The High Desert Natl Rec Trail (HDNRT) from South Fork to Devil's Punchbowl is another trail I want to use for the route. It is habitually neglected and not entirely suitable for bikes in its typical state so I wanted to see what Gabe thought of it. Matt B of the Lowelifes made the drive up to join us.


Gabe checks out a new EZ-up and banner for Orogenesis events.




The plan was to self shuttle rather than do an out and back so I suggested adding Manzanita Trail as well. If there was too much snow, it's an easy ride back down to South Fork CG where we can pick up the HDNRT.

We could see snow covered slopes as we started the fire road climb but it looked like the snow line might be high enough for us to sneak through. The stream crossings over the road were flowing surprisingly low, and it turned out the road was clear and dry all the way to Hwy 2.


pic by Gabe


Matt and I up at Vincent Gap. Mt Baldy in the background


pic by Gabe


We dropped in to Manzanita. The trail condition was promising at first, but we soon found ourselves gingerly carrying bikes over steep angled snow. The nose of the snow banks was just below the trail so we kept going, hoping it wouldn't last long


pic by Gabe


And it didn't. But we did get into a bunch of downed trees in the forested sections on top of the rockfall and other debris on the trail.




The first wash crossing was in good shape. The others had been rearranged by snow and runoff like usual.




The iconic part of Manzanita with its retaining walls was worse for wear. A few years back it was almost all rideable.




More sections of wall have broken or simply been dislodged from the slope with gravity and erosion is doing its thing. We walked or carried bikes for almost the entire section


pic by Gabe


Checking out the carnage




The west end of Manzanita sees maintenance by people who live in a small community below the trail. We started seeing recent work above the switchbacks.

Even more work had been done down towards the campground, including a new bridge over a small stream channel. It's apparently an anti-dumb-down bridge with two skinnies, just far enough apart to swallow a 2.6" tire if you're not paying attention.




High up in the San Gabriels a section of PCT has been under an endangered species closure for a number of years. So the PCT temporarily adopted the HDNRT as its route, dropping down South Fork Trail, across to Devil's Punchbowl and up Burkhart Trail. Even though this is a temporary change they have put up PCT markers and no bikes signs, even though bikes are still allowed on HDNRT. Well, Orogenesis can claim this route too. There was also a Wilderness boundary sign placed far below the actual boundary.


pic by Gabe


South Fork creek was flowing strong




The first section of trail climbing away from from the creek had been worked on the last year or two and had a nice bench cut. We could see the trail above us and were optimistic it would be in good shape. It looks fine in this pic from above.




That optimism was short lived and we soon found that mass wasting had swallowed up long sections of bench cut.




And where the bench still existed it was covered in fallen rock and other debris




That was still better than what we found after we crossed the saddle, which was no trail at all for about a hundred feet. From where I'm standing to the corner was crazy sketchy. We weren't sure we'd be able to get around the corner.




The crux was getting past the overhanging bush. Beyond that where Matt is standing below turned out to not be that bad.




And after carrying the bikes a bit further we were able to ride much of the descent down into the drainage bottom.


pic by Gabe


This section of HDNRT is known for the jagged-looking WWII-era Marsden mats and exposed metal stakes used to hold up crumbling slopes. No one would blame you for thinking it was built by meth addicts with ADHD who only got the job half done.




We made the short side trip to check out the Devil's Chair.


pic by Gabe


It is a cool spot! Most people who visit Devil's Punchbowl County Park do not venture further than this.






The last few miles back to the trailhead were in good shape. It was a relief to be pedaling rather than carrying/pushing.




That was another solid adventure ride that took way longer than expected.

Unfortunately, with the deterioration of the trail we can't send people on it as part of a route until it gets fixed. That section by the saddle was sketchy enough without packs. With loaded bikes it would be downright dangerous. We'll bypass on pavement from South Fork CG for now instead.

This is the sort of thing we'll find often as we piece this route together. Lines on maps that might be poor condition or in many cases non-existent on the ground. A big part of the project will be partnering with local orgs and raising funds to rehab sections like this. And then maintain them.

Thank you! Love these three pics.

_________________
It is not enough to fight for the West; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it's still here. -Edward Abbey

Lots of stuff left to check out but only one day left on this trip. Gabe needed to be in Tehachapi for another trail work day so we stuck to that general area, heading up just past Mojave to Jawbone Canyon.


Since there are limited ways to get from the Angeles Natl Forest to the Southern Sierras we are stuck following the LA Aquaduct via Mojave for now. The PCT currently uses ~20 miles of Aquaduct as well, though they are trying to win access to move the PCT up into the massive [url="https://tejonranch.com/location/#map-container"]Tejon Ranch[/url] property when it is developed. Marketing materials suggest bike access is to be included in the development, but even if Orogenesis is able to pass through that property we will still likely end up on the LA Aquaduct to Mojave due to the huge amount of private (wind farm) land between Tejon Ranch, Tehachapi and the Sierras.


So, finding a good way to get from Mojave up into the mountains was a priority. I found a cool route over the ridge to Jawbone Canyon last year. Now to see what someone things seeing it for the first time.


pic by Gabe


The route climbs from the Aquaduct road just north of Hwy 14, up the LA Water Road / MK72




Despite a sign at the bottom warning of "deep dangerous washouts" the road is butter smooth and a very easy grade for climbing by Socal standards




It's pretty scenic too, with wide views of the desert and plenty of flowers in early May


pic by Gabe


Once the road drops down over the ridge into Jawbone Canyon it is steeper and more torn up from OHV traffic. Not a big deal going downhill, but climbing it would suck. Instead I found a more interesting alternative. Of course you have to pay to play going that way too with a bit of steep hike a bike.




This is the access road for an abandoned mine up on top of the ridge. Great views looking down over Jawbone Cyn. Hwy 395 is off in one of the distant valleys.




Checking out the scene up top with long-abandoned vehicles, mine tailings, old equipment and trash




A bit more climbing to the top. You can see the old mine on the right. Lots of vehicles down the slope below us.




Looking back over the mountains we just rode through. The water road we climbed navigates around the entire ridge on the right. I've explored a bunch of moto trails all over these mountains and most are so steep they are sketchy to walk, nevermind ride.




The route drops down the far side of the ridge to another saddle, where we get a super steep descent for ~100 yards.




After that the grade is pretty nice. I explored up to the saddle in the background from both sides. The sandstone formations up there are really cool, but it's not a realistic route by bike.




Magazine worthy shot by Gabe that makes the desert look like high alpine wilderness


pic by Gabe


The route traverses down a canyon with a bunch of short steep pitches. It's a bit of work heading the other way. With a very steep final pitch down the nose of the ridge at the bottom.




I like this route. It's got some super steep parts that are sketchy going down and a very tough push going up. But the views and remoteness up top are pretty worthwhile. And after 40 some miles of Aquaduct road hopefully people will be ready for something a bit different : )



More to come....

Not only are the pics fantastic, but looking at what you did and where you went to get that shot is really appreciated. Well done evdog, again

_________________
You never know what tomorrow will bring so go ride your EBike today or walk your pooch
Fear the Yeti
"Go ride your bike today, don't let the old man in.."

Mike

After a few weeks break from roadtripping to deal with massive brush growth in the trail networks I take care of, it was time to get out again as a cooling trend was about to hit. Channel Islands hiking has been a long-time bucket list item and I finally booked a trip just before Memorial Day --> viewtopic.php?f=20&t=18432

The plan after that was to head over north of LA and scout a section of trail I'd been looking at for some time. The main route I was interested in is Cienaga Canyon, which is the main canyon in the center of the photo below which curves around behind the ridge on the left. I also wanted to explore Warm Springs Canyon, which comes in on the right. Both look super cool but aren't often ridden by bikes, so conditions are unknown.




I decided to check out Warm Springs Canyon first. The dirt road gets primitive real fast with lots of storm damage on the first steeper section of road. The road is permanently closed to motor vehicles and is no longer maintained.




The road narrowed down but its condition improved as the grade mellowed out.




After a number of creek crossings, the road became the creek. Just behind me a heavy gate had been torn away by water and debris. In front, the concrete was undermined by the water and crumbling




Would make for a great hike on a warm day. I expected to do some hike a bike later so I was trying to keep my feet dry for now.




Stream crossings continued. It was a really cool narrow canyon.




Lots of choice swimming holes




I passed the abandoned Cienaga campground and kept going. No more stream crossings, no more concrete. And pretty much no traffic beyond the campground except for the occasional dirt bike




The road climbs up about 1200ft to Warm Springs Divide




Other than a few washouts and other damage the road was in pretty good shape




California King!




Lots of yucca. The high point of the road is just ahead (that's a different road heading up to the left)




The original plan was to follow Warm Springs Truck Trail all the way to Lake Hughes Road. But it had been in pretty good shape and I didn't feel like dropping down a thousand feet just to climb back up.

So I turned around at the saddle and headed back down to Cienaga campground, which is down where the oak trees are in the pic below.




The second part of the mission was to check out the bottom of Fish Creek Trail. This one goes all the way up to Liebre Mountain, but much of it has been impassable for years due to fires, storms and neglect.




The bottom part of the trail was in decent shape. A bit overgrown but easy to follow. There were a half dozen wet stream crossings.




At a spot called the Pianobox Prospect I found this trail camp below a huge oak tree. No signs of use.




The trail continues through the canyon bottom right up the stream bed. Needless to say there was no obvious tread.




I didn't see any mine shafts but there were some concrete foundations in the creek bed, likely an old dam.




What I was most interested in here is a trail that splits off to the west and climbs over a ridgeline where it connects to Cienaga Canyon. It took a few tries but I found it. And once on it, it wasn't hard to follow. But it was too steep and overgrown to haul a bike through. I figured it might be best to check out Cienaga Canyon first before I do a big bushwack as I was skeptical what kind of effort might be involved to follow this trail.




So rather than continue on I turned back. Tried to ride one of the stream crossings and ended up with wet feet. The rest of the ride back was a lot faster when not removing shoes to keep feet dry.




A swim was in order at one of the last crossings. Perfect temps, and great way to finish off the ride.




Verdict on Warm Springs Truck Trail - it is a good option for the route. Nice and primitive without vehicles on it. And the water features make for an interesting ride if we end up using it. Not sure about Fish Canyon quite yet.

With another day of cool weather I pulled the trigger on the Cienaga Canyon exploration. If not now, it would likely go on the back burner until late fall.

No moto with me on this trip, so I had no way to self shuttle. I settled on riding a loop using the Old Ridge Road which meanders north-south in the hills above I-5 and connects directly to the forest road I will start on.


Riding ORR would add 19 miles of pavement and over 3k gain to get to the start of the dirt. But the ORR is gated at both ends so at least it would be a quiet ride. Well, except for the freeway noise from far below. And the damn roadies buzzing past.




The pavement was not bad, took less than 3hrs. Lots of cool scenery and old history like the hotel ruins above. Upon reaching my turnoff, spotted another one of those CRHT stickers. It's everywhere I want to be, lol.




Most of the climbing was already done for the day so once on dirt the road traverses around the south of Liebre Mtn and out of sight




Nice doubletrack. There is an active mine somewhere back here and there were recent tire tracks on the road.




Looking down at [url="http://pmchiking.snowflaketrails.com/HTML/frank.html"]Knapp Ranch[/url] sitting under the distant pine trees. The ranch dates back to the early 1900s but is now owned by the Forest Service




Sure it has, with no camera or electricity....




Knapp Ranch, or is it the Mickey Mouse Ranch?




Spent a bit of time walking around and checking out the buildings. Kind of a creepy place, complete with doors that bang open and shut in the breeze




Orogenesis Tonic Water!




Time to get going. I've read ride reports by one group who has ridden this canyon a few times. There was mention of difficulty following the trail in a few spots plus photos of heavy brush had me a bit apprehensive about this ride. But the most recent TR also mentioned just 3 hours ride time. I had all afternoon, so what could go wrong?


The trail down Cienaga Canyon was originally an Indian trail leading to settlements in the canyon. After the settlements were systematically depopulated by Spanish Missionaries in the early 1800s the trail was used by hunters and by miners searching for gold in the canyons. Once the ranch was homesteaded in the early 1900s the trail was bladed into a ranch road. It was abandoned after the 1950s and faded back to singletrack, only seeing occasional use since then.


Finding the trail right out of the ranch house was said to be a problem, but the old road seemed pretty obvious to me heading south and then turning slightly west after crossing a wash




Looking back at the ranch. The road turned right here around this post and then followed a fenceline west. I could see a road cut climbing up a short hillside from here. This seemed to be going well.




There was a series of tall fence posts...or maybe telephone poles on one side of the road cut. Between that, the obvious bench, and the different vegetation navigation proved to be quite simple.




What made it harder was the debris spread over the road cut. Seemed like it had been re-bladed into a fire break years ago with branches and cut trees spread over the break to discourage vehicles. There was enough debris it actually made riding hard, especially when hidden by the brush.




Just below Bear Canyon, the route turns left and then climbs up a couple switchbacks on its way up to a ridgeline. This was another navigational challenge mentioned with a landslide wiping out the trail. But the road cut had definitely been bladed back into shape and there was no issue spotting the turns.




Great views from the top of the climb.




Looking over Red Rock Canyon




I recognized this rock from the old trip reports. There is definitely more brush now. Brush had been sparse for a while up top, but dropping back down it became thick again.




Cool caves right next to the road




Last view before dropping down. At this spot the trail from Fish Canyon should have intersected this trail. But I never saw it. And by the time I'd realized I missed it I was in no mood to go back (see next photos)




The road crossed around to the east side of the ridge and brush exploded as it dropped down. I couldn't push through the brush, had to drag the bike over top of it.




I'll call this velcro plant. It was nasty. The only way to get it off my pants was to let it dry and then crush and scrape it off.




The brush thinned here as I dropped down but only due to tons of rockfall from above. Down by the trees the brush got bad again.




Finally dropping back into Castaic Creek. I was hoping things would get easier here. And it did...for about 50 feet. Then the trail disappeared into a mess of storm debris.




For the next half mile I was back and forth between road cut and creek bed. Every time I’d find a section of trail it would end in a rock fall or wall of brush or poison oak. At one point I climbed up on rockfall on the canyon wall to bypass some thick brush. Spotted a couple cairns on the rocks, so I wasn't the only one going this way.







Finally a large washout ended the road cut for good and I was down in the creek bed. Passed through a cool waterfall section. This was some of the easiest going for quite a while







Found the spot where the trail cut across a bend in the creek. It went from following obvious trail to following cairns pretty quick.




And then out of nowhere was a concrete stream crossing. It’s only real benefits now are 100ft of smooth sailing, and confirmation you’re on the right path. Then, soon as it ended the bushwack resumed.




Final section of road cut. At the rockfall just ahead it would be back into the creek again. Not far beyond that, was the end.





What a day. My ride time from start of 7N23 to the end was around 7 hours. So...double what the last TR stated. I take that as proof the trail condition has deteriorated in the last few years.

Up to the rock caves, the route had been pretty good despite the overgrowth. It really just needs to have the brush cut back and debris removed to make it rideable.

I'd say the section dropping down to Castaic Creek through to the end is a lost cause. There is nothing there to rehab. You'd be trying to build trail in a canyon that mother nature is continually trying to destroy. For half of that stretch there is no real way to avoid the creek bed.

So I still need to get back in and check the trail over to Fish Canyon. It climbs and descends around 1000ft in 3 miles but at least it won't be in a creek bed. I'll put this down as a long-term wish list for the route. But for now it's not usable.

With temps warming up a bit I decided to go up a bit in elevation.

Original plan: head back up Mt Gleason and do a bit more exploring. The gate at the bottom was still locked though, and I didn't feel like a 7 mile pavement climb to get up there.

Plan B: climb up Grizzly Flats Trail and drop Stone Canyon. There are 6 crossings of the Big Tujunga River which I found was running uncomfortably fast and high. Also didn't want wet shoes for 3k of climbing, but bare feet is a no-go due to broken glass at the two lower stream crossings.

So...Plan C: Check out a new-to-me trail up by Mt Wilson.


I drove up to Eaton Saddle and picked up the Mt Lowe East Trail (aka Upper Sam Merrill). Quite a few hikers out.




Climbed back up the Mt Lowe Railway a ways to Tom Sloan Trail, the target for today. Don't know anyone who's ridden it and it shows zero activity on TF. But it seems like hikers do use it, so maybe it'll be ok?




It started off really nice.




Actually, the whole trail was nice. No steep sections, and good tread. It got narrow in places, especially along sheer cliffs. Try not to fall to the left, eh?




The Dudleya and a few flowers provided the only color in the mist




The further I got along the trail, the more raw it became




I walked a few spots because tagging the cliff wall with a handlebar could result in a bit of a tumble




Nicely built stairs




Brush tunnel. Made it to Tom Sloane saddle where there is a 4-way intersection with Bear Canyon Trail. That's another trail of interest so I poked my head down it 100 yards. It was a bit overgrown, but not bad. Regardless I was turning the other way down the Dawn Mine trail today.




Dawn Mine started off with a few switchbacks. It had less exposure than Tom Sloan and a decent bench cut




It got a bit overgrown in a few places but never bad. And no poison oak to speak of.




I was liking it. The trail drops around 1,000ft in a mile and a half




It was obviously not built for bikes, with a number of rock staircases and some seasonal stream crossings armored with rock in a way that made them hard to ride over




At the bottom of the Dawn Mine trail is....the Dawn Mine. The shaft goes back about 40ft into solid rock.




More rock work as I start the climb out. This side is steeper, with around 500ft gain in just over half mile




The tread was in good shape though, and solid footing made for easy pushing




The exposure was real.




From here to the end just around the corner was about all I rode.




Then it was back up the Mt Lowe Railway




Why is it getting so bright out all of a sudden? : )




Considered bagging San Gabriel Peak just above this, but with the mist I was pretty soaked and getting a bit chilly.


Passed back through the iconic Meuller Tunnel to get back to the truck




The clouds were nipping at my feet the whole way back. Only 12 miles for this ride, but they were high quality miles. I'll do Tom Sloane again for sure. It can be added to any of the regular rides that get up this high on the mountain.

Since I was right there, I wanted to ride Strawberry Peak. Spent some time scanning around seeing if there was anything else I wanted to ride. A few options looked interesting that I could add on...maybe traverse over to Mt Lukens and ride Blue Bug. But I kept getting drawn back to Bear Canyon which I crossed over the day before. There was actually one ride log from a year ago, and the report comment only mentioned "river running - low volume". If it sucked, they would have said so, right???


Linking it with Strawberry Peak could be done with a bit of effort that would also let me check out a couple other new-to-me trails. So I made the climb up from Switzers trailhead to Josephine saddle and then made my way up the fire road in the clouds.




A hiker on the last road switchback said I should break through the cloud at the top. Not looking promising. The initial traverse was a bit worse for wear with some rockfall at the usual spots forcing a carry past those points.




The clouds were stopped by the ridgeline so as I traversed around the backside I broke into sunshine. Flowers emerged as well




One of my favorite spots on the backside




The switchbacks beyond the meadow have been cleaned up some, and I was able to ride more than usual




Here's a WTF for you. Poison oak normally doesn't grow above 5,000ft. I'm at 5,152ft. And here it is.




The clouds were waiting for me at the saddle, so I said goodbye to the sun for the rest of the day




I took a quick break down at Redbox trailhead, and then started the climb up Mt Disappointment. Bill Reilly Trail also goes to Mt Disappointment, but it looked like a straight up staircase at the bottom so I gave it a pass. I regretted that later as it looked pretty nice higher up. Oh well. I stuck to the road. San Gabriel Peak which I'd skipped the day before was right there, but it was in the thick soup so there would be no views. And probably very limited riding. So I skipped it again and headed down the San Gabriel Peak trail to Markham saddle. Aside from a few tight, rubbly switchbacks I couldn't get and some short pushes, it was a fun descent.

A quick run down the Mt Lowe Railway brought me to Bear Canyon.


The upper part was similar feel to most San Gabriels trails. Steep, narrow, exposed, a bit overgrown. It stayed up on the ridgeline for awhile before dropping down in a series of switchbacks.




No issues down to Tom Sloan saddle. I continued on, and the trail was rideable and fun with a few switchbacks and technical spots to keep things interesting




Despite the cloud there were still some views over Millard Canyon




But soon enough I dropped down into thicker brush and what I thought was Bear camp. Turns out it wasn't. Not sure what this little building was. There was no obvious mine that I could see.




That is where the trail got interesting as it dropped into the canyon bottom and alternated between following the stream, crossing the stream, and traversing from one side of the canyon to the other.




Oh, and the waterfalls.




There were lots of them




Then came the poison oak. First just some short patches like this. Later there were several PO tunnels that ran 50-100 feet.

My trick is to grab a stick and whack the PO stems that reach over the trail. The stems are weak and easily broken. Discard stick when done and keep track of where any flying debris contacted you




I was overtaken by a couple backpackers while I bashed through one of those PO tunnels. They were headed to Bear camp. It seemed to have space for 3-4 groups and there was already one group there.




Beyond Bear, the number of stream crossings ramped up. It had been a while since I'd pedaled a single stroke, and there was definitely no pedaling through here. The trail goes straight down the log here and then crosses to the far side




Finally I started finding rideable sections. They might have only been 100ft to the next obstruction, but they were sweet




One last PO tunnel. I consider myself fortunate to come away from this ride unscathed.




Oops. That sign would have been useful at the top of the trail : )




Another rideable 100ft




And more waterfalls.




All the hikers go to Switzer falls which is nearby. Bear doesn't get much publicity (and falls not very tall) so it doesn't see much traffic. If it had been sunny out I would have been in for a swim in one of these holes for sure.




And before long I was on the Gabrielino doing the final climb out. The usually busy trail was deserted by early evening and I didn't see a single person until I got back to the trailhead.




Verdict on Bear Canyon: I liked it. Cool trail to hike. But probably best to leave the bike at home.

Honestly, these TR’s are some of the best things going that I have found. I have bemoaned the loss of good print magazines (those focused on bike stories, not tests and advertising) with glossy photos, and these fill that void. Thanks again Evan.

_________________
Thus, if we are to understand the world, we should live somewhere between judgement and amazement — Alfredo Lopez Austin

Yes, Evan, these TR's of yours are definitely magazine or book grade, and the photography is really great.
Thanks for posting these up here. It's the best thing online this side of the paywalls.
It's better than most content BEHIND the paywalls, too!
Please keep it up!

_________________
Scum on a Bike

Headed back up north last weekend for some more Orogenesis festivities.

I was hoping to get underway right after morning rush hour, but ended up leaving just in time to hit the start of LA afternoon rush hour. Traffic killed a shot at one of the rides I wanted to do, so I opted to hit up another long time bucket list ride called Blue Bug near San Fernando.


The climb was up Haines Canyon, a fire road that is going back to singletrack. It had been blocked by a landslide that riders had recently come in to dig a trail across. Nice work!




Wasn't sure I'd make it all the way to the top of Mt Lukens, thats a 2800ft climb and I only had 2.5 hrs til dark. But the climb went fast and I made it to the top 20min before sunset.




A bit of rockfall higher up. This road isn't passable to vehicles right now.




Golden hour flowers




Blue Bug splits off Haines Canyon and is named for, well, a blue bug that has long lived near the top of the trail.




Aaaand...Just what the trail needed - a booter over the bug.

This has always been known as a cool, natural backcountry trail. Apparently the locals who maintain a jump trail lower on the mountain just recently completed an "endurofication" of Blue bug with jumps, berms and replacing tight switchbacks with big, round bermed corners. A bummer as this will just attract the ebike crowd for party laps. They better be careful though, the exposure is still there if they get going too hot...




Example of the bermage. Looks like you can rail the turn, but it ends a lot tighter than it looks and would be easy to get launched down a steep slope.




Still a fun ride. These mountains will quickly reclaim the trails original character if not maintained.

The ride we did back in early May (bottom of first page) got the Lowelifes interested in punching through a connection from Mt Gleason down to Acton. I didn't even have to ask, they just said "we'd be down to help with that" and threw out some dates to get started.

Schedules aligned last weekend and we made plans to put in a couple days work before it gets too hot. They got approval from the Forest Service so we were good to go with vehicle access past the locked gate as well. The easiest way to make the connection is via an old grown over mining road that drops down to a saddle where the singletrack tops out.



Start of the mining road. It looked like someone has already done some brushing since my scouting hike last year.




Not all of the mining road is overgrown. No work needed through here. It is steep though, so it will be work for anyone pushing a bike uphill.




Lower down there were a couple hundred yards of thick brush with downed trees. We got into that the first day and spent our time there the second day as well. We had a couple saws going and a couple of us swamping.




There were lots of stumps to remove as well. Some are off the main path but the brush grows back fast if you don't cut the stumps out.




Post cut, pre swamping




More carnage above. We made it almost down to the stream crossing which is about half way. Not bad for 4 people in two days. This project was set up on pretty short notice, next time we'll be able to get a bigger crew out and finish it off.




Saturday night we crashed a bikepacking campout going on nearby put on by a local bike shop who are friends of the Lowelifes.




Carson and Matt - saw team and hand pressed taco team




We definitely ate better than the bikepack crew




Sunset up on Lightning Point. It was chilly with the wind so no one was up once the light faded away.

We finished trailwork early afternoon. I headed up the hill and found a shady spot to have a nap. A couple hours before sunset I pulled out the bike to do a ride up Strawberry Peak




By the time I got going I decided not to do the full loop which would have been half in the dark, so I climbed up to the ridgeline and rode a ways around the backside. Turned around before the trail drops down steeply.




Just barely missed sunset climbing back over but still got a nice show




Love this place at dusk...




If you want to see a shit show, spend some time up here on the weekend with every wannabe racer on two or four wheels with an unnecessarily loud exhaust trying to win the Angeles Crest 500. But with regular traffic and a pack of gravel riders trying to descend pavement mixed in. There's obviously no time to wait for a safe place to pass....

I'd been jonesing for a big ride in the mountains and had a bunch of possible routes floating around in my head. Matt suggested one he thought would be good based on what Lowelifes have worked on within the prior Bobcat fire closure that should be good. It was pretty close to what I'd been thinking of for one option, so I decided to go for it.


Starting from Redbox trailhead, I climbed (pushed, mostly) up a hiker trail to Mt Disappointment. I'd done the pavement climb to same spot last trip and wasn't really interested in doing that again.




Dropping down off the saddle between Disappointment and San Gabriel Peak.




I hit up Upper Sam Merrill next




Snack stop at Inspiration Pt. This is the main hiker destination on the mountain for those coming up from the bottom. No one in sight today.




I backtracked 1/4 mile and started down Idlehour Trail.




The poison oak was definitely worse this time around. Had to slam on the brakes here to avoid a face shot




I had another 1,000ft to drop and then I'd be climbing right back up to the towers shown here on top of Mt Wilson




Nice tiger lillies




Streams had dropped a bit but still flowing well




Nice waterfall just off trail 'd missed last time.




Made pretty good time on Idlehour. It was getting warm on the climb out, but not terrible. And there was a cool breeze in spots. Finally made it to Mt Wilson Toll Road. Above the Idlehour intersection it was a lot more primitive than it is below to Henninger Flat




Looking back at Idlehour. You can just make out a few switchbacks on the ridge in the center of the pic




Flowers higher up




I had gotten behind on hydration so I spent an hour sitting at the Cosmic Cafe on top of Mt Wilson drinking water and eating snacks. The cafe was closed but was able to get plenty of water from the spigot.

Had considered bailing down the paved road to the truck as I was experiencing random cramps, but the water break had me feeling good and all that was left was a 2k descent and 1200ft climb out.


Pedaled over and picked up the start of Kenyon Devore trail.




This was another trail originally in the Bobcat closure that the Lowelifes had restored. About 2k descent in 3 miles.




It was running great aside from a couple big boulders I assume are still to be removed from the tread.






Getting near the bottom. Character of the trail would change dramatically on the other side of this stream, with tons of brush.




Looking down, you can see the Gabrielino Trail that I'll be turning on to. It's not far away, maybe 2/10 mile.




Unfortunately the poodle dog bush had grown in thick that last stretch.




I had to cut my way through it, using a stick to bash the PDB stems to break them and then flip them out of the way. Took longer to clear ~150 yards than it had to ride the trail down to here.




Turned onto the Gabrielino and things improved. This section was worked on a year ago but deteriorated with the storms this winter and subsequent brush explosion. There was more poison oak, poodle dog and erosion damage. Needless to say I was not moving fast.




Finally got to Valley Forge campground where I could access the road. The Gabrielino above this has not been worked on and is a mess. So I bailed to the fire road. The Forest Service had just recently repaired it all the way to Hwy 39 including the landslide here which is now passable to vehicles.





A couple miles later I was back at the truck. Great ride, about 24mi and 6,200ft gain. Can't wait for more of Gabrielino and Bobcat fire closure to open.

Thank you Evan - great reading and photos. I feel like I am there with you.

_________________
"We'll ride it until they pave it."

-Big Clyde