Detour to Ride

Work took me to Phoenix and Flagstaff the past two days which also gave me an opportunity to ride part of the Black Canyon City trail system. I got on at the Emery Henderson trail head in New River, AZ. It was just a quick jump, just over 3 miles, from I17 and just 30 minutes north of Phoenix. It was 2:30 by the time I changed and started riding and I had a turn around time of 3:30 to continue my journey up to Flagstaff. The plan was to ride from Emery Henderson trail head Tuesday and Black Canyon City trail head Wednesday.

The first mile or so is a mix of jeep road and singletrack, well marked and easy to follow. After you hit the serious single track be prepared to climb. Nothing too gnarly, just a steady uphill grind up to the Boy Scout loop. I wanted to ride the loop and come back but could never find exactly where the loop closes on itself. I went out on the East loop which is a tough grinding climb before you hit a series of switchbacks and a fast, fun downhill section. Either the north side of the loop isn't well marked or I didn't venture far enough, though I think I went farther than the 1.2 miles indicated. Maybe one day I'll get me one of those GPS thingys to alleviate the guess work. I did find one junction which may have been the west loop that would have taken me back but it wasn't marked as such and I didn't really have time for any trail finding as my 3:30 turnaround was fast approaching so I continued up the marked trail for a bit before making the turn around.

Coming back was a blast. Pretty much all downhill (naturally since I'd climbed practically the whole outbound way) with enough technical stuff to keep you on your toes but absolutetly nothing that wasn't rideable and fun.

Woke up Wednesday to snow, again with the snow, that is why I left the right (east ) coast and headed to milder climes of Arizona. Two snow days over a five day stretch, way to much for me.

But the snow wasn't the worst part, the 40-50 mph winds were the real deal breaker in my quest to ride the Black Canyon City segment of the trail. So it was just a straight shot back to Tucson and warmer, though still windy, weather after finishing up work on Wednesday.