aliensporebomb
06-22-2004, 10:58 PM
Tonight I was going to go ride the river bottoms trail from the
west side entrance instead of going on a roadie ride since my
wife had an hour and a half appointment and figured the
bottoms would be a safe bet for a short ride since it's been
several days since it has rained significantly and I hadn't been
there since March sometime.
After briefly stopping to help a roadie rider who had a flat
I entered the trail and found that conditions are still very
damp down there.
Heading southwards there were some spots that were portents of
things to come - the first was the point at which the trail follows
the river and gives you a river view or veers off into the forest.
The forest way was very wet/muddy with lots of rider tracks but
too wet to really ride efficiently.
Instead I took the river view and found the river is not only
very high but very close to the trail. I was beginning
to think this was a bad idea and was going to bail on
it but once it veered back onto the main trail it seemed okay.
I headed south rather quickly to avoid mosquitoes and hit the point
where I had to head west. I figured I'd head to the TC&W (former
MN&S) RR bridge and turn around since things were about as bad as
I've seen it down there as far as standing water/moisture goes.
Here's where the issues occurred - lots of spots where there
was significant long patches of mud, possibly 20-30 feet long
where lots of riders had been prior to my being there. Hm.
I was beginning to wish I'd went to a different trail altogether
at that point.
The point where I finally bailed was the spot where there's a
rapid descent that goes thru a little stream with some boards
at the bottom with a rapid ascent that continues - that little
spot was in four feet of standing water with the boards
floating in the water! Okay, that's enough! This trail is
still too wet to ride...for now.
I'll probably go to Terrace Oaks, Lebanon Hills or Battle Creek
next time I go out.
My bike was covered with mud by the end of the ride. What a mess.
FYI.
west side entrance instead of going on a roadie ride since my
wife had an hour and a half appointment and figured the
bottoms would be a safe bet for a short ride since it's been
several days since it has rained significantly and I hadn't been
there since March sometime.
After briefly stopping to help a roadie rider who had a flat
I entered the trail and found that conditions are still very
damp down there.
Heading southwards there were some spots that were portents of
things to come - the first was the point at which the trail follows
the river and gives you a river view or veers off into the forest.
The forest way was very wet/muddy with lots of rider tracks but
too wet to really ride efficiently.
Instead I took the river view and found the river is not only
very high but very close to the trail. I was beginning
to think this was a bad idea and was going to bail on
it but once it veered back onto the main trail it seemed okay.
I headed south rather quickly to avoid mosquitoes and hit the point
where I had to head west. I figured I'd head to the TC&W (former
MN&S) RR bridge and turn around since things were about as bad as
I've seen it down there as far as standing water/moisture goes.
Here's where the issues occurred - lots of spots where there
was significant long patches of mud, possibly 20-30 feet long
where lots of riders had been prior to my being there. Hm.
I was beginning to wish I'd went to a different trail altogether
at that point.
The point where I finally bailed was the spot where there's a
rapid descent that goes thru a little stream with some boards
at the bottom with a rapid ascent that continues - that little
spot was in four feet of standing water with the boards
floating in the water! Okay, that's enough! This trail is
still too wet to ride...for now.
I'll probably go to Terrace Oaks, Lebanon Hills or Battle Creek
next time I go out.
My bike was covered with mud by the end of the ride. What a mess.
FYI.