North woods back roads tour

[north woods gal]

Thought you might like a sample of where I love to ride, so here's a ride I did, today. The destination is some wild north woods logging roads/trails, but to get to this area and then back home ... I have to ride seven miles of paved roads, but very light traffic.
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[north woods gal]

The fun begins when I go off the pavement on this stretch of county gravel road:
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[north woods gal]

Since this is a county road open to through traffic and since no one lives on this road, it get little maintenance, so things get rough in a hurry. Rough riding for the next four plus miles. No place for road bikes.
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[north woods gal]

Finally, my destination. The logging roads are gated to prevent damage from vehicles when not in use by logging trucks. Foot and bicycle traffic is allowed and snowmobiles in the winter. Have yet to see a single footprint or bicycle track in this area. Next 8 miles is all wild and all mine. Happy, happy, happy.
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This is what happens to logging roads if they are not gated and open to vehicle traffic between logging cycles. (Another area and, yes, I do bicycle this one, too.)
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[north woods gal]

Can be many years between logging use, so the roads do get overgrown, sometimes little more than single track. Flushed some grouse in this section, today.
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Same section earlier this summer. Wasn't even sure of there was a road.
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[north woods gal]

Always have to be aware of downed tress and branches, some can be hard to see. These are more dangerous than the obvious, easy to see downed trees.
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[north woods gal]

Mostly just me and the road and the woods and total contentment.
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[north woods gal]

Exit on a paved road and 8 miles back home. Finish the day with almost 30 miles and a big smile on my face. Thanks for riding along.
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Bike used: Trek Stashe 29er plus, 3" tires, no suspension, but the perfect bike for this work
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[north woods gal]

Would love a tour of some of your rides, too. Please feel free to share.

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[salsabike]

Those are great, north woods gal. Really interesting.

[Crankin]

Beautiful. Glad I saw your mountain bike at the end, because I was thinking, "I sure would be riding a mountain bike..."

[azfiddle]

Beautiful-

So very different than the areas I ride though.

[north woods gal]

Thanks, all. Glad you enjoyed it.

I could probably manage the gated logging roads with my 700x35 bike, but I'd have to be extra vigilant. No way, though, on the 4 plus miles of gravel/sand road to get there, since that road gets beat up and rutted with vehicle and ATV traffic. I tried it on the 700x35 and had to turn back. Even my standard 2.2" tire MTBs have floundered on that road. The 3" 29er Trek, above, has never let me down on that road, though. Night and day difference when things get soft and squishy with those 3" tires.

Believe it or not, the Trek 29er plus is not too bad on pavement, either. I can still average 11 to 12 mph with it on the pavement part of the ride without pushing it too hard. Very comfy ride with those big wide tires and I even bounce off the pavement to ride the shoulder for fun, sometimes. Pretty much gives me the freedom to go wherever I want. Kind of like a fat bike that went on a diet. :)

[Catrin]

Beautiful, thanks for sharing! I had wondered if you had fat tires, and I see you do. If I could still ride, I think that is the kind I would like to do. Of course I would have to move to another part of the country to do that :cool: Are those platform pedals you're riding?

[north woods gal]

Hi Catrin.

Yes, the 29er plus bikes like this use the same low pressure ballon tire and rim setup as fat bikes, just narrower. The beauty of the 29er plus, though, is that it is a faster, lighter, more agile bike and one that is much more pavement worthy than a fat bike. That's important to me because I have to ride some pavement to get to my back country roads and trails. Fat bikes out on paved roads for any distance drive me nuts.

Yes, those are flats as far as the pedals. More and more of our mountain bikers, up here, now use flats on our nasty technical trails and nearly all our fat bike riders. That way they can use regular boots in cold weather and not have the hassle of cleats getting clogged with snow and ice. Have been using flats on all my bikes, all summer, and don't miss going clipless at all. Personal preference on my part and, by the way, a good set of flat pedals with pins work great with a wide variety of ordinary shoes. Have even used them with my Birkenstocks. :)

[emily_in_nc]

Loved your tour, NWG! All of those look like roads I'd enjoy riding except the muddy ones -- I am not a fan of mud nor cleaning bikes after riding in it. Other than that, though, sweet! And I love that bike. :)

[north woods gal]

Thanks, Emily. Yes, I think some of those roads are similar to what you and DH rode over the summer. I see us as kindred spirits in that we both like to do some adventure riding. :)

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks, Emily. Yes, I think some of those roads are similar to what you and DH rode over the summer. I see us as kindred spirits in that we both like to do some adventure riding. :)

I agree! :D

[ny biker]

Loved your tour, NWG! All of those look like roads I'd enjoy riding except the muddy ones -- I am not a fan of mud nor cleaning bikes after riding in it. Other than that, though, sweet! And I love that bike. :)

I also am not thrilled by having to clean off the mud afterwards. But I would use my mountain bike much more if we had roads like this nearby. Thanks for sharing!