Whiting Trail Conditions

Thought I would post some pics of the trail work.

 

Thanks for the photos, Scot, along with all the hard work. Can't wait to ride in there again.

Thanks for posting the map because it'll help us get the most out of what's open..

Either of the above routes will work, though Dreaded's a tougher climb. I haven't checked Edison Road, but it looks good from a distance. It's all covered with grass and could be fun as an out-and-back for some extra mileage.

Serrano Road might be a good choice, too, if starting from Wahoo's. It could be used as an uphill alternative to keep Live Oak freer for descending.

 

Hey Scott you beat me in posting those pics - Thanks ! !

I'm headed to Whiting tomorrow if it's open.....YeeHaw ! !

Another one down and ready ta GO.

 

I just rode Whiting. Kioti and the rangers have done a tremendous job by doing a ton of work at the stream crossings to make the trails ridable. Yesterday we cleared a couple hundred feet of landslides on the main trail just below four corners.

As mentioned above the stream crossings took the worst beating, but the most of trails on higher ground had minimal damage. Thanks to Kioti, he came in early did some re-routes where stream crossings were basically washed away, and cleared some trashed out trail areas. Between Kioti and the Ranger Romero, their tireless efforts made all the difference to get the park open so soon.

Ranger Romero used a tractor with a blade to flatten the deep ruts on the main trails. The trails are bascially new in the re-route areas, and just need to be ridden to wear in some sweet lines.

The front side 'Borrego Trail' is still closed.

Overall the hills are covered in a blanket of green and much of the trails remain unchanged and what has changed is probably it more technical but very ridable.

We only saw a couple of groups of hikers and bikers on the way out...What a great morning ! !

I hope your first ride through Whiting is as enjoyable as ours was. I'm headed back out, its too nice of a day to be sitting here inside, in front of the computer.

 

Thanks, Everett, and thanks for your help yesterday (and three weeks ago on the Luge). I'm glad to see these trails re-opening as quickly as they are.

A lot of the credit goes to the Rangers, so don't forget to thank them if you see them in the park. They've worked hard to re-open as soon as possible, and rented that tractor so they wouldn't have to wait for the requested heavy equipment.

Ranger Ev walked the trails with me and gave us permission to do the work. He, Ramiro and Sean all took part in moving rocks, building a crossing, approving a reroute, cutting a downed tree, and whatever else was necessary to get the repairs done.

Thank you, Rangers! :bang:

 

Thank you all so much for getting this reopened! I just saw the note on the ocparks web site and did a quick loop with Dreaded, Cactus, and Vulture View. New section of Serrano looks great!

And BTW, do you guys work much in the afternoons or is it mostly a bright-and-early effort? Is there going to be volunteer trail work required to clear Borrego/Mustard or is that a job for a backhoe / simply letting it drying out first?

 

Rode Whiting today at 3:30pm and ran into Kioti on the trails. Thanks for everything that you've done.

Entered at Glen Ranch, took Coyote and went up Whiting Road for the first time (just as good as a workout as Mustard), rode to the bench for some extra credit and then took Cactus down. We wanted to see if we could peek into Sleepy Hollow to see the damage. Although there is a sign that says the trail is closed, I was surprised to see someone riding out of it. He said that there is a big drop now (which is probably why they closed it). As we were talking a pair of hikers crossed over the detour sign and started walking Sleepy Hollow. The biker said he was going back that way and asked if my group was going to take a look. I told him that I was going to obey the signs (hoping that he would get the hint, which he didn't). Sage Scrub has an interesting little turn at the end to connect back to Whiting Road (as you can tell by the pictures posted by Scoth). Live Oak was untouched (except the creeks now have water in them) and is as fun as ever.

The sand is back too! Be prepared for some soft stuff.

It's so nice to have Whiting back!

 

Thanks Kris. Good meeting you.

Nice to see so many people in the park on it's reopening. Rode down Concourse and took Serrano Cow and Live Oak toward Portola. Swung around on Raptor and headed back up on Serrano Road. Fun riding UP Serrano Cow, but felt like I was driving on the wrong side of the freeway. Decided to check out Edison Road--it's a long climb and descent in the middle of the park that doesn't get much use.. Right now it's covered in grass and has an untouched feel to it. Rode to the end; turned around and headed back out. Didn't see anybody else out there, and only a few tracks. Got back on Whiting Road and climbed to Cactus. Cactus is a little rougher than usual, and maybe better for it. Up Santiago Ranch (a bit loose), Vulture View, down Sage Scrub and back out on Concourse.

Thanks for respecting the closure on Sleepy Hollow. The trail gave way where it crosses the outlet to a pond, and could be precarious. The Ranger's looking at various solutions, and it's high on his list for repair.

All in all I had more fun than I thought I'd have with just half the park open. I ended up being out there for nearly an hour and a half, and getting a good workout. Throw Dreaded and Line Shack into the mix and it'll be even better.

 

What have they done at 4 Corners to keep riders from going down Mustard?

 

24-hour armed guards and attack dogs?

At this point, just some minimal fencing.. As far as I know, Billy Goat's open so there'll at least be hikers down there. Maybe they'll close it more aggressively when the heavy equipment arrives to rebuild the road, which is hopefully soon. Can't imagine trying to run a bulldozer with people milling around.

 

Cool, was just curious.

 

Mtnbikej, I think there's a lot of curiosity about what's going on down there on Borrego and Mustard (in Whiting), and I also think the Rangers understand that. Most of Mustard is fine, it's just the lowest area that got hit. I'm thinking of going down there and fixing Cattle Pond just because of the anticipated use (legal or otherwise).

 

I just wanted to thank all of the people that got Whiting open again. I rode it today on my lunch break, and what a day to be out. The weather was perfect, the pack of deer where running around just off of Serrano Trail, conditions where great......again..thank you to all.

 

Does anyone know if the Whiting gate near Wahoo's is open?

 

Yes, it's been open.

 

Are you talking about the main gate? Off of Portola Pkwy.? It's closed....And I'm guessing it will remain closed for another few weeks or so..

 

The main gate at Ralph's is closed and will remain closed until Borrego and Mustard are repaired. But the gate near Wahoo's is open because that side of the park is open. That gate is the one most of us exit when doing a standard Whiting loop. You can park at Wahoo's, go under Portola to access the park, then return to your car and eat a burrito.

 

I went in today at the Wahoos, after riding to Ralphs and seeing that it was closed. So in at Wahoos, up Dreaded Hill, down Cactus and out. Thank you to everyone for working these trails, it was great!

-Genrec

 

Whiting and the Luge

Just finished Whiting and the Luge. Started at Wahoo's. On the way back I went past Wahoo's and found a bike park that was very cool. 20 miles and 2850 ft, Trails were great!!!!:wave:

 

Whats this bike park you speak of?