RCY RIDE
REPORT
The Shuttle
Trip
Kanan 3rd Tunnel to Malibu
Creek State Park
Sunday
05-06-07
Six riders showed up for the experimental
Shuttle Ride using the NPS ParkLink Shuttle. Joe, Jamshyd,
Roger, Matthew, Rod and I arrived at the usual starting point for our
Bulldog ride. We then rode thru the entrance to Malibu Creek State
Park where we waited for the 8:00 shuttle. Unfortunately, a couple of the
usual larger shuttle buses where out for maintenance and instead a van
showed up. It's a good thing that only 6 of us showed up for the ride
because we just barely squeezed 6 bikes and riders into the van.
RCY imitation of
Sardines....
Joe, Jamshyd, Roger
and Matthew stuffed inside with the bikes
Rod scored a front
seat....
With all of his GPS
skills we needed a top notch navigator
Because the van was filled to capacity
with us, our driver Bob was able to skip the other stops and took us directly to
the Kanan Road lot of the 3rd Tunnel. We arrived ahead of schedule and
were on the trail not much after 8:30.
Unloading the bikes
at Kanan 3rd Tunnel
Our plan was to ride the
Backbone Trail from Kanan 3rd Tunnel to the Corral Canyon parking lot and
then continue on to The Elevator and back to Malibu Creek State Park. Thus
we would combine parts of 2 different rides--3rd Tunnel plus Bulldog
(without Bulldog). A bonus was that the shuttle is now
FREE, saving us each $1.00 and instead allowing you non-participants the
opportunity to pay for our ride thru your tax dollars.
Thanks!
Up and over the tunnel we
rode/hiked and then thrilled at the lush green singletrack trail we were able to
ride.
We paused here to
enjoy the serene view of the Pacific Ocean.
In the distance we
spotted a doe with her 2 tiny fawns.
At this point Jamshyd got an
itch to do some exploring. So we followed him.....
Handing bikes over a
fence.
Fortunately we were
all too old and could not read the signs.
This side adventure
proved rather fruitless. We came to a virtual dead end at some
private residence and so turned around. I paid penance for our
trespassing, though, as I got attacked by a stinging nettle plant in my
shin. It burned and was irritated but it wasn't until later that afternoon
as I lay on my living room couch that I discovered a thorn still lodged in my
shin. When I finally pulled it out, a torrent of blood gushed
out, but applied pressure soon stopped the flow and it appears that I will live
to ride again. But that was only the first of several incidents that
happened to me on this ride on this tough day.
We got back to the main trail,
continuing on towards the Latigo Canyon Road crossing. From there we had
the steep tough climb that makes up part of the 2nd section of this trail.
It was here that I started thinking of Uncle Louie and his injured elbow.
Not wanting him to suffer alone I proceeded to crash while trying to climb a
steep, loose, rocky section....landing hard on my right
elbow. (Fortunately for me, I did not fracture
anything like Lefty Louie did)
Robco displays his
swollen, bleeding elbow while Matthew lays exhausted on the ground wishing his
water was oxygen.
While Matthew was also dealing
with leg cramps, Jamshyd cleaned and 'creamed' my wound. After watching a
couple of horseback riders head down the steep hill we were back on our own
saddles again.
Matthew can be
seen through the foliage riding on the trail
Arriving at the Corral Canyon
parking area completed the first leg of our shuttle ride. Now it was to
head towards The Elevator and Tapia Park.
Jamshyd descends the
steep end of the Mini-Moab area
Rod descends the
same section
Matthew tackles the
steep downhill
Roger, always a
strong climber, shows his downhill skill
Joe left us at this
point. Something about having to get home early. So it was only 5 of
us that finished the ride together. I was really tired and struggled
behind, but the others waited for me. We finished The Elevator, went
through Tapia Park to the Tapia Spur Trail that dropped us into Malibu Creek
State Park. Again Jamshyd convinced us to explore a new trail that he
discoved last week. As we descended a steep section Jamshyd crashed where
a root crossed the trail. The others stopped too and as I tried to stop on
the steep hill, over I went.
Rod's cell camera
captures the action as I crash on the hill. It wasn't my
day.
Finally we arrived at the
large field area where CORBA has been holding its annual Fat Tire
Festival. There were several exhibits set up by the Park Service and
other naturalists. We were most fascinated by the reptiles and other
creatures that were exhibited by knowledgeable Chrissy Martin from The
Reptile Family (website at www.reptilefamily.com ). Some
photos.....
A lizard sticks out
his tongue at the RCYs
With my fuzzy beard
in the background, a fuzzy tarantula crawls on my arm
A scorpion crawls
around
A King Snake wraps
itself around my neck.
Fortunately for me,
the red rings are separated from the pale yellow rings by black
rings
otherwise the snake
would have been the deadly coral snake.... "red next to yellow
will kill a fellow"
As fascinating as the exhibit
was, our stomachs rumbled and the Santa Fe Cafe was calling. Back to the
cars and a short drive to the restaurant.
Rod displays his
helmet-head hairstyle
Have a great
week.
Robco
Baggins
