Gravel

Well, we certainly didn’t get our money’s worth out of our stay at the Anderson School as we spent only a little over five hours on the premises.  The same guy who had checked me in a twelve fifteen checked me out at five thirty.  We rolled out under cloudy but dry skies and coasted […]

After a cup of hotel lobby coffee, which was quite good, Mykenna and I set off into the misty wet morning in search food (a common theme on this trip).  The Egg McMuffin is a perfect blend of fat, carbs, proteins and convenience and when we saw the golden arches we rolled in.  The dining […]

Writing about the Cross Washington Mountain Bike Race (XWA) is proving to be as difficult as the event itself.  I suppose that I’ll approach this challenge in the same manner I approached the race – start at the beginning and move steady towards the finish. In the Beginning With road racing being shut down due […]

Early last summer, or late last spring, Ben D and I voyaged up to the northern Washington town of Darrington to ride Rat Trap Pass.  On the drive up we noticed a trail alongside Highway 530 that we later learned was the Whitehorse Trail.  Further research revealed that the trail runs twenty seven miles linking […]

The nice thing about owning a capable “all-road” bicycle is the ability to ride all roads.  And trails too.  For the past year and a half I’ve been exploring the unpaved roads and trails in and around Seattle.  I recently used a bit of what I learned to sew together a mixed media route starting […]

Since hearing about the much-anticipated opening of the Renslow Bridge I’ve been eager to give it a crossing.  When Michael P contacted me about doing a ride in central Washington I suggested riding the Palouse-to-Cascade trail up to and over the freshly opened bridge. The Renslow Bridge, a former Milwaukee Road railroad trestle, spans Interstate […]

One aspect that I enjoy about exploration and adventure is that one project often leads to another.  While researching an upcoming trip a door typically opens to a new undiscovered opportunity. While doing some casual online research on Troy Hopwood’s XWA (Cross Washington) route I stumbled onto a map of the Willapa Hills Trail: a […]

Forgive the lack of photos in this post; it was all I could do to stay attached. On the penultimate day of February my partners in gravel crime – Mike R, Ryan H and Mykenna I – joined up with Seattle strongwoman and 2020 CX National Champ Julie Robertson Zivin for a second helping of […]

When Trevor, Paul, Larry and I rode from Rattlesnake Lake to Tekoa on the Ironhorse and what was then known as the John Wayne Pioneer Trial we encountered half a dozen obstacles: three minor and three major.  The three major obstacles were detouring around the closed Renslow Bridge which crosses I-90 east of Ellensburg, crossing […]

I recently learned two new words: vindskydd and raststugor.  Both are Swedish words for a type of backcountry shelter.  A vindskydd is a three-walled, roofed lean-to style structure, while a raststugor is a fully enclosed hut.  A vindskydd can either be floored or bare earth, the former suitable for sleeping the later being simply a […]