It has been about a month and a half since we last checked out the trail conditions at the higher elevations so we decided that it was time to go back. Despite the snow in the weather forecast we decided to bring the bikes along wishing for good trail conditions. We brought hiking boots too — just in case. And Strelka, of course.
A little above 7,000 ft there were still small snow piles here and there hiding in ditches, in shadows of big trees, or behind big rocks, but all-in-all the conditions were good enough to ride our bikes.
While it was windy and only in the 40s when we left the house in the morning, I am glad we stuck to our plans. It was chilly in the mountains, but the sun was out, and the trees provided good shelter from the wind.
Once we got above 8,000 ft and went around to a north-west facing aspect of the mountain the snow drifts got significantly bigger and more frequent. This was where we decided to turn around; actually not that far from where we chose to turn around when we hiked here 6 weeks ago. Last time we turned around because we needed snowshoes to continue. This time because we didn’t want to damage the wet trail by riding on it.
Strelka had an awesome time out. She is turning into quite the trail dog, maybe even a single track trail-snob! The skinnier the trail is, the happier she seems to be zipping along it following its every little turn and curve up and down and around as it traverses the landscape.
The conditions of the trails at higher elevations are definitely improving. For the most part, the trail we rode today was dry as a bone. We in fact encountered said bone!
