22manyrides and Wavey Davey needed a dualsport run.... Hey great ride! It was still pretty cool out until the work out of Poorman's Canyon on the Eldorado Creek portion of the western states trail. My trailtech vapor's data is; 186.1 miles total time 9 hours 37 minutes ride time 7 hours 3 minutes top speed 69.1 mph max rpm 7450 Started out at 7:00 am. A walk from the closed garage door to the waiting machine, helmet on. Headed out of the neighborhood already full on gas and...geez, let's just take the freeway! Zoomed right up to Ophir to meet with Wavey Davey and his XR650R. Taking the freeway got me there a little ahead of schedule, but in no time we were on our way. Back roads off Crater Hill, stop in Auburn for his gas, and geez, let's just get on the freeway! Davey left me in the dust loosing sight of me but waiting up at the Applegate offramp. Applegate road through Heather Glen, twice crossing the freeway, through Weimar and onto Canyon Way. Our first dirt portion began shortly after taking a right on Live Oak Road. A pleasure cruise through a residential ranchette community, eventualy climbing up on a private road section. Then a right into someone's future driveway where I know how to reach an old logging/fire road. Through the homesite's landing and a sharp left to drop onto what was 2 track, but is grown over into single track with signs of local 2 wheelers and quads below our tires. Heading due north for about a short mile we are soon dumped out where the dirt portion of Yankee Jim's starts. A very mellow ride to the bottom for our first break of the day and some jerky. After resting up a bit we got back on the bikes and headed on. Turning left on the Shirtail Canyon Road. Traversing along with the creek below, the road begins to climb away. Soon enough we reach the tie between Shirtail Canyon and King's Hill Roads. Wonderfull climb about 3 miles to the top and King's Hill. Back heading east again we soon reached Big Dipper Road, then the Iowa Hill Colfax Road where we ran over the dam at Sugar Pine and hung a left on loop 2 of the Sugar Pine trail system. Skirting around the actual staging area and heading east we got a little off track and paused to regroup/turn back right near the trailhead for Dorer Ranch and Humbug Bar. After straightening that out, it was right on to the Foresthill Divide Road at Westville. One goal of the day, to find a certain old mine site, went into effect. East on FH Divide and a right on American Hill Road. Traversing the paved curves 4 miles back in to Little Secret Creek we stopped to look at flowers, eat expired kippered herring and rest our butts a little more. It was after this that we took multipal spurs of every kind we could find. Trying to get down to an old stamp mill I once discovered in the late 70's. Many turn arounds at the end of what seemed promising routes, never reaching the bottom. Geez, these are old logging roads, and hell, we're too high in elevation to be where my memory tells me we should be. And really, there are sooooo many posable routes to take, no way to take them all. So it was back outa there to the very end of the pavement 7 miles in on American Hill Road, where we made the choice to go on up hill further. A road not reccomended for trailers NF-13. Right back out to the Baker Ranch/Soda Springs Road and straight on up to Robinson Flat. The last few miles to Robinson Flat was hampered by the wet season's debri and at the very end a few un-melted snow banks. Once at Robinson's Flat you could tell things weren't open for the year yet! When we went to leave there, it was thought it would be a good idea to go to Duncan Peak and get a birds eye view of the area. Alas that was impossable! Having gone around a couple snow banks we soon found ourselves in an uphill battle through solid snow covered road. We hadn't even reached the shady side yet! That's enough, we reached the appex of our journey. Heading down we saw fawn and doe, 3 wheelers with trailers, road racer types, familys on sunday trips, but over all it was a less populated day in the mountains. On down the Foresthill Divide Road and a left onto Deadwood Ridge Road. To the end at the old cemetary and onto the Eldorado Creek portion of the western states trail. Over the years I've seen trails come and go. I've seen completely new trail systems go in. This trail is the last of it's breed as far as pathways through the mountans that actualy get you somewhere good. Yet, it too is seeing signs of extended use compared to the old days. Never had the current street legal 600 on this trail, and it would be nice to have true OHV gearing to be more sure footed on the shear drop off rollercoaster! Still going down was fine and fun. We reached the bridge over Eldorado Creek. Refreshingly cool departure from the poison oak infested trail above. Soaked heads, snacks and cigarettes. Telling of tales, it was then decided that we'd take the jeep trail up just far enough not to miss the actual trail up. This was merely a 1/4 mile up at the 3rd crisscross of the two. We jumped on the trail and began to climb. I had the worst of the trouble, stalling a couple times, letting my bike fall over, getting my foot trapped underneath. But no damage done we reached the top after pulling and rolling the bikes over much worse rock outcroppings than I remember near Poorman's Canyon. That portion took the cake and exhausted the gas, (I don't mean petrol). We cooled at the horse trough in Michigan Bluff. Started our motors and made a bee line for Davey's house via The Foresthill Road, across the new bridge, onto the freeway and off at Ophir Road. There was a cold beer in the waiting. Some resting on soft cusion chairs by the pool. That was all good, but I still have the 20 miles to get to Citrus Heights ahead of me. So I departed all the while declining the pizza invitation. I made it by taking Taylor Road to Sierra Collage and Douglas Blvd. What A ride! 186 miles. Parked her, cleaned her two days later, changing the oil today.
