The Mobius Trip

[kl Richard]

Originally Posted by Fourty2ri

I recall mentioning that somewhere along about 15 pages ago. I am glad it didnt screw you up more then it did. Yea, 2 hours down time is a drag, but at least you were not out in the middle of nowhere.
The bummer is next spring when you dig the bikes outta storage, you will be rebuilding a carb before you go anywhere.

The pictures you have posted are just amazing. I guess I dont need to go now !!

WRT the Carb. repairs....he can handle it!!! He'll get all the parts(I see he already has recieved em)and perform all the necessary cleaning and install the required parts, before the next stage!!!! Nothing wrong with previous repair....It's called a patch, or temporary repair; which he got away with, FOR AWHILE, Well done

On with the show?

Cheers Brian

[DR. Rock]

You have to open a gate.



the last time we left a paved road through a gate we had to open and close, we were in the Black Dragon Wash. I took this to be a good sign.

I took the above photo after closing the gate behind me, I turn around to see that LDF has promptly missed the first turn, and is way ahead () following the more traveled power-line road, instead of the barely visible trail I've routed us on that heads off to the left.



Not a good start. I tear off after her.

[DR. Rock]

we backtrack, and I can tell already that she's apprehensive.



"Do you know where we are?" "Yeah, (sort of)... it's on the GPS"



"Is it legal for us to ride here?" "Sure. (I think)" "Hmmmm".



"So then why do we keep having to go through these gates?"



"Um, that's how you get through a fence?"

"Are you sure these are even roads? I think it's just a cow path or something... there's no tire tracks."



Hmmm... she got me on that one.

[DR. Rock]

it's fine for Sam Correro to route us through the middle of nowhere, that's the TAT. It's cool with her.



But when I do it, I'm accused of "Gerry-ing" the route.



Now, if you don't get that reference, and you spend ANY time out in the desert, you MUST see the 2002 Gus Van Sant directed film "Gerry" with Matt Damon and Casey Affleck. When we watched it, I was rapt. LDF fell asleep, but caught enough of it to get the gist. Let's just say the topic came up on this section.

[Hayduke]

Note to self: DON'T let Bonnie see that movie.

[DR. Rock]

became a bit of an issue. I took the lead.





At this point, from the tops of the rises, we could get our bearings and see buildings behind us off in the distance.



Of course, we were quite a ways away from them, and moving ever further. Once we started to get into a little hillier area, we lost even that visual connection.



I was loving it.

Francine was not.

[DR. Rock]

ONE Freaking TURN.



"Where are you TAKING us, GERRY?"

[DR. Rock]

I was navigating by the seat of my pants.

It was a maze of half tracks, cow paths, GPS had maybe a third of them. I was pretty much winging it. At this point, I looked down to what the route had evolved into (or rather deteriorated),



and it was entirely conceivable to me that the last vehicle that had passed this way was a covered wagon.

[DR. Rock]

and then lost it. Got into the Juniper / Pinion pine elevation,



and then back into sage brush.



and the strangest thing would be that I would see some tire tracks, for a quarter-mile or so, and then nothing. And then tracks again. Of course this supports my alien abduction theory.

[DR. Rock]

with the trail more,



or less visible:





and just as we thought we'd have to backtrack, or worse, we came to a gate,



beyond which was these guy's backyard,



beyond which was...




Admit it, Francine. It was cool.

[DR. Rock]

we picked up a nicely graded gravel NF service road:



and started making good time again.



We climbed higher into the pine trees,



and I thought, despite our 2 hour delay, that we might still make it out to Point Sublime.

[cyberdos]

Originally Posted by DR. Rock

And huge storm clouds over the grand canyon.

Hey, I know that spot.

[forrest_fire1]

amazing.
Thank you

[Mark_S]

awesome stuff
really enjoying reading this
thanks for posting

[DR. Rock]

He works for the Northern Arizona University Dept. of Forestry. They do research, and collect field data in several areas, among which is the Mt. Trumbull area of the North Rim. From my understanding, they study how forest fires spread depending on how the forest and previous fires are managed.



They like to study areas that are really remote, and have been testing the hypothesis that fire is part of the natural cycle of forests. That it serves to clear out dead undergrowth, and allows older trees greater separation from one another which both prevents forest fires to spread, and allows the remaining trees to grow to spectacular heights.



So as we passed through this area, I was wondering if what we were seeing was some of his handiwork. I didn't understand what these piles of dead wood were:



But when I showed him the photos he explained,



I can't remember the precise term for it, but the idea is that the dead stuff is collected, and then when the snow falls, the piles are lit on fire. It turned out this wasn't exactly where he had worked, but it isn't far.