Blue Marsh January 2009

Yeah it was cold and windy but what the hey. Trail was 2-3" of ice and snow mix... real pleasure to ride on... but this is what you have to do if you wanna get off the trainer! I didn't have tons of time today so my goal was to ride the ski area loop - a little over 7 miles. NBD, but those of you that know Blue Marsh know that the trail's highest elevation is in this loop - about 558', or 270' over the frozen lake. Tires were aired down to pseudo-flat and did a better job than I on the hills... but neither the tires nor the rider could handle the really steep stuff. I was doing this loop CCW (mile markers decreasing) so the steepest segment is an up, not a down, for me today.

This shot is past the high point and heading downhill to a bridge crossing between mile markers 16 and 17. Pretty sight with all the snow cover. Luckily the trail was never as slick as it looked... no face plants or impromptu snow angels today.

Onto the doubletrack near Sheidy Rd. between mile markers 15 and 16. "Travel at Your Own Risk" sign seems appropriate. Did see another set of bike tracks here, but they dwindled away at mile marker 15. So for most of the ride I was the only idiot out here on a bike over the last few days.

Ride is winding down... down the bank, across the frozen lake, and just past the bridge is my truck. This section is a real nice ridge run just before the descent to Church Rd. Once on Church Rd., it's only 1/3 mile back to the parking lot.

All in all a nice, quiet ride. I was way warmer than I thought I would be, but that beats the opposite feeling. The only thing that was a little cold were the toes, but they've been colder.