Cadell Road

The first ever imperial century I rode was in December 1999. It involved a circuit through the Tweed Valley in northern NSW -- some of which was on dirt roads. There was a certain point on the dirt that generally represented the half-way point of the ride, where Brays Creek road met Cadell road near Byrill Creek, just outside Mebbin National Park. In truth, Mebbin National Park (not one of Australia's larger or better known ones) was only declared a matter of months before I started riding here. Yet I was always curious about the dirt road that wound it's way through the heart of it.
After Sunday I need to wonder no more. I knew of the southern link on the Murwillumbah-Kyogle road (despite the "No Through Road" signs), just at the foot of the Nightcap Range. It was from here that I approached it. Initially there is some punishing climbing through some farmlands, up to the view at the top of this post. The road here winds up and down through the forest as it enters the national park, before a couple of screaming descents on the dirt -- one of which I had a bee find it's way into the inside of my sunglasses just as I hit 50km/h.
All in all the ride was an extremely rewarding experience, even if it was a little shorter than I expected. Maybe I'll bring a tent and camp there one night, just to give myself some time to explore the surrounding farm roads.
Of course, the thing about this region is the beauty of the ride to the start...


... and on the way back from the discovery. Total ride distance: 183km.


The flowers in the last shot were blooming everywhere on Urliup Road, where I took my usual temporary refuge from the heat on my way home.
Incidentally, the camelbak made it's debut on this ride. Overall I was quite happy with it, but I need to remember to buy some drinks other than water occasionally -- the taste of water gets a bit old after the first seven litres!

Spring Snow at Portage Brook

This year, spring in Northern Minnesota has been slow to arrive. This photo, captured the day after a late winter storm dropped 5 inches of snow on the Arrowhead Trail in Cook County, is proof of that fact. Most people that I've talked to recently have had more than their fill of winter. I, on the other had, welcome a late winter/early spring snow storm, especially after the rivers have opened up. The contrast of fresh snow and running water makes for some incredible imagery. This waterfall is a little-known gem not far from the Canadian border. The trail to this falls is not marked, and is a short but rugged hike. Just before you get to the falls, there is an area where blowing snow collects and drifts rather badly. I had to wallow my way through a drift that was almost waist-deep in order to get to this vantage point on the falls. By the time I got back to my vehicle, my pants and shoes were soaked from pushing my way through the wet snow. As is often the case, however, the photos that I got were worth the effort. This image was made using my Canon EF 17-40mm lens, shutter speed was 1/2 second, aperture f22, ISO 50.

Churches in the South

Here are some vignettes of different church where we've travelled. I'll try and remember where they were taken.
1. Bruton Parish Church in Colonial Williamsburg2. Independent Presbyterian Church in Savannah, Georgia3. Chapel in Jamestown, Virginia4. Catholic Church in St. Marys, Georgia

5. Bruton Parish again6. Hiwassee Union
Baptist Church in Reliance, Tennessee7. Old Sheldon Church Ruins in Sheldon, South Carolina8 & 9. AME church close to Millen, Georgia10. ?????

Click on #'s 1, 3, and 5 and read the fine print. Click twice for a super closeup.

South Early Winter Spire SW Rib ..

Elevation Gain: 2600'
5 miles RT
Left car: 11:15 am
Summit: 7:30 pm
Back at car: 10:00 pm
11 hours car to car
Steve and I planned a big climbing weekend. We didn't finalize our objectives until a few days before the weekend. The first leg would be an attempt on the Southwest Rib of South Early Winter Spire. Our plan was to climb South Early on Saturday, and then head to Cascade Pass to climb Forbidden on Sunday/Monday.
We had a casual start from Seattle on Saturday and arrived at the Blue Lake trail head in the late morning. Temps were cool, and it was a bit cloudy. We made awesome time to the base where we ate lunch and started to gear up. (And Steve took a "bathroom break".) There was a party on route ahead of us and they were a few pitches up. We hung our remaining gear in the tree, and headed up the direct start. [Using the description from Weekend Rock.]
Steve led off on the first pitch which was a loose and not easily protected corner. He went a little off route at one point (he called it the 5.10 variation) and was finally at the belay. I followed and found the pitch a struggle, and mostly unenjoyable. The off route variation took me some time to complete as I couldn't manage the moves Steve did and did an even different variation. This off route issue on the first pitch burned a lot of time for us, (Steve thought over and hour) but we weren't too concerned.
I led off on the next pitch which was short and if we didn't go off route on the first pitch, probably could have been combined with it. This short pitch was a moderate crack that brought you up to the next belay just below a major flake that is the following pitch. We changed over leads and Steve was on his way.
This crack is wider and has an interesting design to it with a large edge as its left side. The crack was fairly steep, and Steve headed up it straddling the flake with one leg on the face and one in the crack. There was much grunting. (Not as much as from the woman who was ahead of us-I think she was actually crying at one point.) Steve made his way up and commented about the amount of blood on the rock. He combined the pitch with the following pitch and started to bring me up. I climbed the crack with both feet in for the initial part, and then about 1/3 of the way up I used the flake for feet as my feet were killing me from jamming them in the crack. The last third of the pitch you come out and lie back the final portion. Exciting to go from the relative security of the crack out on to the face. The second pitch of this link up was a wide crack in a slab.
Top of the fourth pitch (photo by Steve Machuga)
It was my turn to lead the next pitch which was a slab pitch. It starts out by going around a corner and then up a nice slab with some exposure. The book description said somewhat runout, but it was oddly only runout for the crux, which in the book was stated as being "an exciting step to the right." It was a fun pitch and I set a gear belay at the base of the bear hug cracks and brought Steve up.
Rounding the corner to gain the slab (photo by Steve Machuga)
Since I had told Steve at the base that I wanted to lead the bear hug cracks, he let me lead this next pitch as well. This was a super enjoyable pitch where you head up a short crack that brings you to a small ledge at the bottom of wide double cracks. They took a touch of effort to get on, but once on them, I found the climbing easy. What was not particularly easy was protecting them. We had brought a #5 Camalot just for this pitch (although we used it on 2-3 other pitches as well.) The bear hug cracks were too wide for the #4 and so I had to move the #5 up with me at least once. Just above the cracks I was able to get in a #4 and then proceeded up a ramp to the next belay, where I brought Steve up.
Bear Hug Cracks (Photo by Steve Machuga)
Steve led out on the next bit and then we started simul-climbing. (This was roughly pitches seven and eight.) He belayed me up to just below the bunny ears, and then I led a short bit to the rap anchor at the bunny ears. We rapped off the scary (freestanding block) anchor into the notch. Then Steve led the final pitch up to the summit area. It was a fun little crack that brought you up to near the summit. Since it was late in the day and clouds seemed to be rolling in, we bypassed the summit block and started our way down the South Arete.
Bottom of pitch 7 (photo by Steve Machuga)
We scrambled most of the the descent until we got to one of the chimneys. We opted to rappel at the rap station there and that is where we were joined by another party who had just topped out on an east face route. One of the guys, Blake, scrambled down to me and set up the next rappel at the next chimney and rapped down. They allowed us to use their rope and I rapped it to find Blake scrambling down to the base. One of his partners came down and said "its only 5.0 right?" and started scrambling the final bit as well. His other partner showed up with another rope and we rappelled to the base. The one partner who started scrambling got a bit sketched and rapped the last bit before Steve could finally rap down.
Once on the ground, we returned to our packs at the base, turned on our headlamps and hiked out.
Overall this was a great climb. Although it was 5.6, the first pitch was no doubt the crux for us. (Were we off route the entire time?) It was loose, not well protected, and strenuous. There were three really enjoyable (dare I say great?) pitches on the route and some other good pitches as well. While clouds threatened all day, they mostly stuck to bothering the nearby peaks like Silver Star and Cutthroat. It was windy and cool on route, but we did have brief moments of sun.
My pics are here.

Comfort food

It's not pretty, as restaurants go. It's not gourmet dining. But at 3.30 on a dreary December afternoon, when you've missed lunch and have another couple of hours to put in at the office, it calls to you. Just time to point and shoot from across the busy road, too hungry to pay attention to photo composition, before hurrying inside to warmth and the aroma of frying. A few minutes later, back out into the cold with the precious parcel of chips (fries) wrapped in brown paper (newspaper sadly being outlawed now by European decree).
A few important cultural notes. The lady in grey standing at the door is taking a good pull on her cigarette before entering the restaurant, smoking being forbidden inside public places in Scotland. The neon signs proclaim that as well as fish and chips, you can have an all-day breakfast, or pizza. The pizza comes deep-fried if you want. However, I chose the healthy option...just chips, with lashings of salt and vinegar. The vinegar is an important anthropological marker. It identifies me as coming from the north of Scotland. South of a line bisecting the country from roughly Perth to Dundee, the default seasoning is 'salt'n sauce' - the sauce being a gloopy brown concoction. We northerners are purists, choosing the astringent tang of vinegar every time. Other unhealthy options I could have gone for include the battered cheeseburger - as it says, a cheeseburger dipped in batter and deep-fried - or a white pudding supper. A white pudding is a savoury sausage made from oatmeal, suet, onions and spices, and the 'supper' bit means that it comes with chips.
Comfort food indeed. But not too often...

Leics Round 7 - Bagworth to Woodhouse Eaves and Beacon Hill

Fri, Apr 19 10:05 AM Western European Time
With Marta. Fine with the odd shower and occasional sun. We saved the hills for the end of the walk. Garmin off for about a mile. Total around 12 miles. 1,129 feet of climbing.





We start with a short diversion to the Bier House, to look at something I'd seen last time.




Up past the church and through the churchyard, for a sobering start to today's walk. Then through the recently planted (1996/97) Bagworth Heath Woods, which are part of the National Forest. It seems an excellent way to heal the scars of the mining industry. I idly googled Bagworth colliery and found an interview with some ex-miners from local pits. Desford Pit had seams running under most of this land. Today it's pleasant walking and we get quite warm in the sheltered parts of the path. We cross the road and continue - the way ahead is clear, and takes us over the Leicester to Swannington single track of railway line.

We cross a stream and a small field with a couple of donkeys. the stream was the old mill race for Thornton Mill. The mill was built in 1847 and functioned until the 1930s. The daughter of the last miller still lives in the mill house, and the house next to it was converted from the mill itself.


There's a man sitting in the sunshine mending a table. "So, this used to be a mill?""Oh yes - if you go up here you'll see where the pond used to be. Come and have a look."We walk past a table and seat made from an old millstone and up to the wall where a tiny trickle of a stream now runs.

"There was a big stone at the top end to stop more water coming in. Maureen's dad used to keep a boat tied up here and he'd go up by boat instead of walking there."Then he showed us a brick dated 1847 on the side of his house. A wooden beam with words carved "Christian built this mill in 1847" used to be in the mill, now it's above an outbuilding.

We thank him and wave to the women in the mill house garden. He says it's a shame so many walkers just keep their heads down and don't stop to look around more often. Guilty as charged on occasions.






The footpath here is very well marked and we arrive at a modern housing estate on the edge of Thornton. We wander up a couple of dead ends before finding our way to the main street.

The path goes alongside the school and downhill over a ridged and furrowed field. We can see Thornton reservoir glittering in the bottom of the valley.



We walk past the end of the water and a field of shetland ponies and some sheep and along the side of Browns Wood. There are wide views in both directions here. The noise of the heavy traffic on the embankment of the M1 makes conversation difficult. With some relief we take the path underneath the motorway, and ignore the footpath on the left almost immediately afterwards. Instead we carry on for a short distance to a path which goes through three fields. We walk past some houses, and along Croft Way and turn right along Forest Road, then soon left into Main Street, Markfield.

It's a conservation area, but there is still evidence of post-industrial decline.






At this point we are in heads-down-and-can-we-stop-for-coffee-soon mode, so miss out the church and the Altar Stones picnic site and Nature Reserve, which has good views over Charnwood Forest. One for another walk?



We leave Markfield and go underneath the A50 by a subway. Then we take a path alongside, screened to some extent by the trees. They don't have many leaves yet. Coffee is by now essential, so we use this dilapidated picnic table.

Inviting, no?

We follow the Round way marks with no problem as far as the village of Newtown Linford.







Then it's through to Bradgate Park, a sandwich at the café.

Striking trees

Atmospheric ruins

We walk by the river, past the mighty trees, and the ruins of Bradgate House, up the hill to the War Memorial and Old John.

Marta clambering on the rocks

Grand wide views, if a little misty. We leave the park and take the path along Benscliffe Road, through the edge of Rough Wood, and over Lindale Golf Course to Woodhouse Eaves.
We turn left along Mill Road, walk uphill past the windmill, and the car park for Broombriggs.
We cross the road, and walk up (again) to the top of Beacon Hill. I really feel these hills at the end of today's walking. About 12 miles.

They are filming something - time travel perhaps with medieval peasants and modern army types with automatic weapons? Beacon Hill's a great place for it.

We saw one swallow, heard an insistent cuckoo in Bradgate Park - Marta saw a woodpecker - we both heard one drumming earlier. We saw a jay fairly close by as well.

Strange orange moth

My husband photographed this gigantic orange moth on a recent business trip. Thankfully, something this odd is usually pretty easy to identify on the internet. It didn't take long to find out that this is a Regal Moth, also known as Royal Walnut Moth, Citheronia regalis.

It would be odd enough if it were the size of a normal moth. But according to Wikipedia, this is the biggest moth north of Mexico. (That's weight, not wing span, though that's not shabby either.) In this lighter wide-angle view, you can compare him to the door hardware to see how large he is.
This was on the door of the hotel, so maybe he's a watch-moth. I know several people who would hesitate to open that door!
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Updated:
This one was found in Virginia, but they are at home anywhere in the east, I believe.
Submitted to the Friday Ark.

Chickadee nest

Carolina chickadees (Poecile carolinensis) have made a nest in one of our bluebird boxes. It's apparently not an agreeable spot for bluebirds -- none have nested there in three years -- so I'm glad the chickadees found it.

I was surprised at the amount of cedar tips cushioning the nest.
There's a little blue feather on the lower right of the first picture, and I wonder where it came from. Did bluebirds start the nest, and the chickadees just finished it? Or maybe a bluebird stuck his head in to see what was going on, and left a calling card.
The chickadees could have just picked up a pretty soft blue thing as building material. We see swallows picking up duck feathers all the time, so I know some birds "feather their nest" with other species' feathers.
One of the first birdsongs I learned was the Carolina Chickadee's. A friend and I chased all over her property for a frustrating hour before we finally pinpointed the bird who sounded exactly like a rusty porch swing. You can listen to him here.
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Friday Ark is up!

Close, but no Brum

On Sunday I needed some big kilometres, I decided on another "century" in the Tweed Valley, this time I decided on the climb to Brummies Lookout, at the top of a rather steep climb on dirt roads. Getting up that particular climb was always going to be interesting after the previous day's work, so I decided to change the route slightly.

I opted to enter the Tweed Valley through Urliup rather than Tomewin this time, figuring I'd just climb Tomewin at the end anyway. Urliup really is a pleasant place early in the morning, as the rainforest fills with the sound of the morning bird calls. I figured it might also give me the opportunity to inspect the dirt sections to get some idea of what I'd be up against on the big climb later. I took a similar opportunity by detouring along Chilcott's road near Chillingham, and crossing a flooded creek.

There were two smaller climbs to negotiate en route to Tyalgum, and a potential detour to Bald Mountain that I will take one day. Today I had other things in mind. The main climb is steep for about a kilometre, levels off into a couple of rollers, before kicking up steeply again on dirt. This road was a little more cut up than the early dirt roads had been -- not surprising as this road had been closed since February. I pressed on steadily, reached the intersection with Condowie Road (that would be my descent), and continued climbing.

I passed the start of the walking track to Brummies Lookout completely as the sign had been removed. Fortunately the road ended in a palm tree grove shortly after, and after retracing my steps slightly, I found the start of the track. The track itself is closed off by some tree falls and land slides a little way in, and the removal of the sign suggests these aren't going to be cleared. Essentially that means there will be no more trips to Brummies Lookout, which will probably be overgrown before much longer anyway.

All that was left was to return to Tyalgum by Condowie Road (a screaming descent on dirt, but perhaps slightly less steep than what I climbed). A magpie tried to chase me out of town -- evidently trying to stop me draining their water supply. The return to Murwillumbah via the "other route" was pleasant as it always is. My legs did have some complaints climbing Tomewin after the earlier work, but it wasn't the end of the world. I finished the day right on 161km, with over 1,900 metres of climbing, not bad after the previous day is factored into the equation. This weekend the plan is to explore Hell's Hole in the Mt Jerusalem National Park with Dave from the Tweed Coast. Bring it on.

Epic Ride Day

After 2 days out of the saddle, I needed a ride. The place to ride (on pavement) is the River Trail. Anyway, I had to see and ride over the "Big Dam Bridge". Climbing the approach got my heart rate going.
After that, it was a relaxing ride on the N. Little Rock trails.

Stopped at some bike shops - finally found on that could tell me about mountain bike rides. Luckily, there was a C.A.R.P. ride on the Camp Robinson trails. The ride was lightly attended (It was a funeral to one of their riders). The trails area not well marked, and I was left to ride by myself. Otherwise, I had a good ride. The trails are rocky - I was able to adapt and build some rock riding ability and lots of climbing. Think I rode very well under the circumstances. After I get home there will be some helmet cam clips on my web site.
Today gonna scope out some other riding places.