What the greater Spokane area lacks in starting elevation it makes up for how high I climb. My former house sits at 2,000′, top of MT Spokane is just under 6,000′. My 2 rides on said mountain were 200 and 185′ per linear mile, Liberty Lake was 155′, Antoine Peak, where I am now, was 165′, yesterday MT C d’A was 186′. Sedona plugged along at just around 100′ / mile but were punchy short climbs but many of them. The rides here have been mostly about big long climbs with steep pitches, some too steep and / or long for me to ride nonstop. On the Wailer I stopped several times for blows and walked some.
Yesterday I drove over past the city of Coeur d’Alene to Beauty Bay which empties into name sake lake. 3 miles up the creek is a parking spot under a big mature cedar. It was .5 miles to start of trail 257 which climbs out of lake basin. I was able to pedal everything yet needed several blow spots. Grunt under dense tree cover. 2 bikers descended past me, the first who must have been the skilled rider yielded to me and he hollered back to the trailing rider who seemed to be confused as to what to do as he hardly yielded. The trail arrives at a pass and a FS road. A short pedal up the gravel road the trail drops down Pleasant Creek trail bottoming out at a place I call the hole as at that point I am as low as I will descend. From there it is a monster steep climb up trail 227 with many drag my bike upwards pieces. Reversing direction makes for a short time descent with the climb out taking more time but a gradient I can pedal. Next time I ride this loop I will reverse the trails. Trailforks reports the climb as 3 miles with 1734′ elevation change. The other way is 2.7 miles with 1224′. So it is shorter. Climb up to just below summit to turn onto Caribou ridge that mostly descends, a shuttlers’ joy, to a user created connector trail down to a reclaimed logging road to intersect 257 for final decent. Ride data per BCN was 15.8 climbing 2741′ pedaling and dragging my bike for 2 hrs 33 mins. The EDGE algorithm calculated 41 hours recovery. I finished not just tired but beat. Except for user created trails, trails are legacy created. Down towards the bottom years ago I discovered chanterelle mushrooms that I fixed for a dinner. In past year’s rides I didn’t see any. Just at the bottom a rider was “pedaling” uphill. I pulled off and beckoned him to continue. When he got to me I saw that he was riding an ebike on this nonmotorized trail. I allow an illegal user to piss me off and piss me off even more that I yielded to the rider. In my mind etiquette goes out the window when the rider is illegal, I would have ridden him off the trail had I known.
So, I am recovering today, maybe. I am parked at the TH for Antoine Peak which is a conservation project paid for by county resident tax dollars. Old roads but lots of vert.
I visited North Division Bike shop, my original bike shop connection. I visited with a woman behind the counter. She acted like she knew me but i could not place her. Later that evening I shared dinner with Andy, a past Boeing Spokane associate. He has worked with a used bike event. He told me the woman is Brenda, the owner, whom previously had long black hair. This time her hair was completely gray and cut differently. I need to return to call out my recollection. I had been hunting for this device to bead tubeless tires. It’s a stand alone pressure vessel that acts as a blast of high pressure into the wheel that seats the beads. Bill and I figured out how to make it work and I tried it on my front tire. I broke the bead on one side but the other seemed to be welded together, we could not break it loose. I connected the vessel hose to the Presta valve with the core inserted then pinched the pressure release button. The pressure popped the bead but did not completely fill the tire. I attached my floor pump and its pressure was sufficient to complete the beading. The gizmo will be handy should I not be near a shop compressor. It’s time to replace that front tire, I will find a shop that can break that bead loose. I worked at it so hard I forced fingernails from their beds.
Today I checked the air quality index for Bend, it is almost off the bad air limit. I can be where ever I want to be and I am not there. Spokane runs mostly green with low yellow numbers so far during my stay. Earlier its levels were in orange range.
No pics of MT C d’A in spite of carrying my camera. Most rides are under deep tree cover offering great views of their trunks.
Bill told me that a kit is available to restore yellowed headlight lenses which mine are. This morning under Bill’s tutelage we cleaned the lenses. Sundown here now is 7:15. I will look out into the dark with brighter lights.
Labor Day weekend.
Liking to talk is different than talking to exchange information and knowledge. Bill is retired like me. We can make time pass by conversing while I do not attend to my to do list. I drove away from his house today seeking internet access and no interruptions to write this among other items.
Fall is here which brings out the stink bugs so named because their defense is a chemical irritant with a nasty odor. removal is to slip something under them then eject them back outdoors.
Glory Days by Springsteen. Glory days pass you by. My aging wearing body. Boring stories of glory days.
Going to clean my vent fan. Glory days when it was just out of the box.