The Law of Attraction

Some say adventure only happens when things don't go as planned. The two days A.F., Young Tim, O'Neil and myself, spent in Arizona were definitely an adventure. My initial plan was simple, packraft the Colorado River just below Glen Canyon Dam in Page Arizona, to Lee's Ferry and ride pre-placed bikes back to the start point. Things got interesting about a week before we left for the Super Utah Trip. I was doing some final checking of the maps on Google to get road mileage for the bike shuttle I had planned. Instead of the forty + miles I had laid out, Google maps kept coming back with 151 miles. WTF?

No trees to get in the way of navigation. 

Bunny rabbit,    I will love him and pet him and I will call him George

  After a little digging I found out the road we needed to ride on experienced a landslide, tectonic plate in nature, and would not be opened for several years. Frustrated and angry at the 151 mile detour, I was bound to make this trip happen and began pouring over my maps, and Google Earth, I also made several phone calls. All but one of the phone calls was useful, a very friendly and knowledgeable guy from the BLM had some encouraging words and was able to get me the map that I needed. Things were looking up, all I had to do now was convince myself we could find a little, to not at all used, Dominguez Pass Trail and do a 4-6 mile cross country hike through the desert to find our bikes or van somewhere in the outskirts of Page AZ.

Sand as far as the eye can see

Yeah that's just fine right there. Our hiding spot.

 Getting the bikes set-up in a spot in which they would be useful (less walking ,more riding) the next day ended up taking a good portion of the first day. The roads were super sandy, unmarked, and confusing as to which direction they might actually go. With much luck, map reading skills, and intuition, we placed them behind some rocks along a road we were hoping to intersect the next day. The roads were so sandy we walked approximately 7 miles round trip. O'Neil's Fat-Bike was no match for the soft, loose sand, the rest of us didn't even bother with our skinny 29+ and standard 29 tires and just put our heads down and shuffled along. On the other hand it was nice walking back to the van from the drop point without pushing a bike, it was also warm and sunny and beats the hell out of a good day at work.

On our way to the Ropes

We have to get to the bottom, where the water is, Huh ?

 Another big part of the route was the use of the Ropes Trail to access the river below the dam. I had stumbled upon this little gem in a guide book. I wasn't sure if the route still existed based on the copyright date, and the proximity to power-plant/ dam/ post 9-11, but confirmation via the internet of a guy who had done it about 3-4 years ago was promising. The guide book also had the name of it wrong, somehow it all worked out. As an alternate way to raft/float/paddle the river, a guide service will take you up river from Lee's Ferry and drop you and your boat off near the dam so you can float down. I wasn't having any of that. If I was going to marvel at the 1000' + walls of Glen Canyon for the first time it would not be from a power boat. For me to connect with something really awesome it needs to be under my own power and on my terms.

This pipe with a tee fitting on the top was the main thing I was  looking for based on what I saw on the intenet

 The Ropes Trail was a little tricky to find, but as soon as we found the first pipe sticking out of the ground we were confident. The trail gets it's name from the cables used between the cemented pipes, making the down climb a little safer. I won't bore you with the history of the trail but only two cables still exist on the final  175-200' drop to the water. They are definitely the most essential since it's not much more than a big slab that gradually gets steeper towards the bottom. A good pair of gloves is also handy as much of the cable is frayed and sharp.

AF, that last step is a doosie

 .

Water yeah !

 With the bikes set-up, and the Ropes Trail out of the way we were finally on the river with about 2-3 hours of daylight to spare. We were all giddy like a bunch of schools girls when we pushed off. The river was cold, swift, and very clear. The shear red rock walls were all around us and being lit by the setting sun, my vision was now reality. Between short bursts of paddle strokes, I let the will of current take the raft as sat in silent amazement, spinning in slow circles.     

This kind of makes us feel small

Camp

 About 8 miles down stream we set up camp. I didn't know it then but we were right in the middle of Horse Shoe Bend, an iconic oxbow in the river from which many a photographer has snapped pictures of,  from the rim above us.   Horse Shoe Bend was also the inspiration for this entire endeavor in Glen Canyon..........     .......explanation .........The Law of Attraction.      We made dinner before dark and had some time to relax. It was warm that night and I slept well.

Dinner

   

Warm Up , Cool Down

Last week was the second annual Utah Super Trip. On board for the wild ride this year was Arc Flash, Young Tim, and O'Neil. Like last year, the plan was to do some riding and canyoneering. To up the ante for the 2013 trip, we brought packrafts and planned to do a couple over night side trips away from the van and the typical makeshift roadside campsites.

AF, Zippity Do Dah on a Krampus

O' Neil, rockin' a  Salsa Mukluk.  He got a lot of strange looks riding alongside primarily full-sus freeride, and trail bikes.   

 Our route westward had us passing directly through Fruita Co. On Friday we stopped for a mid-afternoon ride at the trails just north of town. This was the first real ride I had on my new Krampus. It performed very well and does an amazing job hooking up in the corners. The smooth trail was just right for the rigid, 29+, green Christmas demon.  

I think it was snowing at home :)

Krampus was at home among the sandy surfaces and rocky ledges of Horsethief Bench. This bike is a lot of fun, and in the right hands, can definitely hold it's own alongside guys on full suspension bikes. 

 On our way back home, one week later, battered and exhausted,  we couldn't help but stop for one last hurrah. All we could muster on the trails near the Loma exit were Rustler's loop and Horsethief Bench. Not knowing when I might be back to ride again, I was glad to get in one last spin even if my body wasn't up to it.      

It's OK to hike-a-bike when you have scenery like this

Rotten Ice

Saturday I reluctantly agreed to meet Arc Flash at Lake Minnetonka for a fat-bike ride and swim. He had been pressuring me for an adventure on the lake for the last two weeks, assuring me of the fun and safe experience I would have. The fact that I was jonesing for an adventure and I wanted to try out my new dry suit is what led to me caving in and participating to this crazy endeavor. Did I mention the lake is huge and  covered in rotten ice, and in order to ride that rotten ice one must swim to reach it.

Hmmmmm    fat-bikes and a dry suit

A.F. is out swimming in the pool in the background

it looks warm, right?

 The plan was simple, make it out to Big Island and back. We started out at a little parking lot on the south east corner of Wayzata Bay. We didn't have to swim here just yet but the ice was super thin and rotten. We were punching trough the slush until the water was about knee deep, at which time we gingerly stepped up on top of it and scurried further out onto the thicker ice. From there we cut across the bay about a mile and a half to a little island. On our way out A.F. had me stop and go for a swim in an open pool surrounded by bad ice just to get the feel for it. A.F. is a regular ice diver and this is nothing to him, I on the other hand, was pretty freaked out. As a native of the Land of 10,00 Lakes, it's ingrained at a very young age to stay off of thin ice. Overcoming this instinct was difficult and had me uneasy the entire trip. 

A.F. testing out his Search and Rescue over-the -shoe fins

The water is super clear this time of year

 After our second swim near the small island I was starting to relax a little. This didn't last long, about a half mile out into the main body of the lake my bike kept breaking through the crust and my fears were starting to get the best of me. For whatever reason the layers of the lake went like this.... on top was hard snowy crust, next was 6-8 inches of slushy water, and then a who-knows-how-thick, layer of black ice. Each time my front wheel would take a dive through the crust and into the slush I thought I was going in. It was becoming  more than I was comfortable with and I thought about turning around. A.F. was way ahead of me by now. I stood and called out to let him know I was turning back. I don't think he got the message, he stopped for a few seconds to look back and motored on. At this point I decided to man up and keep moving. My rational thoughts were..... #1 A.F. has already safely ridden the section I am standing on. #2 I am wearing a dry suit and currently over heating, a swim would be nice. #3 If I turn tail and run I will be labeled a pansy.  

This just doesn't seem right. It is however a lot of fun and something were used to

New fat-bike accessory, swim fins

 I continued on towards Big Island punching trough the crust about half of the time, sometimes walking, and tried not to think about it. Walking is worse, when your foot goes through the crust, all you see when you pull it out is water and blackness. The blackness  combined with the erratic depth of crust/slush in relation to the ice can give the feeling of falling through. It's kind of like walking down stairs with your eyes closed and anticipating the next step.  When I finally got to the island I wasn't really in the mood for pics or exploring, I just wanted to get back. We did however take time to cool off and go for a swim. It was nice to cool off but now it was time to ride back before the conditions of the lake worsened. It was a warm, intensely sunny day, and I didn't want to wait around for the crust to get any weaker. We had about three and a half miles to ride and I really didn't want to walk. With very low tire pressure, I got on my bike, put my head down and pedaled like hell back towards the small island and the open water. I was relived when I got there, ghosting my bike into the water, I was not far behind. The final mile and a half across Wayzata Bay was enjoyable. The crust was firm and we were effortlessly cruising back to our vehicles. All in all it was a great time, I even got a sunburn. Big thanks to Arc Flash for the kick in the ass I needed to pull this off.          A.F's version coming soon, hopefully with video.

Gray's Bay

 

Last Sunday

Last Sunday, April 7 , not to be confused with the horrible Sunday we experienced here in the Twin Cities on the 14th, was a fun little outing with the boys. Compared to the snowy, rainy, weather we've had all week it was a terrific afternoon hike/bike in the woods.

We found this frog in the middle of the trail, I wonder how it's doing in all of the snow we got this week ?

Mt Dew and S'mores , Yeah!

  I had gone out earlier in the day for a 30ish mile ride on my cross bike and was feeling a little down about the cold, cloudy weather we have been experiencing lately. I was pretty cold on the ride and had thoughts of a warm camp fire on my mind. So when I got home I rounded up the boys for an outing in the woods with the main goal of building a fire and making s'mores.

Fort construction underway.

I was amazed at how fast the kids ran across these logs. Another testament to the "value" of  the huge amount of money we're shoveling into gymnastics for the three of them  :)

 We headed out on our bikes to a spot near a small creek. The sun just stared to come out as we neared our camp and it started to warm up nicely. We had a fire going in no time and cooked the s'mores promptly. For the next couple hours the boys, the boys' friend, my dad, and myself, climbed trees, built a "fort", explored and played on the many downed trees crossing the creek.

I had to draw the line at crossing stuff like this, the water is super cold right now and we are a long way from the van if they fall in. 

This is my favorite image of the outing,  Jose' in mid jump

"I don't want to go home, come and get me"

 With the horrible snowy, rainy, cold, windy day we had here today I can only hope, and look forward to a day like "Last Sunday".

Caveman

Yay, it's April and it's snowing out

Everyone has an image of what a cave man might look like. Dirty, hair covered body, maybe a loin cloth, definitely a sloping forehead, and carrying a club of some sort, are a few images that come to my mind. The cave men that went on a little adventure this weekend might have some of these same qualities, but rode bikes. We also possessed fire, fancy high tech clothing, and food from the local grocery store.

Nichole Simpson entrenching tool, check

I love riding wet gravel 

A couple years ago a friend of mine showed me several small caves not terribly far from my house. One of them has a room just big enough to fit several people comfortably. From that first trip I began crafting an adventure in which a small group would be able to ride bikes packed with minimal gear and spend the night in the cave. 

Young Tim

O Neil in da house

A.F. in da house along with O Neil

I knew it would have to be in the spring or fall, when at night it would be warmer in the cave than outside. There is really no point in staying there in the summer when it's cold inside, relative to the outside temperature, and the middle of winter might wake up hibernating bats causing them to die. I missed my opportunity for this trip last fall mostly because I was having so much fun doing other things. This spring I made it a point to follow through before time got away from me. So on Friday night me and three other cavemen ventured out on our bikes in search of a unique overnight camp-out inside a cave.

caveman fire goooood

Inside the cave, young Tim checking for raccoons down a side passage

Mother Nature was not on our side Friday afternoon. It was snowing, sleeting, raining and the ground was completely wet by about 4 pm. Our scheduled departure was set at 5:30 giving the snow a chance to actually pile up a little before we left. A text message from each of the three other individuals had subtle undertones of bail-out. My reply to each was simply game on! Schedules are so tight with everyone, and I was amazed I could actually convince others to join in on this trip there was no way I wanted to quit. Besides that, it would truly make the cave a legitimate shelter, all we had to do was get there.

AF setting up in a smaller one man space

three of us fit in this larger space on that blue tarp

I was surprised to see everyone at our departure point not even bat an eye at the falling snow/sleet mixture. Instead we all had smiles and an upbeat attitude about the challenge that lay before us. Once we got underway it wasn't  long before the precip stopped falling and all we had to contend with were wet roads and a wet bottom. Once at our destination we stashed the bikes and scurried to a nice overhang near our "sleeping cave" and made dinner. Dinner lasted until dark, at which time we started cooling down and made a small fire. The fire was great and really set the tone for the whole caveman vibe.

Jesus candle burned all night long, a night-light of sorts

My rig

A couple hours by the fire and it was time for bed. We buried the fire, made our way to the cave, and began setting up camp. With no need for a tent, a tarp was our best friend at keeping clean and staying separated from the bugs crawling about. I lit the place up with a bunch of tea lights and a Jesus candle I picked up while perusing the Mexican food isle at the grocery store looking for something good to eat just hours before the trip. The candles were awesome, aside from the dirt, the bugs, the bat shit, the raccoon shit, and a semi foul odor, it looked like a romantic scene from a movie. I was not about to get romantic with my fellow cavemen and was soon off to sleep with the peaceful sounds of a squeaking bat and fluttering wings.

Found this old cemetery on the way home

the sun is almost out

Morning came with the beeping of my watch alarm. In an area void of sunlight this was the best way to alert us to the return of the sun. I made a quick oatmeal breakfast and we were out. The ride back was pleasant and dry, made perfect by a strong tailwind. It was an excellent over-nighter with good friends and one I wouldn't mind repeating in the fall.  Let me know if your interested...

OMW