White Rim Photopalooza!

So many photos, so little time! The Divas who went on the White Rim adventure in late October are home and still sorting through our photos, finding grains (or clumps) of red sand on our gear and wondering what the next trip will be. Because, I think everyone agrees, it was awesome.

Yes, even when the wind blew and clouds rolled by, even when the temperatures dropped or we were pushing our bikes up an impossibly steep climb. I would do it again in a second.

We plan to offer a slide show sometime this winter so we can share our stories and talk about where to go next. Meanwhile, Corinne put together a Picasa site and so far three people have loaded their best photos. Be sure to visit it a few times because I'm sure more pics will be loaded soon. Enjoy!

posted by Rose

5 days, 4 nights: a white rim teaser

How to pack for the White Rim: expect Alaska weather. A little rain, some wind & hail (yes, hail). Sunny days and cold nights that dip below freezing. Like I said, pack like you're here in Anchorage in September. But without the bears. And mostly without the mud. Mostly. And without the clear-running streams or the pushki overgrowing the trail.

The White Rim was all about layers. Layers of clothes added and removed at different times of the day. Layers of rock of red or white forming canyon walls that rose above us; dropped off below us. Layers of stars that emerged at sunset only to be washed from view by the moonlight. In the campsite circle on the final evening, we all took turns donning Maggi's magical flashing glasses to see what wisdom would be revealed. Two words came to me: challenging & joyous. That about sums it up.

We'll have a bunch of photos posted as soon as everyone has time to sort through the hundreds of pictures they took, but here are a few (I'd like to take credit for them; instead I'll take credit for bringing Jon who took all but the campsite pic):

home, sweet dome.

sunrise on day three.

Divas conquer the White Rim

Divas Gloria, Bonnie, Maggi, Anne, Karen, Diane, Bev, Rose, Corinne, and Lori; Dean (auxiliary, left), and fabulous guides Brin and Ben (right)

at the end of the White Rim trail

eklutna in september

September weekend
Serenity Cabin
A dozen mile bike ride
A dozen women
at any given time

Coffee
Wine, food
hike, stretch
sunshine
breathing
tai chi
lunges


Wood stove
campfire
full moon
clear nights

Dusted mountains
River
Rocks
earthquake
snow falling
bikers riding

Until next time...

Red Mountain Adventure

Let the adventure begin!

For the Divas to go on a camping trip, all you need is one instigator. The rest, as they say, are just details. In the middle of the winter, Stacey proposed the bike-camping trip to Red Mountain.


View Larger Map

Getting there involves a road trip to the coastal town of Homer, followed by a water-taxi adventure across Kachemak Bay to the Seldovia area. Then, it's time for the bike ride.

Fully-loaded trailers and panniers

Crossing the water - even a few guys joined the fun.
It was a rough ride out to Jakolof Bay.

Were the waves really 9 feet high on the way out?!
The return trip was much calmer.

Adventurous spirits! Just how many Divas & guys
can fit under one Alaskan tarp?

Never mind the rain...
Check out that fire ring.

Just part of the camp.

The rocks are very different here.

"Hey! We found a snow patch!"

There was mining here in earlier days.

Day-hiking Divas ham it up in the rain.

There's a saying in Alaska: There's no bad weather, only bad gear. Add to that: good friends to make light of the situation when it seems your tent is about to be blown away with you still in it!

No rain on the 18-mile bike ride to Seldovia with its stilt homes...

...to catch the return taxi back to Homer.

Thanks to Mary V. and Gloria M. for use of the photos and for providing an account of the trip. Next year, I'm there!

posted by rose

mud, bugs and bears*

After a rainy Tuesday, the Wednesday ride was bound to be muddy.

The large gang of Divas divided into two smaller groups. I rode with Lori's group which took up a steady, brisk pace to keep us warm as we made a loop around the Campbell Tract, then to Hillside and the rooty, muddy descent which is Black Bear Trail. We fended off the mid-summer mosquitoes where ever we took breaks, but we didn't take many breaks...

the photo taken a week ago on Rover's Run.

Early on, a couple people suggested that we not ride Rover's Run (aka Mellen's Way). Hadn't we heard about the photo? Uh, no... While our group opted to not take that particular trail, the second group, led by Katherine, rode the lower portion of the trail. Guess they didn't worry about (or even see) the photo and story that had appeared that day in the online version of the Daily News that said people should avoid the trail. (The publicity may explain the guy at the trailhead with a pistol on his hip.)

Well, a group of 8 or so women whooping it up as they splash through the mud puddles will probably cause any sensible bear to make a hasty get-away, leading her cubs along to safety. Is it any surprise that no bears were spotted? Diva legs, arms and faces, however, were spotted, streaked and splashed with mud! I guess it really is late July.

Lori's group at the intersection of Black Bear & Moose Meadow trails.
No bears here!.

*This story has a small revision because I don't want to imply that people saw the story in the online version of the newspaper and carelessly rode the trail anyway. Most of us (including the poster) had not seen the story until after the ride.

posted by Rose

Powerline all to ourselves

The weather forecast predicted a blustery evening on the Powerline Pass trail, but Divas are not deterred by such pessimism. We're Alaskans, after all! Quite a few other people were also in the parking lot -- bikers, hikers, tourists, families -- but no one seemed to be venturing out to the Powerline. We had the trail to ourselves. And only a few sprinkles and winds as we neared the pass!

Happy bikers at the lake below the pass

Buzzing

Wednesday evening was beautiful, almost hot (!), and a large group gathered at Abbott Loop Community Park to ride. We broke into two groups - one to tour the lowlands, one to tour the Singletrack Advocate trails.


Beware of letting the person who just completed a 200+ mile tour lead an evening ride - she's smiling becuase it's cake to climb those STA hills

More fun ahead ....

everybody's a leader

Divas who wanted to become more comfortable with leading rides and brush up on their singletrack skills gathered at Service High on a beautiful spring (summer?) evening.

There were some naturals at track stand.

Wendy practiced her front wheel loft on the goal frame.

Rose demonstrated the technique for the rear wheel loft.

Elizabeth was empowered by the skid.

We forgot to cover how to manuever around this obstacle that I encountered on my way home.