May 15, 2023 to May 16, 2023
Shake it all down
I get some quizzical looks when I tell people we're doing a shakedown ride. For us it's part of the prep for all long tours. Load up the bags with everything you plan to bring and ride somewhere for the night. If there will be camping on the tour, we camp on the shakedown. We always find a bunch of little things that could make the experience easier and more pleasant, and usually a few bigger things.
You'd think with five long tours under our belts by now this wouldn't be necessary, but between aging or untested gear and forgetfulness, there are always bugs to find. We'll camp one out of every three nights or so on our Northwest tour so it's worth optimizing. The rides are their own adventure, always in unfamiliar territory so there's some level of unpredictability.
Long before I suddenly became a customer for the bike Hank had for sale in Southern Illinois, we planned to come down here for this ride. It's just two hours from home, and we'll get to hang out with him and Brigitte.
The last time we were here in June of 2020, I was on a break from taking care of my new grandson three days a week (best retirement gig ever.) We brought the new travel trailer down for a few nights of fun and practical RV lessons from Brigitte and Hank at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge where they stay in their motor home.
They had these cool new Lightning P38s – basically the same frame as our bikes but with the latest tech – and took us for a ride around rural southern Illinois where sparse is traffic and the roads are paved. We covered some good hills between Alto Pass and Cobden, two small towns south of Carbondale. It seemed like a great area for wider exploration. I rode Hank's bike a little bit that day and liked his cool tilt handlebars, but didn't really understand the Rohloff hub thing back then.
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This trip we'll shake down Hank's bike - now mine, along with all the rest of our gear, on an 80 mile loop from Giant City State Park through Alto Pass on a bunch of roads new to us. We're spending the night at Pine Hills Campground in the Shawnee National Forest, right around the halfway point.
A couple weeks ago I discovered that the campground is not far from the famous Snake Road. It's a three mile stretch of unpaved road that's closed to cars for two months in the spring and fall when the Cottonmouths and other reptiles and amphibians do their seasonal migration. People hike the road to see the snakes every year. I will not be one of those people, ever.
A check of the map showed that the campground is about three miles southeast of the southern end of the road. The critical question for me: which way are the snakes going? It turns out that in the spring they migrate from the cliffs east of the road to the swamp on the west. We'll be camping on the last day of the two-month period when the road is closed to cars this spring. Presumably the survivors of this biannual road crossing and their progeny have learned to git while the going is good. So it seems unlikely they'll be hanging out in the campground. I think I can handle this.
Day 1
The forecast for partly sunny skies on Monday has evolved to mostly cloudy, but still dry. It's nice not to be baking in the sun while climbing the hills down here.
We didn't bring a scale to the weigh the bags, but on past tours I have typically carried about 40 pounds of gear, including food and water. Barry carries about 50 and still coasts frequently to stay behind me.
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11 months ago
11 months ago
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The bike is carrying the load well. It feels less twitchy on the descents. I'm guessing the 37mm tires have something to do with making it feel more stable, compared to my old 28s. But lord, the climbing. The first 25 miles today are all hills, one after another. At mile 24 approaching Alto Pass we hit a 14% grade and have to get off and push the load up a ways. No pictures here, we're just getting through it.
In Alto Pass we stop at Duty's Country Market for sandwiches and a quart of fresh sweet strawberries just in from the farm. It's the last food and water stop before the campground which has no water, so we fill up our bags and bottles, plus an extra folding 3 liter bag. That should get us through basic cooking and washing tonight and riding back here tomorrow morning. Between us we're now carrying 10 liters of water. Good thing we have a nice long 3 mile stretch downhill toward the Mississippi River.
Shortly after the route levels out we find ourselves on a gravel farm road that RidewithGPS didn't flag. I shoulda checked the Gravelmap. Part of this section is hard-packed and not too difficult but some of it is very bumpy. My 1.5 inch tires are up to the task on most of it. Barry's 28 mm tires inflated to 100 PSI are not playing well here.
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After skidding out to a low speed crash in the grass, Barry discovers that one of his chain guide wheels has broken off. This had happened on another ride and was patched up with electrical tape that did not stand up to the impact. It's good that he has a couple weeks for a better repair; in the meantime he patches it up again with more tape.
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At 3:30 we pull in to Pine Hills, a U.S. Forest Service campground. We're all alone here on Monday night - that is, just us and the mosquitoes. I did pack the bug spray but mercy they are persistent. I have to spray my hair to keep them from buzzing around my ears. By dinnertime they've settled down. No snakes in view, just one little toad hanging out in the bathroom.
The primitive campground has 14 level campsites, fire rings, picnic tables, a shelter, clean bathrooms with vault toilets and critter proof trash cans – all for the princely sum of $10 retail. Barry's Interagency Senior Pass makes it $5. I'd say it's worth 5 bucks.
While setting up the tent and sleeping kit I discover safety pins in the sheets. I guess I put them there last year to mark where I wanted to cinch up the sheet to fit our new mattresses and forgot to follow through on that alteration. It's bad policy to have pins sitting on the air mattresses so I take them out and finish the job with a needle and thread.
Our folding rubber camp bucket and a washcloth work well enough to clean up and wash off the sunscreen. Considering the limited water supply, we're keeping dinner simple tonight, splitting a freeze-dried beef stroganoff meal (too salty) and polishing off the rest of the strawberries along with some cashews and other snacks.
While we set up camp and gather wood for the fire I'm accumulating a list of items needed - work gloves, a small saw, more flat-head tent stakes you can drive in with a rock, and a replacement for the pot handle that breaks while Barry heats up some wash water.
The thing we miss most is playing cards. They weren't on the packing list but should be. We're off the grid here with not much to do. Playing a few games of Gin and Kings on the Corners is our favorite way to pass the time.
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I'm not worried about bears here but we've had our differences with raccoons on other camping trips. Last year the crafty critters delicately unzipped both our seat bags, removed all the energy bars and left us the wrappers.
Here's the new defense protocol. All our food and toiletries - anything that smells, goes inside Opsak smell-proof bags, which go inside the bear bag. The directions said to tie it to a tree, but for extra security Barry hangs it from a branch.
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Day 2
We had thunder, lightning and rain overnight. Fortunately it started after we turned in and stopped before we got up, but I didn't get much sleep. We're happy to find that the stuff inside the tent is mostly dry. Everything else was under a tarp or rain cover and is in pretty good shape.
We move operations over to the dirty but dry picnic tables under the shelter to have breakfast and pack up. I've found a couple cotton t-shirts that got very damp in one of my panniers. It's mostly waterproof except for a hole in the bottom. I should be able to find some more suitable quick-dry versions at home and patch up the hole. Another issue is the very wet cotton rope that we used to hang the bear bag. I bet we have some nylon rope at home that will dry faster. Other than those items it looks like our rain game is strong.
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Rolling back out towards Alto Pass, we take a slightly longer route today that Hank suggested - on paved roads through the Trail of Tears State Forest. It goes around the 5 miles of gravel from yesterday. We had enough of a shakedown on that stretch, thank you very much.
Five miles from the campground we discover a Forest Service station with running water and plumbing in the bathroom. I had scanned the map for stores or gas stations closer to camp, but didn't think to check with the Forest Service. Good to know.
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It's sprinkling on-and-off and I stop a couple times to put on a jacket, then take off the sleeves and make various other adjustments. This all drives Barry crazy; I do tend to have frequent wardrobe issues. Then when his chain guide falls off again, it's my turn to wait patiently.
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It's 11:30 by the time we climb the hill back up to Duty's store in Alto Pass to pick up some sandwiches and refill our water bags. From there we turn north on Dutch Ridge, another pretty, quiet road. We pass by some adorable children in Amish clothing playing tag; that tracks with the name of this ridge. At the top there's a nice spot for a short lunch break.
After lunch there's another long sweet downhill cruise, followed by the steepest hill either of us has ever attempted on a ride. We both keep the wheels turning until the grade registers 16% on my Wahoo. It feels steeper as we push the load up the rest of the hill. I haven't seen anything this bad on the route we've mapped for June. It's as good a test as we could hope for.
The hill work continues for the rest of the ride but is manageable. In Carbondale there's one curious landmark on Union Hill Road. From a distance it looks like a woman in a long skirt.
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Back at the trailer I conk out and catch up on some of the sleep I missed, then get a long blessed shower. I guess Barry does as well but am too out of it to register anything else going on. We manage to pull it together to meet Brigitte and Hank for dinner at the Giant City Lodge, a magnificent landmark built by the CCC in the 1930s. The fried chicken there is the bomb.
The next morning before we meet up for a mountain bike ride, Hank obliges me with a photo on "our" bike, and reminds me to call him first if I ever want to sell it. I promise but don't think that's likely. It's a keeper.
The 80 miles and 5,000+ of climbing over the last two days gave us a stiff workout and a great test on the new bike. We're heading home with a manageable punch list and almost two weeks to work through it.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-38_can_opener
11 months ago
11 months ago
I carried a 100-foot length of synthetic and reflective tent guyline last summer. It made a great way to hang food stowed in a pannier (I'd not heard of the odor-proof / bear-resistant bags you mentioned).
The guyline is lightweight, packs small, and is easily tied off and untied.
11 months ago
11 months ago
11 months ago
11 months ago