Part of the glory of riding is discovery. Discovery of views you had not seen before. Discovery of small places you wouldn't see in a car. And, today, discovery of unexplored roads.
Part of the Ronde van Monroe that we have been riding every Saturday is a small downhill with a left turn at the top and then right turn at the bottom that empties out into low-lying farmland. This downhill is paved but littered with a fair amount of gravel that causes you to ride with some degree of caution.
This past week Patrick sought out a new route around this section of road. The new route would tack on a few extra miles but I'm always willing to try a new road. This new section of road began with a few small rollers before becoming pancake flat. We came to a fork in the road, consulted the map, and turned right on Cemetery Rd. The roadside sign read "Winding Road". This was a small road and did have bends but I'm not sure it qualifies as a winding road. It did, however, get even a little bit smaller until we came upon another sign that read something like "Dirt road. Impassable when wet. Unauthorized use is subject to fines".
We pondered a bit. Should we turn back or press onward? The ground was soft but still reasonably firm. Coop was circling around back on the paved section and was probably more interested in turning back. I was game for pushing on and Patrick went for it too. We called for Coop and rolled down the hill. The ground was slippy but manageable. Left turn at the bottom and the mud became softer. The pedaling became slower and the mud gathered more around the brakes and tires. Before long there was a heavily rutted section of road with water gathered in the tire tracks. There was no riding through this thick, sticky slop. Basically, we looked something like this without the cheering section.
We trudged through for a hundred feet until there was a little smoother section. Then it was back on the bikes again, across a small wood decked bridge and with a small, bending uphill looming ahead. This hill also was torn up and we quickly were walking through slop again. At the top, we cleared our brakes a little and headed off again. We decided to avoid the road and instead rode along a grassy section along the farmland. We were not going to set any speed records but at least avoided the mud.
To avoid short gravel section, we a few miles further so that we could ride through a mile of mud. Sometimes, maps don't tell the whole story. Aside from the mess, I thoroughly enjoyed that crappy section of road. I'm not sure I will ever ride that road again but I think it would be pretty fun to ride in drier weather.
Part of the Ronde van Monroe that we have been riding every Saturday is a small downhill with a left turn at the top and then right turn at the bottom that empties out into low-lying farmland. This downhill is paved but littered with a fair amount of gravel that causes you to ride with some degree of caution.
This past week Patrick sought out a new route around this section of road. The new route would tack on a few extra miles but I'm always willing to try a new road. This new section of road began with a few small rollers before becoming pancake flat. We came to a fork in the road, consulted the map, and turned right on Cemetery Rd. The roadside sign read "Winding Road". This was a small road and did have bends but I'm not sure it qualifies as a winding road. It did, however, get even a little bit smaller until we came upon another sign that read something like "Dirt road. Impassable when wet. Unauthorized use is subject to fines".
We pondered a bit. Should we turn back or press onward? The ground was soft but still reasonably firm. Coop was circling around back on the paved section and was probably more interested in turning back. I was game for pushing on and Patrick went for it too. We called for Coop and rolled down the hill. The ground was slippy but manageable. Left turn at the bottom and the mud became softer. The pedaling became slower and the mud gathered more around the brakes and tires. Before long there was a heavily rutted section of road with water gathered in the tire tracks. There was no riding through this thick, sticky slop. Basically, we looked something like this without the cheering section.
We trudged through for a hundred feet until there was a little smoother section. Then it was back on the bikes again, across a small wood decked bridge and with a small, bending uphill looming ahead. This hill also was torn up and we quickly were walking through slop again. At the top, we cleared our brakes a little and headed off again. We decided to avoid the road and instead rode along a grassy section along the farmland. We were not going to set any speed records but at least avoided the mud.
To avoid short gravel section, we a few miles further so that we could ride through a mile of mud. Sometimes, maps don't tell the whole story. Aside from the mess, I thoroughly enjoyed that crappy section of road. I'm not sure I will ever ride that road again but I think it would be pretty fun to ride in drier weather.
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