EPIC (yes, I used the word epic) Labor Day climbing weekend with pics!

[Brandy]

I planned a secret trip for George (vireo) and myself, up to the Sequoia's (National Park, National Forest, Giant Sequoia National Monument) this weekend.

Saturday:

We left the house at 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning to drive up. George had no idea where we were going until the signs on Highway 65 gave away our destination. We arrived in Springville early Saturday morning and started out on our first climb of the day.

Balch Park Road Loop started out at 1000 ft elevation and went up to 6400 ft. We took a little detour off of the main road and ended up with 5700 ft. of gain for this climb.



We went back to Springville and had lunch at the cafe, which has been there since 1897. Service was a little on the slow side, so we were off of the bike longer than we anticipated. While at the cafe, we stared at the thermometer which read 100+ degrees. IN THE SHADE!

Highway 190 out of Springville started at 1000 ft and I made it to 5500 ft, while George made it to 6300 ft. It was over 106 degrees when we left (with 4 bottles each) on our second climb of the day. Though I'm getting better about riding in the high temps, I still overheat fairly easily and the Tule River was calling my name. George was back taking pictures when I decided to pull off of the road and take a dip in a beautiful pool of water. He indulged my diversion from the plan and I shed my gear for a little skinny dipping. :thumb: This put us behind schedule and losing daylight, but it was well worth it. I'm sure George would agree.



Sunday:

From our motel in Porterville, we drove up to Three Rivers.

Mineral King Road was our climb for the day. From a starting elevation of 800 ft in Three Rivers to an ending elevation of 7800 ft at the end of the road, we gained over 7200 ft on this climb. The road was narrow, steep, sometimes unpaved (not hard packed dirt...but SAND!) and is reported to have over 698 curves. Totally awe inspiring. The views were breathtaking.



Pics in the next post!

[Brandy]

Pre-ride Saturday



Balch Park Road



Oliver Twist Sequoia tree



Pond at Balch Park



Balch Park


Thermometer we stared at while we ate lunch, knowing we had to go back out there!



Heading out of Springville on Highway 190



Giant Sequoia National Monument



Tule River



Flume over the road

[Brandy]

Pre-ride Sunday...looking a little beat from Saturday!


Well stocked on fluids




George climbing Mineral King Road



The flume that carries water to the power station



George on the Kaweah River Bridge



View from the Kaweah River Bridge



This sign should have read "keep going for more pain"...lol



Mileage and elevation points on Mineral King Road


Around 5000ft elevation, looking back at where I came from


Looking up at where I need to go. Not easy to clip back in here!



Getting closer!



The sound of the water rushing over the rocks warranted a stop to take a picture and take in the view



We reached the end of the road at 7800 ft!



Mineral King Valley from Tufa Falls



Tasty eats from Silver City Resort Restaurant



Kaweah River nearing the bottom of the VERY ROUGH descent



More (like 200 more) pics here on zeeee flickr.

[katluvr]

OMG--that WAS EPIC! Now that I have an EPIC RIDE truly defined I have something to strive for. WOW!
Thanks for sharing!

[jobob]

My sentiments exactly, katluver.

Brava!

[andtckrtoo]

Wow!! I'm totally in awe of your ride this weekend! Thanks for sharing!!!

[pardes]

You are stunningly beautiful! That's a lucky guy.

What wonderful epic photos. I want to go back and study them further.

Lovely, lovely, lovely!!!!!!!

[Iris616]

WOW! What an awesome ride! It's inspiring.

[Misandal]

Brandy, WOW, amazing ride. Great pics! You should be proud of those graphs!

[SadieKate]

I think the 100+ degrees fried your brains! Beautiful ride and great job just getting getting back out of the Tule River let alone riding again.

[Brandy]

I think the 100+ degrees fried your brains! Beautiful ride and great job just getting getting back out of the Tule River let alone riding again.

LOL. Trust me, I could have stayed in there all day long!

Thanks everyone, it was a great weekend. The scenery was amazing and I'd love to get back up there again when it's a little bit (okay, A LOT) cooler!

[Tri Girl]

Too cool! Not only was your ride epic, you forgot to mention quad-killing, breathtaking (literally, I'm sure), and stunning.
Looks like a lot of fun (when fun means lots of self-torture).

[sundial]

Oooh, I really enjoy your photo essay. I want to ride across that bridge. I also want to hitch a ride back to the starting point because my legs would be noodles by then.

[Brandy]

Oooh, I really enjoy your photo essay. I want to ride across that bridge. I also want to hitch a ride back to the starting point because my legs would be noodles by then.

Let me tell you...the descent from Mineral King was more challenging than the climb. Sand, gravel, rocks, rough road, narrow, huge drop off, cars coming and going. We had to ride the brakes (and stop to cool our rims several times) the whole 25 miles down. I'd rather climb it...and that's saying a lot because it was a steep booty kicker!

[crazycanuck]

Brandy, you're one climbing machine!