That is until this summer when a young 2LT was assigned to work with me while awaiting his orders to flight school. Though his riding had never been too serious- around college campus- our rides in the foothills saw his fitness and love of the sport steadily improve and soon we rode over Shaw Mountain and to the top of Bogus Basin. I should have been warned of trouble ahead by his mountain climbing attitude (yes, that’s his primary sport) that showed itself on those last two rides. He can’t stand to ride to the top of some mountain road and see that we’re not at the very pinnacle of the mountain; he must reach the top. On Bogus we had to do the trails to the top of the highest peak, and when that ended some 30 feet below the highest rock, we were soon climbing that rock! Though he has an adventurous spirit and is enjoying mountain biking more every week, he did extract a promise from me as the price of his riding to Silver City. I have agreed to hike (I hope) or climb (I hope not) to the top of Mt. Borah- Idaho’s highest peak- with him later this year. (I have seen it from the safety of the nearby highway, and it doesn’t look too steep!) Maybe his orders for flight school will arrive this next week making him unable to honor our agreement!
Our plans had called for riding unloaded bicycles to Jordan Valley, but I had mentioned we’d have better options if he had panniers and a tent. When he showed up at my house with newly purchased panniers and a “hang off the seat post rack” (not the rack I’d recommend for touring), I quickly repacked with tent, sleeping bag, and thermarest. We drove to Murphy, the Owyhee County Seat, with a population of maybe 500. Though it’s not far from the Snake River, it’s in the dry unirrigated dessert. The highway climbs steadily for 4.7 miles out of the Snake River Canyon, and then the route turns to continue climbing to the base of the Owyhee Mountains. What a reminder of the route from NV to Death Valley of last February. When we reached the base of the mountains, the similarity ended as did the rocky pavement.
Owyhee County is desert country, and the Owyhee Mountains rise out of the sandy desert while retaining sand and decomposed granite as its soil in addition to the basalt rocks that rise above the surface everywhere. The sand and decomposed granite make for a road surface that lacks traction. That said, it’s a pretty good surface compared to the gravel and sand mix we found in Death Valley! However, it’s very easy to spin out almost anywhere. The road surveyors didn’t look for the most direct route, or a route following streambeds. It is constantly up and down- though mostly up- on the way up to Silver City which is over 6,000 ft elevation.
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| The 2nd LT at the top of New York Summit |
Dinner was a very pleasant experience- fine dining in Silver City was a surprise- excellent food and I believe they achieved the family atmosphere they are striving for! The staff had a lot of admiration for our bicycling up- which may have been the reason our last minute reservation was accepted, and they all treated us very well (in contrast to the Death Valley experience!).
The adventure continued even that night. Our nearest neighbors were flying Confederate flags, had their own “terminology” calling people they didn’t like “Yankees” among other distinctive terms. I wouldn’t have noticed this, but around midnight, they were drunk and started firing their pistols in the camp which continued until about 2:00 a.m. when a local property owner drove up on an ATV, and advised them to stop, or a deputy who had called him from Murphy would be dispatched, and after driving all that way would take someone back with him to jail! Now, in fairness to the South, I must add the license plate on the king cab pickup was from Washington State, none of the several participants had even the slightest Southern Accent, and their drunkenness, words, and actions, would have greatly offended fine gentlemen like Robert E. Lee or Stonewall Jackson!
Oddly, I awoke this morning feeling like my rump had been bruised on one side. Careful inspection reveals no saddle sore but nonetheless, the area wouldn’t tolerate any weight on it. Fortunately, most of our route was still steep today, allowing me to stand most of the way, but it sapped the adventurous spirit out of me. This is a problem new to me, anyone have any info for me? It doesn’t even really like sitting on the couch unless I throw all my weight to the good side.
Anyway, when we got to the bottom of the mountains, we decided to take a marked trail (ATV trail) the roughly 12 miles on back to Murphy. A strong Northwest wind had come up, and that trail followed the draws rather than the ridges, letting us miss the worst of the 35 to 45 MPH headwinds that had arisen just as we came out of the mountains. For the first 5 or 6 miles it was a great trail either on hardpack, or motorcycles had created their own track beside the loose sand trail the ATV’s had created through this isolated draw. Then the two trails merged. It was push or ride the open desert- trying to dodge sagebrush with our panniers! The 2LT’s Garmond listed a parallel road that proved to be little better and went back to the ridges with the greater wind, but it wasn’t many miles back to Murphy, and I could stand to peddle! Cold drinks awaited us in Murphy though the selection was limited.
It was a fine adventure that I’d be willing to repeat annually. (We found much better isolated camping up the draw to be away from the pseudo Confederates should they return next time!) The 2LT is willing to do this again, but will likely be in flight school next year. Let me know if you’re interested in joining this adventure that is far more difficult that the mileage would imply!
Happy Cycling for fun, fitness, and transportation,
Steve
Reposted from 31 Aug 08 at Free Conversant which is being shut down in late 2015
