Riding the Red River Range
 

Today Lphilpot, doctor j, and our mutual friend Bart rode the Red River Range, a mountain range that runs for miles through central Louisiana.

Not long into the ride, we encountered a major intersection. As much as we all want to go to Heaven, we figured we weren't quite ready yet, so we took a left toward Highway 1.
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Here's a shot of the towering heights of the range as we rode through the valley.
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The climbing was brutal, 10 maybe 20 feet over 38 miles. I don't know how we survived it.

Finally, we pedaled away from the range and over to the flat land in the valley. That's Lphilpot in the lead with Bart on his wheel. Len was our navigator for the day. That's not a bike path. It's an actual road. As you can see, the traffic was horrendous.
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Given the extreme weather conditions, we were compelled to wear shorts and jerseys.

After all the climbing and busy traffic, we made our way back to LSU at Alexandria, where we started this endurance contest. This green field and the moon in the sky offered a nice contrast.
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OK, I fibbed a little. The "range" is the levee along the Red River. The climbing? We crossed over the Kansas City Southern tacks a few times, and they are elevated slightly above the surrounding terrain.

A good time was had by all, and we burned a few calories to make up for tomorrow's food attack.

Merry Christmas!

Wow... is that how a 6'2" guy looks on a bike? Even a 61cm bike? It's like you can't even see the bike for me! :eek:
:)

Excellent ride, even if we had to turn toward Hwy 1. ;)

My kind of "hill" ride.

That terrain must be brutal. No downhills to catch your mates up on.:innocent:

I almost rolled out of my recliner when I read "Mountain Range running through Central Louisiana" Very nice report Doc, glad you had a great ride with Lphilpot and Len. Nice way to spend Christmas Eve, too.

Bill

Great post and pics. Loved the writeup and signs. Must be the cajun influence........

Yeah, I know from those hills. We have them on Long Island's south shore.

They are the 20ft high overpasses of the "Parkways" (limited access, car only highways). We call ours the "Col de Meadowbrook", or the Col de Southern State".

+1. I was about to open Google Maps to find more info on the Louisiana Alps!:roflmao2:

What was that green stuff on the trees? Our trees have white fluffy stuff. Must be a regional aberration.