots and get in a road ride from there.  It was still mostly snow covered, but clear enough that my little car could get in and out without too much trouble.

Oakfield parking area, Western Reserve Greenway.

It's pretty easy to make a route up there that follows roads with almost no traffic.  I think I usually see an average of one car every 10 minutes (and mistrustful me, I usually pull off the road to let them pass).  There are some interesting old dead ends in the area, too.   Here's one I followed till it reached the edge of the wildlife area:

Don't shoot swans.

The road surface wasn't exactly easy to ride on, but if I wanted easy I could always sit on the couch drinking beer.

Some of the dead ends get very little traffic this time of year, so the snow is easier to ride than on the road above.

Very quiet back here.

And sometimes you can find a bike accessible route on roads that haven't seen car traffic in years and years.

Bridge closed - except to stubborn bicyclists.

Occasionally these dead ends require a bit of hike a bike - especially in the areas with unbroken snow - but its all good.

Hike a bike territory.

But I always end up back on the pavement, heading back into farm country. 

Smooth riding!

I have Friday after lunch open for riding again this week.  And with temps forecast to climb today and tomorrow I'm hoping that this chest cold that developed yesterday gives me enough wind to still get out and ride.  If not - patience...

Rocks and Mud

Back in the day, years and years ago, I got around in the woods on foot.  I spent a lot of time backpacking around the national forests of the eastern US, especially the wilderness areas.   The prospect of a day walking through mud or rocks never particularly bothered me - it was just part of the price of admission.

Rocks at the IMBA Epic trails at Ellicottville, NY

Later I turned my attention to traveling by water, and I started spending a lot of my time in a kayak.  At first it was back in the swamps and ponds, where I certainly became a lot more intimately acquainted with mud - like the stinky, slimy mud packed into beaver dams.  Later my paddling adventures centered more around whitewater, with hundreds of trips on dozens of streams across the Appalachians and Adirondacks.  Rocks became an essential part of every trip, every stream and every rapid - along with water they defined the experience.



Me on Scrubgrass Creek, PA

 These days I get around in the woods on a bicycle, though I still spend some time paddling and hiking.  Rocks and mud have a different kind of significance in this realm, one as tied to the definition of the experience as rock and water are tied to whitewater kayaking.  Some would say that mud and rock are there for riders to conquer, though I don't see how you ever beat the rocks - you just manage to not let them beat you.  For me, they help to create this huge stage, where I get to go and play - making as much as I can out of what's there and what I can do.



My brother at Ellicottville, NY

Mud is another deal though.  In small doses it can be just a part of the mix that creates a challenging ride.  A lot of riders have experience with those soft spots that seem to hardly ever dry out, and have to be ridden with different strategies for different moisture levels.  The other face of mud is that of the barrier - when it's so bad that you can't with good conscience continue on down the trail because to the damage you'd do.  That's when a mountain biker hates the mud - even though it's just the same old trail with a bit more water.

Moraine

This week I took the chance to head out to the trails at Moraine State Park, in Pennsylvania.  These trails handle the water better than any place around, and though it was pretty wet I thought I'd take a chance. Moraine has a lot of rocks, with a good portion of decayed sandstone in the soil, so it drains really well. Once I got on the singletrack I could tell that the soil was moist under the leaves, but most of it was still pretty solid.   There were places where the trail doesn't drain well due to the way it was laid out, but these were short stretches and not really all that bad to get off and walk around.  And since it's such a technical trail that I'm not able to ride far without putting down a foot anyway, having to get off and walk on 10% of the trail doesn't ruin the ride for me.

It was a good ride.  I had a nice couple of downhill sections, some rewarding technical features, and I fell over a couple of times.  But no damage was done to me or the bike, and I did get out and get in the sun for a while so it was all good.  I wish I would have had another hour, then I would have made the whole big loop rather than do a small loop and then some out-n-back.  Maybe on Sunday?

Near Moraine State Park.

Kenny and I went out and did some trail work on Saturday morning.  I hadn't called for the group to come and work, so it was just the two of us.  Big portions of the trail were really, really muddy and we spent some time looking at a reroute for the worst section.  We did find a slightly higher spot, but it's in the middle of the biggest wild rose thicket I have ever seen. I'm torn up all over from the damn thorns.

Near Neshannock Falls, PA

We also spent a couple of hours digging rocks out of the old spoils piles from when they bulldozed in the roads fifty years ago.  It's hard, dirty work but if the only rocks in the area are ones that have to be dug up, then that's the way it has to be.  This area is mostly full of chunks of flagstone, and we found some huge pieces that will be great for firming up the muddy sections.  I have a feeling that there is a LOT more rock in there, if we're willing to put in the sweat to dig it up.



Bridge over Neshannock Creek, where I've spent many days paddling.


We had a good time though.  It's always a good time going to do trail work with Kenny - he's a fun kid.  He loves digging in the dirt - getting muddy is no problem for this boy.  Now that I think about it, we had another fun day centered on rocks and mud.



On the way home - day is done.

I put together a little video of Moraine riding from this January and February.  It's nothing spectacular by any means, though I do like the song ("Cross Country" by the Godz).