Hog Canyon - Winterlude 2021 - CycleBlaze

February 2, 2022

Hog Canyon

The end of a journey still always comes as a surprise to us.  It feels unreal somehow that this is our last ride on the road before really heading north.  starting tomorrow we’ll just drive north up the coast for three days and then we’ll be back in Portland for a month watching the weather hopefully for breaks in the rain.   

So for our last ride here, what do we choose?  We’re going back to where we started in Paso Robles: up Hog Canyon.  There are other enticing rides to take here, but this is the right one for conditions today - windy, blowing from the east.  It’s even colder this morning, down to 28; but somehow no matter what the temperature is when we wake up by 11 it’s about 50 and time to ride.  And for the first time, we’re finally just leaving right from the motel.

We pick a different route this time on our way out to the canyon, and this time it’s an out and back so Rachael’s got more control over her options if it gets too windy or hilly for her liking.  We see a different cross section this time of the country in close to PR, but it’s all pretty similar until you get deeper up into the canyon - endless rolling hills blanketed with vineyards.  

So, country like we’ve just seen recently.  Still, there’s always something new to make you pause: a longhorn, an odd bird.  Best of the day is a quartet of young deer running along a slope above us as we’re racing downhill and with the wind at our backs.  I don’t see them at all until I hear Rachael shouting over the wind from behind me.  For some reason Rachael is a much better deer spotter than I am.  

They’re up at the crest of the ridge working their way east, but a fence is in the way.   One of them takes the lead working the line looking for an avenue across, and finally finds it.  It must be a tight fit, because we can hear the twang of the fence as each of the four of them squeezes under before they all race up the hill.

There’s always a reason to get out the door.  There’s always something new, no two rides are ever quite the same.

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Same old vineyards. They have a different, browner look in the early spring though, much less colorful than in the fall. The opposite of the grassy hills that are at their best now with their spring green.
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Graham FinchFab perspective!
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2 years ago
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Ponies.
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A big baby.
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Long horns, long tail.
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In wine country.
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I forgot at first why I took this pretty uninteresting shot. It’s the lone field worker tending the vines. Just him and his white dog, and the vast acreage. It’s going to take awhile.
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We’re following the contours of the Estrella River, another seasonal stream that’s dry at the moment.
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Seems like seeing a kestrel perched atop your birdhouse would be intimidating.
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Bill ShaneyfeltKestrel cafe?
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2 years ago
A lone oak.
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Jen RahnThere's always something about a lone tree.

And this one has such a nice shape .. and such and interesting foreground!
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2 years ago
Scott AndersonTo Jen RahnI liked this also. Reminds me of a sheet spread out beneath an Xmas tree.
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2 years ago
I’d like to have spent more time with this long line of relics, but I think I’m on private property and quickly lose my nerve.
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Branded.
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Just one of those roads.
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Jen RahnBeckoning! Smooth surface, interesting curves, a curious rise .. and not too slopey!
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2 years ago
More of the same. Hog Canyon has a different look today, but still an appealing one.
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A bald eagle! Rachael’s a better deer spotter, but maybe it’s because I’m watching the tree lines.
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Three hoppers.
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In another good day for birds, today we have mockingbirds in abundance.
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Nearing the end of the road. We’ll be seeing Rocky soon, no doubt.
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Scott! Deer! Look up!
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The leader, perhaps the mother, waits looking back from the top until the whole crew makes it through the fence and then moves on. Gone in a flash.
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Heading for the exit. It’s much different today, much warmer with the wind at our back.
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Ride stats today: Rachael: 45 miles, 2,200’; Scott: 42 miles, 2,000’

Today's ride: 42 miles (68 km)
Total: 2,267 miles (3,648 km)

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Jen RahnLook forward to seeing you two while you're in town!
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2 years ago
Scott AndersonTo Jen RahnYou also, Jen. I can’t believe we’ll be back in Portland tomorrow night.
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2 years ago