ALISO WOODS WILDERNESS...can't get enough....

Sunday Sept 27th was an easy bike trail to Aliso Woods, 3 hour ride; well 3 hours total with stops along the way when we wanted to! No agenda, no waiting for anyone else, just a great ride before it heated up. We met up with Edward and Chris and Jeff and Ed coming and going. I passed Michelle Barton and said hello. We stopped under my favorite sacred sycamore grove, stopped at the bottom of Choya, stopped to chat..it was one of those kinds of rides. A Sunday ride in the park. I did a bit of racing on the bike trail and that got the heart rate up and running!

This morning we hiked up on West Ridge again and did record time....4 miles in 59 minutes...oh yeah. I was feelin' so good all morning....................

Finally, stepping down STAIRSTEPS, Aliso Woods

Sunday Sep 20th, I finally hiked down and up Stairsteps; hike/mtn bike trail in Aliso Woods Wilderness Park. We have ridden and walked past its entrance hundreds of times for over three years and kept repeating..."One of these days...."......Well, Sunday was one of these days.

We started late; 8:30 am. way late for getting started. Al and I are always out on a trail by 6-7am and on what was a hot day, we were sucking down the water before we even got to the trail head...

Anyway.........Stairsteps is a very sharp drop down the side of WestRidge fire trail. And yes, it looks just like a staircase.......big sandstone steps down a singletrack with sharp turns and all kinds of rocks and ledges and drop offs. Technical? That's not saying enough. It's technical all right and only the very experienced mtn bikers, with full face helmets and body armor of various kinds looking to spend some accumulated testosterone should bother taking it on.

We had our hiking poles and I kept repeating, " I LOVE MY POLES!" We got down to the bottom and rested in some shade before finding out what it was like CLIMBING UP Stairsteps! It was not a long hike, maybe 30 min one way.

On our return we kept ears sharp for bikers shooting down the steps. Instead we saw a couple wannabes stopped up at the easy spot, thinkin' and wishin' they had the kahunas for the real thing. But they turned back up with a weak story they'd ridden Stairsteps...NOT!

Wilderness Access Day LIMESTONE CANYON, Trabuco, CA 9-12-09

What a beautiful ride in Limestone Canyon, off Santiago Canyon road this past Saturday. Irvine Conservancy Wilderness Access Day from 8am-1pm. The group was ready to ride at 7:59am! It was a 1o+ mile ride with more hills then expected! We climbed about 1200' in the first 3 miles. I was so strong climbing this day, beat Al up one hill. Oh yeah! Even kept pace with a couple other guys. I only saw two other women mtn bkrs out there. The views were amazing.

IRC always does a great job of hosting these Open Access days. They have sign ins and extra water to share and very friendly staff; very well organized and efficient. The weather was a bit warmer than expected so there were many times I rested in shade spots and doused my head with water. My challenge is always keeping my head cool on these hot days. It doesn't breathe! I keep my bandana around my neck, wet, and just pour on the water over head as needed.

The Sinks was a beautiful sight, a giant sinking spot along the fire road everyone stops to see.

There were a few downhill spots I walked down, especially near the end...I was tired...ok, exhausted after three hours...and when I have used it all up, my technical downhill skills are kaput soI don't even try; way too risky. So I scrambled down a couple rocky intersections with bike slidin' next to me all the way.

The guys I ride with, Al, Steve, Bob, Phil, Ladera Dave are so helpful, patient, funny as heck. They seem to like having my company too. Whatta know!

Would definitely return to Limestone Canyon...................

Hiking Laguna Wilderness Park. Laguna Beach, CA

Another hike into Laguna Wilderness park on Saturday the 29th August. Jane Kadoich joined me for her first hike into the park. It was surprisingly cool at 7am for a day that was promising 100 plus. By 8:30 the sun got serious and it cooked us before we finished our hike at 10am.

But we were prepared, had on our hike hats, sunblock, water and hiking shoes.
I shared my new birthday hiking poles with her. I'm a devotee of hiking poles now. They add stability to the climbs and balance to the descends. I also find they help me with my pace and gate. I miss them on even simple hikes. Poles are also a good upper body work out.

Jane kept up really well, so well, I had her lead us back. (She doesn't know how tired I was before we made the top. But I was TIRED and HOT......should have carried more water too! She's a good hiker!)

We also met up with my biking buddies, Steve, Al, Ladera Dave and Bob. They were finishing up their ride in from the Nix Center which joins up on our trail. The sun beating down on us prevented a long stop by chat, so we said hi, bye and off we went.

The plus about the Laguna Wilderness trail is how much shade we can hike under. The cooler cover suddenly shows up enough after being exposed to direct sun. It's a beautiful trail in spring. I've taken some great photos of previous walks there, I'll try and post soon......

Always good to get OUT THERE..........

"Girl on Bike"...finished writing...

Well, I finished the last chapter of Girl On Bike yesterday......whew..... Now it's time to read through it, make sure I've covered the bases, answered my own questions and told a story that others would really enjoy reading! So far, those who have read some chapters could NOT put it down so they say! I feel like I've given birth...and I have!

This mornings' hike on West Ridge had to be the most amazing one yet. The clear sky, the pink glow above the blue that reflected from the ocean, the orange glow behind Saddleback, views that were unending, clear and crisp. There was a vibration to it all that surrounded me and my companion. He said he could see the glow around me. We walked in silence and breathed deeply, the coolness of dawn and scented sage brush. Pictures taken can never capture the true color. I'm learning that being there, being a part of it and capturing it in my mind, and then on paper, allows me to remember it more completely than photos. I'm always disappointed in the flatness from photos.

You think, "Oh, I'll get a picture of this." Once in awhile you might get a feeling of a moment, but life is about living it, not holding on to a picture of it. I'm getting to the point where it's almost like trying to steal the sunrise. God's creative majesty bursts on the scene so quietly at sunrise. And only those who get OUT THERE are the ones who are blessed with the communion of natures' dawn. This morning we were surely an audience to a birth that included...US.

As I looked up ahead and marveled at the colors of the dirt trail ahead and its' winding, gentle curves, a deer appeared. It stood there for a moment, turned and looked back at us, then disappeared in a blink, back into the brush..........Gentleness, the message of Deer..................

Just another Monday, wishing it was Sunday so I could ride, or hike and get back to the dirt. It always seems the best times are increasingly...out there. The outdoors is my church, my temple and my happy place. All my cares are left behind in the parking lot until I return to pick them up once more. But I always return with answers to questions, and fewer aches and pains then when I set out that morning.
Here on my blog where I'll share some stories about the trails I ride or hike. I'm almost finished with "Girl on Bike", just a couple more chapters to go. My plan is to complete it by summer's end.
Later.....