Ruh roh Shaggy, rots of ruts

The ride I had on Tuesday during yet another ice storm wasn't too bad. We were expecting 5 to10 inches of snow but instead got half an inch accompanied with freezing rain. I did find a lot of ruts, frozen now, but saddening to see. There were a few wet sections here and there that I tried not to disturb any further.

Ménage et trois avec Fat Amy et Nor'easter Stella

The Blizzard of 2017, or Nor'easter Stella as it was called by some in the weather community came on gradually Tuesday morning and by the time I got dressed and ready to ride we already had 4 to 5 inches of snow.  I went for little lighter attire this time around because my orange, Columbia Windstopper Hunting Jacket is just way to warm for anything greater than 25 degrees F.  However, rather than lobster gloves, I went with my OR overmits (sans liners) and a pair of ski glove liners.

Not only getting down the driveway Tuesday morning was a challenge but the road I live on wasn't plowed yet and riding on it was tough.  By the time I hit the dirt road that leads to the state forest I thought of turning back but I was still optimistic that the riding would get better at some point. It didn't.

The section of the Poly Brody that is usually wet this time of year was a frozen sheet of ice that I had to walk.  Further up the access road I stopped near the same spot I stopped on Friday to take a few pictures.  Below is a Friday vs Tuesday.

After the intersection with the Kissing Oak Trail (aka White Trail) I realized that my back brake was frozen. I think snow had gotten into the caliper and then froze.  When I discovered that I decided that I would just ride the fire road.

Having only the front brake meant I had to hang my rear as far back off the seat as I could to prevent an endo. I stopped near the Old Jalopy for a sip of water and then headed down to the road.    

The road was finally plowed which made riding a lot easier. It was still slippery, though.

I think next time, in snow this deep I will XC skiing or snow shoeing.

A Sunset stroll with Fat Amy

Initially, the Newtown Lunartics were going to make a late morning spin to Ovens of France (aka OOF), however by 10 AM it was still 15 degrees out and everyone, including myself bailed. After our midday guests took off I hopped on Fat Amy and headed down to the Pond Brook Boat Ramp.  I headed up the connector trail and instead of taking the blue trail to the Mulikin Trail, I decided to try my snowshoe trail.

The snowshoe trail is more of a bushwhack that uses some old trails that I found between the blue trail and the Poly Brody Forest Road.  One of the trails is probably an old skidder path, it comes from where the Mulikin Trail turns east and runs past the Flight Simulator, a natural rock ramp that makes a four foot drop.  I lost the path a few times but eventually made my way down to the blue trail.  It wasn't pretty.

I then jumped on the Mulikin and was enjoying the trail up until it turns east off the old cart road and begins it's fall line ascent.  That section of the trail tends to get muddy during the spring thaw and it appears some mountain bikers didn't really consider what happens when it warms up because it was pretty rutted out. I wish people would stay off this part of the trail when it gets warm.

After the Mulikin, I jumped straight into the Unmarked and Unsanctioned Trail and was surprised at how smooth the trail was and how it seems to be getting better and better every time I ride it.  It still needs a few tweaks here and there, and a major reroute to by pass a wet area.

By the time I hit the Brew Crew Roller it was dark enough to warrant turning on the light.  The rustling off in the woods further motivated me to do so, too.

I finished off the Gussy and took the Reach Around to the Jeep Trail and then out to Sanford Road.  By this point the Garmin 705 said I had gone 4 miles and it was already on low battery.  I guess the battery has finally gone out on it.  I think I want to get a 520 and use my 800 as a back up.  Before I do that though, I think I going to have the 705 refurbished unless it's too expensive and just get the 520.  Instead of just riding home, I cut back through the forest on the Poly Brody and finished the ride down the Mulikin and out the connector to Pond Brook.

Cannondale Cujo 1: I stand corrected, it's a Midfat Bike

My Facebook Friends (reminds me of the Prejudice Commercials on Sunday mornings back in the 1970s) pointed out that what I am riding is a MID FAT bike and not a FAT BIKE.  Well, EXCUSE MEEEEeeee! I don't care if there is a difference, it still has fatter tires and therefore it's a fat bike for all I care. Semantics aside, this was the first Saturday in three months that I wasn't skinning up and telemark skiing down Windham Mountain in the Catskills because my son was still recovering from the flu. So I took Fat Amy across the river to play Where's Waldo.

It must have been somewhere between 15 and 20 degrees when I started out and probably colder with the wind.  Wearing my Lake MXZ303 boots, blaze orange Columbia hunting jacket, and lobster gloves I couldn't fee the cold.  In fact, mid ride I had to open my jacket because I was getting pretty hot.  

I think it's been almost two years since I last rode here and a lot has changed.  All the new trails on the north side of park are finished, there are new features, including a nice boardwalk with some up and overs in the middle of it that reminded me of the Moose Alley trail at Kingdom Trails, and some nice bridges.  I rode down to the lake and then started climbing up the main Waldo Trail.

The one thing that I noticed off the bat is when I get up to speed and turning through corners, Fat Amy turns like my old 29" mountain bikes which always had a tendency to swing out wider.

For the most part, the trails at Waldo were frozen but there were still some frost heaves that I crunched through.  On today's ride I remembered to unlock the fork and the ride was totally plush.  In fact, I would just point the bike on a line through a rock garden and just blaze through it.  A 29er tire never felt like this.  Looking forward to more rides in the near future.