Santa Ysabel Truck Trail+Sutherland Dam recon

Early morning fog on Mule Hill Trail

Left the Mule Hill Chevron at 7:00 sharp. A little cool for arm warmers and paper vest under jersey. I was
packing 2 bottles, 3 bars, 1-sunflower butter/cheese + 1-turkey/cheese sandwiches and my usual back up gels, extra Fizz tabs and the normal medicine cabinet stuff. I did get a extra bottle of Gatorade a the Chevron start and put it in the side pocket of the bar bag. Strapped it on with a rubber band.

It was real cool, in the low 40's with fog covered fields. Several people were jogging along the trail. The climb up to Raptor Ridge was the same as always. Two hike-a-bike sections and I was sucking air again. Not enough traction with the WTB small knobbies stock tires. They've got to go for a under $30 alternative. Plus I don't have the out of saddle technique down yet. They did clear the bushes somewhat along the trail section along Bandy Canyon Road near the fence. Good news as the horses have chewed the trail up awful from the pristine ride it was in early spring. Chatted with a MTB'er unloading at the Hwy. 78 trailhead. New looking TREK. He said it was a 2011 model. I asked how those tires worked. He said they were the original ones! Huh? They looked near new with lots of lugs sticking out. Must not ride much. He had his name decal on the handlebars. Mmmm must be a pro! Didn't know where Lake Henshaw was either.

Real lite traffic on Hwy. 78 going east toward Ramona. Big portable road sign that said road construction on

Deer on trail

Saturday. Guess it was better to have cancelled the SYTTr. ride for tomorrow? Orosco Truck Trail was bladed again. Must be for fire season. Santa Ana's today with temps forecast into the 90's out here. Lower Santa Ysabel Trail was nice and pristine, as usual. I just happened to stop and listen to the quiet. Across the valley, I saw a deer had also stopped on the game trail, looking at me. Neither moved. Hard to see him, but I rolled out quietly after a bit. Big oak tree had fallen over the trail. No way around, so it was duck under and climb over time. Through the last gate and to the Pamo trailhead. Removed the arm warmers (for brush protection). A lady was getting into her car after a hike.

One car on Pamo road. I felt real slow at the turn onto Upper Santa Ysabel TTr. Reloaded a minute before the assault up the 2 mile climb. Quiet at the "Y" to Black Mtn. Road. TTrail was quite smooth from lots of jeep traffic. Deer ran right across in front of me in the treed area, dust flying. The downhill ahead seemed smoother than usual. Must be the road traffic here has filled in between the rocks. Sat down in the cool shade just before Black Canyon. Road. Wind was blowing leaves as I chugged some water and pondered how nice and quiet it was here!

Next up was Black Canyon to Mesa Grande. Road was the usual wash board special. Seemed to take 3

Lake Sutherland Dam at low level

hours to drag my butt up there. Don't like that climb too much. I never did figure out why. Lite to no traffic as I  made the turn,finally downhill  and over to Henshaw store. Wind was really blowing from the east there. It cooled me off some on the climb back up the Mesa. I seem to climb that OK on the trail bike with big tires. Downhill was a terror on Black Canyon Road again. Super washboard and dusty. Almost nailed a car as I was trying to follow a smoother line around a corner! Good thing for my wet blow rag over my mouth/nose to defer the dust. Lots of fun with a suspension fork to smooth out the washboard and big tires to grab the corners. What a hoot!

At the bridge, I decided not to go straight to Ramona on dirt, where Keith had crashed on the washboard a while back, but to take the Sutherland Dam road instead. I don't remember being there before. 1.5 mile climb up on a washborrd dirt road. Some grades around 10%. Several side roads and in the distance there are some nice looking trails that go way up! The Dam was much larger than I thought. It 2x as wide as the Lake Hodges Dam and looks to be designed about the same. Water level was way, way down. Lake was closed to boaters and everyone else. The road starts climbing and follows the lake around and up over the ridge. I was confronted by a double flock of wild turkeys, who straddled the road. I crept along, trying not to rouse them, but to no avail. They all flew away when I was within 10'. Seems to me that the Sutherland Dam sits in a bowl, with it's main watershed from the mountains to the east. From the water, anyway  you go, it will be up. The route south from the dam is several more miles of climbing. Then a real fast 35mph downhill to Hwy. 78. I took the highway to Ramona. It was all downhill and 30mph fast with the big Santa Ana tailwind.

I stopped at the AM/PM instead of the control Circle K. Nicer there. Ice cream sandwich and a bottle of Vitamin Water. It seem to work OK since Andi Ramer put me on that stuff. I sat around back in the shade and ate my turkey sandwich I brought from home. Didn't seem too hot there, but a bit breezy. Short break and I was off down the hill. Garmin direct temp was at 100.4F now. Didn't seem that warm.

Big tailwind down Hwy. 78 and very light traffic going around me. I stopped at the trailhead potty and decided

Wild turkeys block the road near the dam

to make a real day of it and follow the full trail back. Signs were posted saying on October 12th a big race along the full trail from 6 AM to noon. Trail didn't seem too dug up as I experimented with the fork compression rebound knob. Never did figure out what that thing really does. Met 2 women on horses. I pulled over against the fence and kept quiet. The lead horse was really spooked, so the back horse led around and seemed to calm it down. No other bikes on the trail today. Nailed the couple of 15% grades up Raptor Ridge and tippy-toed down the other side without crashing. Met a TREK rider stopped near the trail finish and chatted with him. He was built like Dan Fitzgerald but a bit heavier. Said he had a heart attack a while back and was back riding again. I gave him a Rando card and said just pop a "nitro" and keep riding. "Oh, ya, I always carry some in my camelbak with my other meds"!

Rode back to San Marcos and got home around 4:30. Interesting ride today with the buggered right knee (from the sidewalk on last Saturdays Ham-Hock Trail), several deer and turkey trot, oak tree block of the trail, dam recon and windy/warm temps.Weekdays are great on the trails.

-randorides