Our friend Paul visits and what to do? How about stay in a historic building in Yellowstone National Park and then visit some of the attractions both popular and off the beaten path. Day one included a bike ride up Bunsen Peak Trail to Sheepeater Canyon. https://photos.app.goo.gl/q7Td6KbbtmDVO3RN2
The hike, once we locked our bikes, started out as a nice path through the grass. We rode to the trail via the Bunsen Peak Trail from Mammoth.
Taking Paul to a place that most visitors to Yellowstone dont stop to visit, Sheepeater Canyon.
And so in trying to catch up on my blogging, I am about to discuss my second Enduro. Oh, yea and trying to connect last June to now (late September) to prove that life is the same parallel. As in “not my first rodeo”. Get it? Like not the first time I am trying something new. Not new being scared. The unknown … AGAIN. The feeling of “Oh shit, what am I doing” … AGAIN.
Top of stage 1
So Enduro to me is enticing because it is the rock climbing of mountain biking. You study a route and then try to execute it. Combine that with group rides. It is NOT a physical fitness race. But then everyone wants to bomb the downhill. With bragging rights once everyone congeals at the bottom. A major change from a fitness competition which I am so used to. You mean the first one to finish today is not the winner? Wow!
Hanging out with friends discussing our runs
Today, late September, I have to have issues with the way our society is set up. To trap us into thinking we are free and we have choices. Working for someone else and then giving all that money to another person. In return, we get tiny releases of emotional happiness. But then it fades and we go back to work to earn some more. Not freedom! In the end, we do have a choice and now we need to choose another path. We as in Snuggles and I. Time for change. You mean the one that earns the most money does not win? Wow!
The Masters podium
My second enduro was even more awesome than the first. And I won, which is a bonus. But that isn’t what this post about. This is a new genre for me. With some familiar elements. Camping and hanging with like-minded folks. Actually, it reminded me of the good old days. What? I need an entirely different bike? Cool!
Rise and shine, race starts soon
The first change this week is that I am pursuing being able to have a job where I am more flexible. Not just a butt in the seat job. One where I can work out of a transit hut in Yellowstone Park. And I am close to getting that. You mean I can work surround by nature? Cool!
And I am off for another stage
This was my second race using new pads. Elbow, knee, and goggles. I have started to feel like a stormtrooper. After this race, I would go on to include a full face helmet and back protection. Maybe a sign that this is dangerous. Well isn’t life all about living? Hell yea.
I think I was mentioning how much fun this was.
People think they have to work to afford the house, car, insurance, and all life’s safety gear. Excuse me … I can live without a house. What do you think we do on the weekends? I mean if we are escaping all of the life’s necessities or safety nets every weekend then doesn’t it seem like life would be more fun without all that ownership? Hell yea.
Bitterroot
In my second enduro race, I wondered to myself, “where has this sport been all my life”. But then I always say that when I try something new. Does change bring about more adventure and is that why sometimes we find more pleasure? Maybe.
Camp
My goal in the near future is to make a drastic change. Sell everything off except what we can haul in an Element. Toning down ownership. Basically, what we do every weekend now. Just going full-time with the vagabond idea. Big changes true, but won’t it just bring more adventure? Maybe.
Final stage start
So this new sport IS a big change. From a single all-out effort to an all-day adventure. Instead of weekend camping to an all year camping adventure.
The final sprint to the finish
The transition was not complete by my second race. No, it took all summer. Ending with a race in Big Sky with new skills and equipment. I had to learn along the way with the help of friends and patience. The second race in Lolo was just the beginning and one thing was for sure. I became committed. And now committed to moving out of a societal “roof over our heads” to a nomad life. First things first … like selling everything off. It’s going to take a while. I THINK we are committed.
Yeah right! A weekend off from the ever demanding pattern of packing on Thursdays leaving on Fridays and then be back in place at the 40 hour work week sometime Monday morning.
We planed the usual activities to get caught up. Since every week in the summer we have been gone. We planned to put plastic on the windows and weatherproof our house. We planned to clean the house. We planned to do some shopping. We planned to do a lot of things. This weekend we were finally going to get caught back up.
Then we had a couple beers on Friday. And maybe a couple on Saturday. And of course on Saturday one needs to rest and make the trek over to REI and look at some stuff .
And then Sunday the sun came out. And so we decided to go for a mountain bike ride at Chestnut Mountain.The ride was fine in fact it was great. And really overall it was a fantastic afternoon riding through the Fall Foliage. When we got home we celebrated with another beer and sat down to watch a movie.
So in the end nothing got done and we just stayed home. We even fit in a mountain bike ride. But nothing got done and maybe we have to take another weekend off to try and get things done. But we all know how that will go. We’ll just find an excuse to go on an adventure. Might as well pack and take off next weekend and get out of here so we don’t mess up the place.
Here comes more as we do a short gravel grinder to the trailhead
Yeah, me hanging out on top of Chestnut Mountain
Another nice son and shadow shot
The evening sun light through the leaves to show the colors
Sunlight streaming through the Fall Foliage
A panorama of the Fall colors coming down the Chestnut Ridge
The trail rides through the colors being lit up by the Evening Sun
Frog Rock area can be seen in the background as we come down the switchbacks on the North Ridge
The Frog Rock area with all the Fall colors in full bloom
For various reasons we moved our weekly adventure series to Tuesday effectively making it now the Tuesday Night Adventure. Those reasons are private. The forecast was for rain so I pulled a hike out of my ass. Bozeman proper is a bad place to hike. not many choices. Drinking Horse, M, Pete’s Hill, and some of the Bridger Range hikes. All freaking straight up and then straight down. Boring. And the snobs are out in force. Making sure they are Strava-ed on their favorite haunt Instagram-ing selfies to feel like a health young soul. What ever. The real adventurers want something different. Some diversity. Some rolling hills. Some color. and maybe some privacy.
Well the Triple Tree Trail is a good find. Not lengthy but good enough for after work. And very colorful. Aspen forests, Doug Fir stands, and even the pesky log pole pine forests. Even sage ridge tops and rolling country with skunks hiding in plowed fields. Ignore those 238 Private Property signs though. That land owner needs to find a life. Hey land owner … thanks for contributing to the community.
Mo says that this would be a great place to conduct a biology class … or did she say forestry …
Cold and windy is what I can say about the last day. The night was fraught with violent storms. Once the tent blew flat across us and I had to go out and do some emergency securing of the guy-wire hooks. The first time I used those. We found slices of time in the morning to enjoy the brief visits of the sun. We did some major fuels reduction of the area by burning so much wood to keep the fire going. The winds made the fire resemble a blow torch. And just like smoking a cig the more air you pull across the embers the faster the thing burns. Not that I like smoking. Or even like being around a dumb-ass that does.
The ride out was fantastic but we had to cancel the scheduled hikes about the alpine bowl. The sheep we saw the night before were still on the ridge hopping around. We even spotted some goats on the way down as well. Good weekend for viewing the alpine pros.
We popped out of the woods and loaded the team van for the trip back home. In 30 minutes we pulled up to the front door and that was that. Will there be another weekend to ride bikes? Seems the fatties are about to roll soon.
A sliver of morning sunlight to express the colors
It is smaller then it looks
Who is in the rears?
Riding around the lake from our campsite opposite of the way out
The trail coming down from Heather towards Emerald.
This weekend could be our last. So getting out of base camp was a little slow. We started a fire for some quality time at camp. I cooked up some big plates of bacon and eggs. Of course there was coffee and music. It was probably around noon when the warmth of the day got us motivated to take off some puffy gear. And while we were up … might as well pack the bikes for a 2,400 foot of vertical climb to the lake.
And then there was the ride up. Passing by waterfalls and eventually Emerald Lake. As we embarked on the last mile I remembered that one time I said that I would never again ride to Heather Lake and that Emerald was just fine. And for about ten minutes I wondered why I would have thought such a ting. Then the rocks started appearing. Looking like it was a bit more tricky now I charged ahead determined to ride it this time. Finally I had to give up after being bucked around like a silly drunk idiot at one of those cowboy bars riding a mechanical bull. But we did eventually make it.
It was worth the struggle because this high alpine area was so calm and relaxing. We were really up there and with winter hot on our heels no one else seemed to want to be there. Well … except for some people who eventually did show up.
After gathering wood and setting up camp we feasted on a dried meal. Feeling stuffed and a bit weird due to not have “that kind of thing” in my normal diet we started to mill about.
“Lets go for a short walk”, my partner suggested.
And I knew what that meant. So I grabbed some adventure gear and followed. Wondering if we would be back before dark.
Ruby (the bike) stands guard at one of the many scenic overlooks along the way
One of the many falls along the way
Yea … another water fall
Made it!
Finally got camp up just before it started to rain.
Shortcut
Mo says, “Hey, let’s go for a walk”
Heather Lake
Mo the adventurer … me, just want to take a nap in a hammock
The Bowl above the lake
Overlook Moutnain
Happy
The mound in the center makes me think this could of been a volcano at one time
Hyalite near the top of its watershed
Snuggles getting ready for … well … snuggling. Moon on lake in background and our https://mpowerd.com/ serving as our tent lamp.
Some may have seen the post where we ran, er rode, into the discovery of the new recreation path around Hyalite Lake. On our way to base camp I noticed this new path crossing the road. So that next morning before we set forth on our accent to Heather Lake I snuck away for some Bill time. And “Bill Time” was successful because upon waking my partner said, “You did a 7 mile ride already”.
If you would of asked us last Monday we would of told you that the following weekend we would stay home and rest. But then the forecast was saying sunny and warm. And so we committed to another bike packing weekend. Then the weather started to look shaky. But by then we had the momentum and we went for it anyway.
So suddenly there we were camped out at the base of the climb with a roaring fire. I cooked on the camp stove and Mr. Bear (our child … not saying that we are discrediting real parents) was providing the entertainment. The tent was up and all was good in our world. Tomorrow we climb … with 60 pound bikes.
Short weekends suck. You know … the ones where you get off work on a Friday and have to be back to work Monday? That is f*#@$ng short! Even though you get out of town after work, leaving on Sunday to get home really sucks. I really hate the 40 hour work week. It is ruing my life. Well, beyond that the fact remained that we needed to ride our shit down to the vehicle for extraction. Extraction from fun and into the big house of societal hell.
But that does not mean one can not have fun heading into hell. Right? And since hell, if one believes there exists such a place, we do not, is DOWN … well that is going to be fun. My 50 pound bike launched off of root balls and broke the sound barrier on some dusty ridge line single track. The ride down was a hoot.
I woke up to prepare the surprise. As a consolation on sneaking out of the tent early I was greeted by a great sunrise. I got the card out of my pack and the cup decoy.
Whoa … backup. The day before I ran to REI to get a titanium mug for snuggles. Her old plastic REI mug was ready for retirement and this one would fit in her down tube bag. But they were completely out of stock. So I ordered it online and printed out a decoy to attach to her old mug.
Alright, why? Well 5 years ago on this day, September 11th, snuggles and I entered into a life *adventure. So I prepared the morning surprise. When I would call out “coffee is ready” she would come and find her mug with the decoy attached to it. I forgot tape so I used pine sap. Also a perfect placement of the card with some morning thoughts (proprietary) inside was necessary. I was ready.
“Coffee is ready”, I shouted towards a rustling sound in the tent.
Happy 5 year anniversary to the best *adventure partner on the planet.
*And by the way “adventure” might be the new cool word … but we made it cool.
Waking to a sunrise on the nearby walls
Sun rises over Lizard Lake Meadow
Snuggles with her cup decoy
Posing in front of sacrifice rock
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Sphynix
Looking westward towards Shedhorn Mountain
Looking off the ridge above camp towards the two Lizard Lakes
Boneshakerbike 