Ladd Jasper
Full speed, half blind
RR: Lower Rock Creek
Camped in the Sierras last weekend, and hit this trail on the way out Sunday morning.
Got to the trailhead at 8:40am, and was pleasantly surprised to find smooth, flowing singletrack to start. For whatever reason I'd expected something much more technical/difficult, but wasn't complaining.
This went on for a few miles, through Aspen tunnels and creek encounters, a rock to avoid here and there, but not much more to demand your attention--perfect, as the scenery throughout was spectacular.
A few miles in came the first of two road crossings, and this marked a change in both topography and trail character. The DG of the earlier section gave way to the Sierra dirt that finds its way into every nook, cranny, nostril and eye that comes near, and large trailside rocks became more prevalent--the kind that hide in the tall grass, waiting for an errant pedal to stray too close. Found a few of these, but just got kicked out a bit and never actually went down…gets ones attention, though.
Several rock gardens must be crossed with some tricky sections to negotiate, and there is one rockfall that is not rideable and must be hiked over. Additionally, I walked several places that, after getting to the other side, looked doable, but being alone I decided to err on the side of caution and leave those for another time. These places were all in the same general section of trail, however, and were quite short--maybe 50 yards total if strung together.
Stopped at several places to take photos, and will post a few below. The wife was waiting with the truck at Paradise when I rolled up at 9:45am, making trail time 1:05, saddle time about :50.
We’re planning to do this on the upcoming Mammoth trip, and I’m already looking forward to riding it again. I wouldn’t call this a “destination” trail due to its relatively short length, but it should not be missed if you’ll be in the area.
Camped in the Sierras last weekend, and hit this trail on the way out Sunday morning.
Got to the trailhead at 8:40am, and was pleasantly surprised to find smooth, flowing singletrack to start. For whatever reason I'd expected something much more technical/difficult, but wasn't complaining.
This went on for a few miles, through Aspen tunnels and creek encounters, a rock to avoid here and there, but not much more to demand your attention--perfect, as the scenery throughout was spectacular.
A few miles in came the first of two road crossings, and this marked a change in both topography and trail character. The DG of the earlier section gave way to the Sierra dirt that finds its way into every nook, cranny, nostril and eye that comes near, and large trailside rocks became more prevalent--the kind that hide in the tall grass, waiting for an errant pedal to stray too close. Found a few of these, but just got kicked out a bit and never actually went down…gets ones attention, though.
Several rock gardens must be crossed with some tricky sections to negotiate, and there is one rockfall that is not rideable and must be hiked over. Additionally, I walked several places that, after getting to the other side, looked doable, but being alone I decided to err on the side of caution and leave those for another time. These places were all in the same general section of trail, however, and were quite short--maybe 50 yards total if strung together.
Stopped at several places to take photos, and will post a few below. The wife was waiting with the truck at Paradise when I rolled up at 9:45am, making trail time 1:05, saddle time about :50.
We’re planning to do this on the upcoming Mammoth trip, and I’m already looking forward to riding it again. I wouldn’t call this a “destination” trail due to its relatively short length, but it should not be missed if you’ll be in the area.
