Skookum
05-15-2007, 10:38 PM
18 miles 4200' cumulative vert
By far the best mt. bike rides on the Olympic Peninsula. The Northeast corner of the Olympic Mountain Range. Valleys are cut sharp across this range as the steep mountain rise above making viewpoints scarce, as you are immersed in deep forest.
The trail starts you out climbin and is pretty relentless and steep.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC1.jpg
After alot of work you do get to break out for a nice viewpoint. We were socked in with cloud cover pretty good, but the pack wasn't complaining. Nice cool weather is always more comfortable to ride in than climbing in hot.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC2.jpg
After a big climb you drop back down towards the river, where the trail meanders along carpets of moss.
Nice spot for a break.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC3.jpg
Water running cold and fast from the snow melting on the upper peaks.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC4.jpg
Yansheng here is from Singapore in town as an exchange student at the UW. i met him at a Colonnade work party and that was before he even owned a mt. bike. He was extremely inquisitive about it, and before you know it he purchased a bike and i subsequently rode with him 2 more times on shorter club rides. He really was a natural, and i really encouraged and gave him a ton of tips which he fast absorbed.
This section used to be a tricky climb, but it got quite a bit more difficult with recent erosion.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC5.jpg
My profile on the club website has a shot of me on a high mountain ride, and he asked me that if i could recommend a trail like that before he returned home (which he's doing soon). It's still early in the season with alot of snow on many trails, but i knew this ride would be serve well to give him a great backcountry experience.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC6.jpg
And here's Snake Pliskin, he really has a bad tendency to overuse his back brake and skid. He simply doesn't absorb good fundamental tips like Yansheng. You just can't teach some people, he'll skid and skid and skid until the dirt police come beat down his door and confiscate his tires.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC7.jpg
A good ole fashuned "trail ride" is hardly complete without a prototypical forest road climb. Shooting out of the river trail there is a 4 mile climb to the bench cut high exposure descent. Sucking alot of wind where the trailhead was always "just around the next bend", we finally make it to the goods.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC8.jpg
Normally i wouldn't take a newb on a trail like this. Not very technical, but still high consequence in some sections. The tree's and clouds obscure the fall but it's probably just as high as Porcupine Rim. But Yansheng handled it like a champ and was euphoric in his happiness on this ride. He was super tired near the end, but totally stoked and satisfied with the ride, so success for me. Always happy to share the goodness.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC9.jpg
After such a quality ride, yummy burgers await at Fat Smitty's where the burgers really are as big as advertised. We're talking mucho cow man.... And so a new name was given as i looked to my side. Not only does Snake have a knack for skidding but the man can put away a huge burger. After seeing him literally unhinge his jaw and swallow the cow, the name was cemented. Now he just needs to ride around with an eyepatch.
After signing our names to a Singapore 2 dollar bill that we tacked to the wall, we all left in a good way, having shared in good times.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC10.jpg
By far the best mt. bike rides on the Olympic Peninsula. The Northeast corner of the Olympic Mountain Range. Valleys are cut sharp across this range as the steep mountain rise above making viewpoints scarce, as you are immersed in deep forest.
The trail starts you out climbin and is pretty relentless and steep.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC1.jpg
After alot of work you do get to break out for a nice viewpoint. We were socked in with cloud cover pretty good, but the pack wasn't complaining. Nice cool weather is always more comfortable to ride in than climbing in hot.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC2.jpg
After a big climb you drop back down towards the river, where the trail meanders along carpets of moss.
Nice spot for a break.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC3.jpg
Water running cold and fast from the snow melting on the upper peaks.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC4.jpg
Yansheng here is from Singapore in town as an exchange student at the UW. i met him at a Colonnade work party and that was before he even owned a mt. bike. He was extremely inquisitive about it, and before you know it he purchased a bike and i subsequently rode with him 2 more times on shorter club rides. He really was a natural, and i really encouraged and gave him a ton of tips which he fast absorbed.
This section used to be a tricky climb, but it got quite a bit more difficult with recent erosion.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC5.jpg
My profile on the club website has a shot of me on a high mountain ride, and he asked me that if i could recommend a trail like that before he returned home (which he's doing soon). It's still early in the season with alot of snow on many trails, but i knew this ride would be serve well to give him a great backcountry experience.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC6.jpg
And here's Snake Pliskin, he really has a bad tendency to overuse his back brake and skid. He simply doesn't absorb good fundamental tips like Yansheng. You just can't teach some people, he'll skid and skid and skid until the dirt police come beat down his door and confiscate his tires.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC7.jpg
A good ole fashuned "trail ride" is hardly complete without a prototypical forest road climb. Shooting out of the river trail there is a 4 mile climb to the bench cut high exposure descent. Sucking alot of wind where the trailhead was always "just around the next bend", we finally make it to the goods.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC8.jpg
Normally i wouldn't take a newb on a trail like this. Not very technical, but still high consequence in some sections. The tree's and clouds obscure the fall but it's probably just as high as Porcupine Rim. But Yansheng handled it like a champ and was euphoric in his happiness on this ride. He was super tired near the end, but totally stoked and satisfied with the ride, so success for me. Always happy to share the goodness.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC9.jpg
After such a quality ride, yummy burgers await at Fat Smitty's where the burgers really are as big as advertised. We're talking mucho cow man.... And so a new name was given as i looked to my side. Not only does Snake have a knack for skidding but the man can put away a huge burger. After seeing him literally unhinge his jaw and swallow the cow, the name was cemented. Now he just needs to ride around with an eyepatch.
After signing our names to a Singapore 2 dollar bill that we tacked to the wall, we all left in a good way, having shared in good times.
http://home.comcast.net/~skookes/DGC10.jpg