Is a wet Lutsen ridable?

[Mateo]

Some friends and I have booked a room for the weekend up at Lutsen, and I just checked the weather forecast, there's a chance of showers...

Is Lutsen still rideable when it's a little wet, or will we be playing cards all weekend? :)

Any suggestions on paved (ugh!) alternatives up that way if we can't ride offroad?

- Mateo

[grizzly adam]

I guess it depends on how much it rains. We've been up there 3 years in a row now and have luckily had no rain. The terrain there is pretty rocky and the ground seems pretty hard and seems to suck up the water - but some spots can get pretty sticky.
I guess you could always call the ticket booth or the rental shop and get their opinion.

Good luck! we just got back and the colors were just starting to turn and the trails were awesome - except the climb up Moose Mountain.

[grizzly adam]

oops - I guess I'm a little late....:o

[pwpatton]

Ditto on the ride up moose mountain. Thought I was gonna have a heart attack. Oh well, what are you gonna do... not ride it? Ha!

Phillip

[Mateo]

You guys are nuts! You're telling me that you didn't even take the "bull run" lift from the bottom of the valley to the side of Mouse Mountain???

Well, the trails were a little wet, but like you said, so much of the trail is rock that it didn't hurt the ride at all... I did notice the mud the first time I came around the corner in #6 where the "L" shaped bridge is... I was swinging wide around that corner and couldn't cut back right to make the bridge and ended up to my hubs in mud. Luckily, I was able to pedal far enought to get my right foot on a rock and step up to the bridge..

Had a great time, can't wait until spring to go again...


PS. Stay at the Mountain Inn, they ignored the 11AM checkout and let us leave our stuff in the room and come back to shower before the trip home, we didn't actually leave until 6 or so... Very cool people!

[pwpatton]

I'm not nuts, just cheap! :) Lucky you, Bull run lift wasn't even open when I was there this june. If we wanted a lift to the top of moose then we had to pay $7 for each tram ride.

It was a bitch but really the only climb of the day given I bought a mystery lift ticket. I do love lutsen, glad to hear you had a blast. Pretty easy to have fun there.

Thanks for the tip on the Inn. I didn't really like the last place I stayed (some chain in Grand Marais).

What did you think of #3 with all the rocks, hehe. My fore arms were killing me from holding on on that trail.

And did you do a 2 tire sideways skid on moose mountain on the off camber rock face (#32 I think). When it's wet it's easy to start skidding sideways, I nearly messed myself this spring when that happened :)

Phillip

[Mateo]

They didn't have the bull run open on Saturday, but luckily we rode mystery mountain that day. Sunday we used the bull run lift, but it still only takes you a little over halfway up the mountain...

I think #33 on Moose is the trail you're talking about... As I came across the rock face, there was a tree limb laying vertically on the slope. It wasn't that high to hop (maybe 8 inches) but I didn't feel comfortable taking my tires off that rock for one second. So I looped around the bottom of the limb and then back up to the middle of the face, that was the scariest thing I did all weekend! For a second there, I was pointed directly down the side..

I loved the rocks on #3, and my forearms were dead after that trail! You're sloped enough that if you don't ride the brakes, your constantly picking up speed. But at the same time, there are so many rock chunks and piles that you have to control your speed. So between keeping pressure on the brake and absorbing shocks with my arms, yeah, my arms were spaghetti...

I think my favorite out of them all was #6, great wet roots at all angles mixed with inclines, rocks and mud... I think I should just move to the east coast!

[pwpatton]

I think I remember which one #6 is. It's the one that goes from the top of mystery to the middle of moose, right? That one is awsome, I really like the fast downhill section right before you get to the service roads. :banana:

#2 is really cool, did you get a chance to ride that one? It has good ruts and rocks and finishes on a down hill service road, very fast.

Man, I gotta get back there. How was the weather? No rain I take it, but was it cold?

Phillip

[Mateo]

We had rain Friday morning while we were driving up there, but we didn't ride until Sat, so it was basically dry with some mud in the low spots...

The weather was absolutely perfect.. Heavy fog in the morning, but it would clear by 10am or so... Not cold, except after you take a break and then start riding again, cold sweat chills.... The leaves just started changing too...

Yeah, you're right on #6... The key to enjoying Lutsen is knowing that when you are ready to go back to the lodge, you can take #25 around the valley side without going down into the river valley and back up the other side.. :)

[Mateo]

Hey, I'm a stumpjumper now.... Whoo hoo..

[pwpatton]

Originally posted by Mateo
The key to enjoying Lutsen is knowing that when you are ready to go back to the lodge, you can take #25 around the valley side without going down into the river valley and back up the other side.. :)

Ooooh yea!!!!

Riding up from the river valley SUCKS!!!

We rode lutsen years ago when the tramway up to moose was the only thing open. For some stupid reason we never discovered #25 until the mystery lift opened.