Gravel/Bikepack nerds enter...

[Peruvian]

That bike is all business, I like. Midnight start to a gravel event is nuts, never heard of such a thing.

Maybe a sunset start is more your style?

[buttahflake]

Hmmm, maybe.
After work special from today in SoVT

[buttahflake]

Another beautiful afternoon in SoVT

[bodywhomper]

Got in a nice neighborhood ride this morning after yesterday’s rain.

I encountered a new “No Trespassing” sign and locked gate shortly after taking this photo. I got lost for a while on random singletrack and double track trying to get to where I was going and avoiding passing any No Trespassing signs.

Another canal trail

[Tailwind]

In Reykjavík trying to catch a flight up for Isafjordur for a nine day bikepacking trip. Our flight yesterday was canceled so we’re had an unexpected down day. The Hanger on my bike was bent during transport (should have removed it but I just pulled the RD). It was shifting poorly enough I went to replace it with the hanger I special ordered from Canyon prior to the trip only to realize that the screw that holds the hanger in place is a T20 and a T25 won’t work at all. Managed to find a helpful shop this morning that lent me a T20… sadly they didn’t have any for sale so I’ll just need to cross my fingers that this one isn’t badly damaged.

Very different Bikepacking kit than I’ve normally used in the past. Canyon Grizl with front and rear panniers. Given the amount of rain we’re expecting the choice to ditch my “mostly waterproof” bags for Ortlieb roll top bags is feeling wise. My wife’s bike is just a small handlebar bag, frame bag and medium sized seat pack. Carrying a Hillberg tent. One zero degree bag and one 15 degree bag. All of which are massive compared to our normal 30 degree bags and tarptent setup. Still managed to pack six days of food and some layers. The first few days will feel much heavier than normal but the plus is you only need to carry a single bottle at any given time given the amount of running water which helps compared to my 8-10 liters I’ve carried for some desert routes

[Peruvian]

Looking forward to pics, Tw.

[buttahflake]

Perfect day to go big back east. 89 miles with 7,500’. Almost all on quiet dirt roads.

[smartyiak]

This past Saturday, I rode The Quick and the Dead. I will describe it as: vicious. Looked like: with lots of hills like:


But the toughest one was:


Most of the climbs were loose gravel or rocky fire/powerline access roads. It made the climbs worse.



It was a torturefest. HIGHLY recommend.[emoji16][emoji6][emoji51]


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[jamal]

Took a quick overnight trip last week. was going to start from home but got a little lazy in the morning and drove out of town a bit to get started.



Packed "light" with just a change of clothes and such

way up the ninemile which is to the west of missoula a bit







After a long way up and across and down i got to st regis and had a candy bar

then rode along old railroad grade for awhile



eventually i got to lookout pass and then it was downhill to wallace





stayed in a hotel with a pool and hot tub, had a beer at a brewery and a nice dinner. then it was back home the next day





went over cooper pass to thompson falls, through plains, past quinns hot springs, and then up and over siegel pass to get back into the ninemile





I think day one was like 106mi, day two 109, each about 7k feet. good trip, fun route and some new roads.

[Peruvian]

Excellent work, buttah!

[muted reborn]

Took a quick overnight trip last week

I think day one was like 106mi, day two 109, each about 7k feet. good trip, fun route and some new roads.

Great pics, great route.

[donutlynx]

Wow, is that skull bar tape? Must have...

[buttahflake]

Why yes it is, Skull Tape from Supercaz

[Peruvian]

I need to take a play from jamal’s book and do an on overnight where I stay at a hotel - skip packing the tent, sleeping gear, cookware, etc and just ride.

Cool trip and thanks for sharing.

[bodywhomper]

I have a friend who does that in a roadie group. They often couple it with post ride wine tasting or at a brewery.

Fun seeing all the photos and reading about people’s longer rides/outings. Thanks for sharing.

[donutlynx]

Why yes it is, Skull Tape from Supercaz

Nice. Thank you!

[bodywhomper]

I rode a route I’ve been thinking about for a few years. There are 2 historic gold mining era river crossings in my neighborhood. One has a maintained dirt road leading to it and a 19th century-era steel bridge crossing the river. My family and I go there often. The other crossing no longer has a bridge. I went to the second. The old road still exists, but the last 2 miles are not maintained and are steep. From my house, it was just 8 miles, there and back, with 1700’ of descent followed by 1700’ of ascent. I didn’t see a soul (though I smelled lion at one point) until I got to the old river crossing. At the crossing there were like 20 naked men hanging out at 1030am. I was a bit surprised. The crossing can also be accessed by a 1 mile walk from a state park parking lot downriver.

Beginning of the unmaintained road (after a few miles of maintained road)


Pretty typical quality of the road (descending)

River. I didn’t take photos at the beach where the crossing was located.

Bike resting before first climb


First climb from the river


Fun to finally get down there. And formulate linkages to other trails and old abandoned-ish roads

[Peruvian]

[buttahflake]

When one ‘smells’ lion, is that feeling you have or like an actual smell? Do you think about them while riding? Those things scare the fuck out of me.

[Iowagriz]

As a former Iowan, shut your whore mouth about Casey's!

(But completely true.... I'll be sharing this with friends)

[bodywhomper]

When one ‘smells’ lion, is that feeling you have or like an actual smell? Do you think about them while riding? Those things scare the fuck out of me.

It’s an intensively strong smell of cat pee. I put my head down, kept grinding up the hill, didn’t stop for a while, and hoped for the best. I guess I could have started singing a Donna song, that’d surely scared them away

I usually do not think about them when riding. They are not an uncommon sighting where I live, but attacks on humans is uncommon (there was one near-ish this summer, though). There’s an abundance of other prey in my area: an overly large deer herd, lots of domestic goats and chickens, and tons of pugs.

I’m sure we’ve all read the accounts of lions attacking mtb’ers… best reason for using drip bars! One of the attacks, at whiting ranch open space area, in Orange County, CA, was a place I first learned to trail ride.

I was charged at once by a juvenile bull in the Berkeley hills once. An open area and I saw it coming. I screamed at it and held my bike between us. I was ready to use my bike as a shield or weapon. It bluff charged, spun around a few times, huffed, and left. I don’t think that’s how it’ll go down with a lion.

What do y’all do that ride in lion country? I think I’m accepting and complacent.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

I need to take a play from jamal’s book and do an on overnight where I stay at a hotel - skip packing the tent, sleeping gear, cookware, etc and just ride.

Cool trip and thanks for sharing.

Credit card touring, that’s what we used to call it.


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[MagnificentUnicorn]

I’ve lived, rode and hiked in areas with a lot of mountain lions my entire adult life. I don’t think about them. I’ve had two encounters. Attacks are exceedingly rare. Cats are curious and will follow you to see what’s up.


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[plugboots]

[emoji638]][emoji640][emoji639]][emoji637][emoji638][emoji[emoji6[emoji640][emoji638]][emoji640][emoji639]][emoji640][emoji[emoji6[emoji640][emoji638]][emoji640][emoji639]][emoji6[emoji640][emoji637]]]Credit card touring, that’s what we used to call it.


Sent from my iPhone using [emoji638]][emoji640][emoji640]][emoji640][emoji638][emoji638][emoji638]]TGR Forums

My friend went from Seattle to Boston, (oops, not Boston, Annapolis), like this. North Dakota/Wyoming were pretty hard to get hotels, but they did it.
Here’s their blog in case anybody is interested in how you can actually do this. I don’t think he’ll mind I posted this.

https://billandmikexad.blogspot.com/?m=[emoji637]

[bodywhomper]

New Yorker article on Grant Peterson. I remember the first time I met him on a snowy morning on Mt Diablo (I was there to ski). What a trip.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2...taking-it-slow