President's Day Weekend "Staycation"

 

President's Day Weekend was a 3 day weekend and I definitely decided to stay home because I knew everywhere else would be just as bad.  Such as St. George, Moab, San Rafael Swell, etc.  I stayed home and had my own fun which I called "Staycation".  I did go out in nature during all the three days and I didn't even go to church.

Saturday, I did a hardcore bike ride up in the Black Hill Riding Area.  The temperature was in the 60s so it was very nice.  There were a lot of dirt bikers, target shooters, and horse riders.  I've never seen so much people in that little area.  But it was bearable though so I had a good ride.  I couldn't believe that there was dust on the trails and roads already in February.  I didn't feel super good on my ride though, it could have been better.  I probably just need to take a little break and recover more. 

On Sunday morning, it was also sunny and nice.  I took Duke up for a 5 mile walk just at the base of the foothills behind my house.

It was so nice and it was a good walk, Duke liked it.  I was wearing a t-shirt.

On Monday, which was President's Day, I went for a hike at Maple Canyon.  I wasn't thinking it wouldn't be that bad because of the lame winter.  But it was actually really icy all over the roads.  Just in the canyon where it's always shaded. 

I decided to walk until where I couldn't but I just kept going, even on the sheer ice.

Duke loves to come out hiking with me and look for anything that moves.  Like squirrels, chipmunks, lizards, deer, or he even would go after a bear or mountain lion if he could.  But there was nothing really out there on this hike.

I made it to the very top of the San Pitch Mountains above Maple Canyon.  I didn't think I would make it this far but I just kept going.  Plus all of the road at top was on the south face, so there was no snow and the ground was all dry with patches of snow. 

There was no wind at all in this canyon, so it was nice.  It was very windy down at the valley today though.
 

My dad kept talking about this section of the road for years and years.  This was the story where my brothers, my dad, and I would go up this road on that 2 wheeled drive 1968 Chevy truck then break the clutch.  It scared my dad so bad because we were on this section of the road with a broken clutch.  Ah, good times during the old days of Maple Canyon when there didn't used to be people in the area.

On the way down, I ran into an old friend I haven't seen in 15-20 years, he was actually my brother's close friend and I used to do things with him too.  Ben Cook is now living in Portland, OR and was down here visiting and taking his wife to Box Canyon.  He is also a geologist and this is really a good place for a geologist with all these Maple Canyon rocks!  He had a rental car and it was stuck on the icy road and I stopped by and he said that his dad was coming up to help him get unstuck.  That is when I ran into him.  It was really nice to see him.

So I walked into Box Canyon a little bit to see some ice because I've never been to Maple Canyon in the winter.  So this is the only ice waterfall I saw up there.  Not much this year probably.  Well, it was a good weekend.  Now back to work tomorrow.  Did I tell you how much I love my job?  Well, let's put it this way, I can't believe I actually get paid to do woodworking!

Surprisingly early Price, UT day trip...

Every Spring in the last few years was reserved for a Price bike trip.  I know it's not Spring yet and it's February but since this weather has been really strange, yes, I could ride there now.  Usually the snow on the trails don't melt or dry up until March or April but since it was a very dry winter, the trails were very packed down and was a go.  Even the temperature was perfect.  I just wore knickers and a long sleeve jersey and I was very comfortable.  When I went last Saturday, there were a quite of few other bikers there also.  The other years, I was like the only one there usually.

This time, I didn't want to do the full eight figure ride so I did Luke's and Smo Joe's.  Then half of Luke's again and rode on a new trail I've never done before which split the loop kind of half but it felt more I did the big loop again.  It just split to the cattle grate at halfway of Smo Joe's.  It was a great ride but I was careless on my shifting on some of the ride though and broke my chain about at the last half mile of my ride.  I did have a replaceable chain link in my seat bag but no chain tool to get the old link off.  I realized I forgot to put my bike tool back in the bag after I had it in my fat bike bike bag for the winter.  But I coasted and walked back to the trail a half mile which was no big deal.  Then I drove home and stopped at my friend's house in Mt. Pleasant on the way to visit for a while.  It was a good usual Saturday bike day.  I just couldn't believe I was doing this in the first part of February.

Spring in January?

Since it's been unusually warm in most of January (in the 50 degree range), I had to ditch the fat bike and do some dirt/pavement riding.  The snow is gone in the valleys but there is still mud and some dry or tacky dirt in most places.  Since it still gets dark around 5:30ish, I've been finding ways to ride during daylight hours while still working at my job.  Like some days, I ride during lunch break or take a very short 15 minute lunch then get off around 4 pm so I can have an hour or so to ride before it gets dark. 
 

I've been riding on the roads close to my work which is around Wales, Moroni, Freedom, or Fountain Green.  I've been doing all kinds of rides.  I really like the Maple Canyon road climb that starts from Freedom and up to the mouth of the canyon where the pavement ends.  It is a tough climb for a lunch break ride.  It makes up my day though.  And sometimes I ride around the town of Moroni and do some intervals and sprints because of the short climbs around Moroni.  Then a cruiser by doing the Wales Loop.  But it's great.  By the way, I bought another bike.  I was going to put the money into an updated drivetrain on my mountain bike but I've decided that the present drivetrain on there now is good enough for a little while, and which is a pretty good system.  So, anyway, I used the money for another bike.  It's a bike to keep at work so I can ride around during work.  It's an $800 road bike which I bought it at a bike shop in Ephraim and I had him take off the drop out bars and put on flat handlebars instead which I like better.  I never use the drops on the drop out handlebars.  I also swapped on Cane Creek Ergo bar ends.  It's a pretty sweet bike for 800 bucks.  It's a Cannondale.

Well, I am starting to do some dirt rides also.  I like to ride on Kane Valley Road by Black Hill in Ephraim.  It's just tacky dirt and it's awesome conditions.  Then I ride up on Mill Road up the pond which I call it "Darrel Olsen's Driveway".  Then up on the rocky short cut to Gordon's Farm.  It's just a ride I usually do during the early Spring but it's not Spring yet but it's just weird that it feels like it in January.  Here's my Strava workout I did yesterday.  Last weekend, it was a bigger ride though.



It's been nice, but we sure do need more snowstorms.  It's been a dry January and I hope February will be wetter and get more snow in the mountains.  We need the water.