Thursday, September 15, 2011

Mini Tour de Peninsula on 9/11

The great thing about mountain biking in the Bay Area is that there are lots of other people seeking new routes and trying to push the limits. They also share their routes online or organize low key events, such as this 2010 MTB Tour de Peninsula. I have been itching to try to ride the route, but have been always turned off by the distance (80 mile+) and the fact that there were long road sections.
On Sunday, September 11, I have decided to try a shorter (lots shorter!) version of the ride, starting at the Windy Hill OSP parking lot.
The day did not start too well, I broke my favorite Garmin Edge 500 GPS, don't ask how. So here is a "manual" ride recap:
1. Spring Ridge Tr up to Skyline: steep, sunny, hot, 30 min climb.
2. Skyline (road) to Ripley Ranch Rd.
3. Ridge Tr to Hawk Tr: windy, cold, rain clouds rolling in, a few drops of rain.
4. Hawk Tr: great views from this narrow ribbon of singletrack
5. Ancient Oaks Tr to Bay Area Ridge Tr
6. Cross Skyline just north of the vista point
7. Clouds Rest Tr, Meadow Tr to Alpine Tr
8. Alpine Tr to Page Mill Rd, cross the road to the new White Oaks Tr
9. White Oaks Tr: this newly cut trail is much better than the old rutted trail!
10. Skid Road Tr to Skyline, cross Skyline, across the parking lot
11. Sunny Jim Tr to Horseshoe Pond
12. Tree Farm Tr
13. Chestnut Tr
14. BART
15. Peter's Creek Tr
16. Ward Rd intersection to Hickory Oaks Tr
17. Across Skyline onto Saratoga Gap Tr
18. Saratoga Gap: hot dog, water, found a slow leak in rear tire and decided to ride on it after 100 pump strokes
19. Retrack to Peter's Creek Tr and across Skyline to Grizzly Flat Tr, pump up
20. Steven's Canyon Tr uphill
21. Steven's Nature Tr to White Oak Tr
22. Cross Page Mill Rd onto Alpine Tr, pump up
23. Alpine trail to Alpine Rd
24. Ridge Tr connector back to Windy Hill parking lot
25. 64.7km = 40.2 miles, 5 hours moving time, 6 hrs total.

Compare the blue 80+ mi MTB TdP route with mine in red, so it looks like I need 12 hours and lots more training to ever try the full route.


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