Greetings.

Spent almost a week in Ohio w/ family. Excellent time, warm fuzzies all around.

Rode Mohican 2x, second time was with vigor: just pushed, finished in 2 hrs 48 min for 24 something miles and either 2646 or 3187′ vert depending upon which software computed the data.

Lise got me to allow a reflexologist to torment me in the hopes of making me feel better. Didn’t know I felt bad. I felt sore after all the poking and prodding on my feet.

Left Sat. AM.

Intent was to ride Kennerdell in Western PA and State College on Sunday waiting out rain. Late in leaving Ohio. Decided to drive to State College for ride on Sunday. Camped off I-80 near Clearfield with internet access and weather radio. Forecast still called for rain @ SC but the epic at Ellicottville, NY was for low % rain and web said it dried quickly. So I headed N.

Rained on way N. But as I neared Ellicottville it became just fog.

Found Blood, Sweat, & Gears a bike and ski shop downtown. Picked the info from a guy who laid out their race course last weekend. Said trails were well marked. OK then.

Battery in Edge was low, charged it for 20 mins hoping it would last. Took off. Couldn’t find trail markings as stated on map. Ended up following white paint blazes with a designation of FLT/NCT that w/o my glasses I couldn’t really read.

I now have been exposed to rocks & roots, mostly rocks, and I have a long way to go to ride these trails. I did ride some feet but walked the big gardens. Slow speed riding. It started to rain but deciduous trees kept most off but trail did get wet.

I found myself @ little rock city and left trail for road ride out as it was almost 4:00. Followed road until I found a marking for the race course which I followed backwards. Even their bike trails were rocky albeit not as bad as FLT. Use baby chain ring and 2nd or 3rd cog & let little Mo carry me forward. I have a good bike but the brain and engine need some tuning.

Fog up high, wet trail & grass. Map made out of poor paper that wouldn’t stand up to repeated opening & closing. Add the rain & it almost fell apart before I got out.

The Edge shut done so I lacked compass functionality. I left road for one of the lakes to ride around hoping to gain the Canfield trail I rode up on. Picked a different lake, all 3 of them being on top of ski hills. Found a road down & ended up way outside of town. It was heavy misting making for an unpleasant road ride back. Stayed comfortable under rain jacket.

Bike shop guy said I might score a shower at Holiday Ski area, tammerac club which is also a golf course. I ducked in wearing my muddy & wet bike clothes, not looking at all like a wet golfer. Empty locker room & a quick hot shower & I was out of there.

Hit small grocery store & drove up on roads to top of ski hills for camp. dark around 7:30.

Leaves have started turning. In PA it is because of drought stress. Here, the guys in the shop couldn’t make up their minds as to cause. Bright reds. Not all trees of same species have turned.

2 small ski areas w/ a bunch of chairs & runs and what seems to be more ski shops than the market would support

Staying with family members.

Rode part of the Mohican 100 mile mtn bike race course. The race is one of a few that are national sanctioned. 24 miles of it. Different forest: more open that MI and less oak but more beech. Just a little sand. Worth riding again, Nice job.

Meet Annette McCormick, a local advocate and instrumental in the whole trail deal. Their club have a challenging and rewarding trail to ride.

I will post more later. Going from 1 internet hot spot to another visiting my family.

Just a start.

I’m now on eastern Time and I need to drive a bit North before to dark to find USFS dirtbag camp. Ride 2 days on the High Country pathway 70 mile trail.

Bristol is right next to Elkhart a large manufacturing center. The place I camp last night was at a horse trailer mfg plant. About 5:30A I was awakened to the sound of perhaps an unmuffled engine right outside van. The noise moved & abated. I looked out a window and saw a roadster parked and a guy getting out & walking away from m,e to a building. My sleep addled brain grasped the fact that I was parked in an employee parking lot and maybe the guy was notifying me that I needed to get up. I debated a few minutes & decided I should move. I drive a short ways still in the dark & find what appears to be a small park near another building. I went back to sleep & woke up about 7:30 and found I was in another parking lot albeit smaller & quieter, they let me sleep.

Crossed line into Michigan and worked way onto N/S rt 131 for N Michigan. Today’s ride is Yankee Springs as Fort Custer further S received 9″ rain per web site trail update. Yankee Springs was sand and further N hopefully out of hurricane dump. Lots of big lakes up here.

Found TH, paid $7.00 of $8.00 fee in paper and the other $ in change to MI DDR. The pay slot was too narrow for the change. I pulled it out, emptied the chnage & wrote an IOU on the envelop.

An older man & woman riding high end full suspensions returned from their ride and chatted me up while I was getting ready. They ride suspension for their bodies. I think it is because they have $ to buy.

Trail is marked & rides in 1 direction. Oak forest, more open as soil is sand sometimes tank slapper deep & long sections. The couple had problems with the sand as theirs were the only tracks in the sand. Us bikers don’t clean up the sand traps after we struggle out of them. Nice trail. More land so there were longer stretches before the next terrain feature. Started out as a hard sprint. Pushed too hard, ran out of gas before trail’s end. Ride was 1111′ vert in short little bursts &  12.59 long. One EDGE 305 but 2 software programs & EDGE analyze GPS data for distance & elevation gained. Motion Based said 1577′ vert.  Set 2 woods turtles off the trail. Good ride. Worked too hard to ride it a second lap & needed to manage my energy for the High Country trail.

Rangers showed up as I was leaving & I flagged them down, told them of my coin story & offered to settle up. He said he would.

Drove to main XG & used my park pass for a XG shower.

Back on rt 131 for N. Made Cadillac, grocery shopped for store made meal so I could hit USFS as stated earlier. Drove faster than I should have looking for deer. Made it to Houghton Lake community which is sprawling. Found health care facility on main drag. parked in further reaches of parking lot. Hope for a quiet night.

Left knee is hurting more. I just push too hard. Great being low elevation, being fitter, more adroit, & more aggressive riding. Riding switchbacks where I change tire edges. Taking rougher lines for challenge & also to enjoy suspension.

Going to stay up here for 2 days. High Country is a 70 mile loop with some roads lacing the circle like spokes so I believe in 2 days I can ride the entire loop.

Little more hillier. Seeing some fall colors. Could be caused by drought stress but I do not know that.

No pictures as trails are mostly the same: Deep deciduous cover, mostly oak. I could have had fun with a turtle picture.