wow, I haven't blogged since getting hit by a car in March

Shockaloe Trail Report

I rode this trail in 1990. It was on a Sunday after a Sat night of excess youthful exuberance at all the favorite night spots in town and all I could remember about it was how muddy it was and how tired I was. It could have been oxygen debt from trying to keep up with Roy Martin on that day. But I can hardly remember that ride. Well today, it was a different story, there was no excess, no mud(hardly), and I got to get to know my crank very well on my mtb.

Everyone tried to warn me off the trail after I posted that I was going and their concerns were unwarranted. I was told it was too rough, too flat, too smelly, too many hunters. The only thing they were right about was that it was flat. A hammer head who likes to crank will love 95% of this trail.

The trail is maintained to some degree by an annual bushhog and there were only 2 places blocked by fallen trees which I was able to ride around with no prob. You can see in the photo that the trail is built up. The trail even has a feature with a substantial bridge over this creek in the photo. There are plenty of bail out spots as you cross the forest service roads(photo below) which also would be good for exploring.

This trail is also a horse trail and thankfully only about 4 miles of the 23 total miles do the horse riders use much. It's the first 2 miles and last 2 miles that you can tell that the horses use on a regular basis. Apparently they haven't used it in quite a while as there wasn't any sign of horse manure. You will notice in the low areas where the horses have bogged down in areas only a few feet in width and I was able to ride around or over these spots with no problem. There was a little bit of chatter on some sections with hoof idents but it was no problem for me on my hardtail and that was mainly on the first 2 miles and last 2 miles. The rest was ok. You can see these little ponds(below) all along the trail, I guess to serve as a watering hole for the horses and maybe for dirt to build up the trail with.

The ride time was 2 hours 15 mins and in that I took a wrong turn and rode an extra mile, stopped to take some photos and a slight bonk at the end as I didn't carry any fuel and didn't eat right prior to the ride. At one point after Base Camp 2, I got into an aero tuck as the speed got fast in that section. Did I say that you gotta love to crank on this trail? There is NO free wheeling on this trail.

I made my final stop due to what I believe was a cougar. I have been in the woods all my life and what I saw was not a bobcat or canine. The build of this animal was just slightly taller than a big bobcat, longer than a bobcat, a thick neck, a round head, a more powerful and muscled body, a long tail, rounded ears. It's coat was really dark brown, darkest along it's spine, that got lighter as it went down to it's underside. The tips of it's ears were ringed in black and lighter in the center of the backs of them. I got a good look from 30-40 feet away as he was in the trail when I rounded a turn and it leapt to my left over a fallen tree top and he was gone. I will follow up with the wild life dept tomorrow and offer to take them to the exact spot to see if they can get a print.

There is some potential for thorn flats as there are briars next to the trail in some spots but I didn't flat. Take a tube and air with you on this ride. It could be quite a walk back. If you are going to leave the main trail, take a gps with you as you can easily get lost. Just remember that the horses only use the first and last couple miles. I guess those horses aren't in that good of shape for more mileage than that.

This trail is recomended for a good endurance workout and it is suitable for beginners as there are plenty of places to make the trail shorter. A beginner will find the total distance difficult.

It was a good ride and I will do it again.