Photos & Trip by Bobby Gee, Friday 5/2/08 Since we moved the Old Lechers Hiking Clan to a saturday event we decided to use the Friday Morning Slot for a few mountain bike trips. The first was today. We met at the club at the 0830 hour and it turned out to be just myself and Mark. That allowed us to be a little more flexible in where we went and the pace Mark set for us. It also allowed us to go a little further than we might have with a larger group and still make it back in time for the noon meeting at the Alano Club.
MARK IS ONE OF THOSE RARE INDIVIDUALS...
I really have to thank Mark for a great and pleasant ride experience for me. He is one of those rare people who is in excellent physical condition and could quite easily outride almost anybody and especially an old goat like me. Instead he is sensitive to the needs of others around him and doesn't need to prove his ability at the expense of us less conditioned folk. So KUDOs to Mark.
He did stretch the limit at the end of our ride. The picture and inset to the right just don't do the hill justice. Trust me...I wouldn't have a prayer...espesially after a two hour ride !
This hill was at the trail head as we returned
Sorrento Valley Strip Mall
IT DIDN'T END WHERE I THOUGHT IT WOULD...
The ride out and back was almost exactly two hours. We took a wrong trail and ended up in Sorrento Valley. After a brief trip roadside under the freeways we stopped at a little coffee shop for a quick break and a couple of Coka Cola's. We had intended to end up at the western end of Hwy 57. Wrong! Coming back we took the northern trail which actually proved to be a little less demanding. We passed a marsh that I didn't even know existed. Mark tells me they have been facilitating it's recovery for quite a while.
THE TRAIL BACK WAS A LITTLE MORE TECHNICAL ...
The trail out to Sorrento Valley had some reasonable tough up hill sections but could easily be walked by the weaker of us about. I had to stop twice and decided to sit my weary carcass down for a few minutes for old man rest and liquid rejuvination (yes water ). The trail back wasn't as demanding altitude wise but was a little more technical with a single lane trail as well as some bridges and rocky sections both up and down hill, so it provided a nice variation for the different terrain.
Good view of one of the trails
One of the bridges on the return trip
A GREAT WAY TO ENJOY SOBRIETY ON A FRIDAY MORNING ...
All in all this was a very enjoyable ride. Plenty of excercise for me and even Mark got a bit of a work out. We didn't push it too hard, saw a few others out there on the trails, encountered a garden snake slithering away from the trail and enjoyed great weather and views from highland ranges to wild oaks along the creek in the lowlands. There is truly something here for almost anyone. Normal hiking guidelines apply and stick to a sensible pace. TOMORROW THE HIKE IS ON THIS SAME TRAIL AND MIKA THE WONDERDOG WILL BE ABLE TO JOIN IN. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO FRED'S ARTICLE ON THE SATURDAY HIKE HERE !
