Ski/bike touring TR: Mount Rainier NP, June 18-20
06-21-06, 08:35 AM
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Ski/bike touring TR: Mount Rainier NP, June 18-20
Biking with my skis to great backcountry snow has been on my tick list for a while, and over June 18-20 I rode in Mount Rainier National Park up to Chinook Pass, 5,432 feet. 3 days of great skiing, and screaming fast descents up to 40 miles per hour, wind screaming thru the ski tips as i rounded bend after bend of mountain hairpins.
Cheers, more details later, just wanted to put up a couple of photos right quick.
Cheers, more details later, just wanted to put up a couple of photos right quick.
Last edited by Bekologist; 06-21-06 at 11:58 AM.
06-21-06, 11:37 AM
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wow, looks like fun!
A while ago I thought about a bike/ski trip (not to do myself, since I don't cross-country ski) but I figured it'd be cool to modify a BOB trailer to have a sled on the bottom. Then when you hit the snow, you take the skis off and strap the bike to the trailer, wrap a rope or harness around your waist and ski until you hit pavement again.
A while ago I thought about a bike/ski trip (not to do myself, since I don't cross-country ski) but I figured it'd be cool to modify a BOB trailer to have a sled on the bottom. Then when you hit the snow, you take the skis off and strap the bike to the trailer, wrap a rope or harness around your waist and ski until you hit pavement again.
06-21-06, 12:41 PM
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Excellent! More details! More skiing photos!
I do a bc trip out to the California Cascades or Sierra every Memorial Day weekend but have never incorporated the bike. One of these days I'd like to. Start the day down in Lee Vining. Ride up to the height of land in Tioga Pass. Climb Dana. Ski back down. Descend the pass. That's an 8K vertical day for ya!
Anyway, congrats on a great trip. Looking forward to more details and pics!
I do a bc trip out to the California Cascades or Sierra every Memorial Day weekend but have never incorporated the bike. One of these days I'd like to. Start the day down in Lee Vining. Ride up to the height of land in Tioga Pass. Climb Dana. Ski back down. Descend the pass. That's an 8K vertical day for ya!
Anyway, congrats on a great trip. Looking forward to more details and pics!
06-21-06, 07:09 PM
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Hey, I a few summers ago I spent some time near there- a month or so in the William O' Douglas wilderness, and some time near Naches. It's an interesting area.
06-21-06, 11:15 PM
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Tubus Cargo racks carry skis like they were made for each other. solid bayonet type mounting both vertically, like i hauled them this time, and also off the back- bayonet mount wedges them in SOLID. (pic upper left and center)
lighter leather telemark boots, lots of pertex and silnylon in the kit, wool, Trangia, no tent just a tarp. Experimented with moving the fully loaded touring bike across the snow with skis on. Worked very well downhill
but not so easy upgrades. (pic lower left).
My drill was: 20 miles of riding or so up to the pass, 3000 vertical feet of climb, m/l, to 5432 feet, that first afternoon, set up a tarp camp in a tree hovel (pic right), skied the first night, then dinner and off to bed.
the next day, I got up in the morning, brewed coffee, took a few quick yoyo ski laps, then back to the trees and the hovel for breakfast. Then a nap in the sun ,and more skiing till lunch. After lunch, a little messing around with the bike, more skiing, catching afternoon rays and just soaking up the mountains grandeur, then dinner and a quick sunset ski before hitting the sleeping bag at dark.
up at 5, repeat. Then a screaming bike descent back off the mountain and out that third afternoon. I had enough food for another day, but had to come back to go to work....shucks.
boy, how to describe it.. i combined mountain approach bike riding thru boreal forests and virgin timber stands up into the alpine zone in the park. in the National Park, not on Mount Rainier proper, but east of the volcano by about 7 miles. great views of Rainier when it was out.
I was going to ride more of the roads in the park, but the road to Sunrise was strictly closed, and the road around to Paradise was also closed due to rockfall. I was actually going to sneak down the road and take a look, but some pesky rangers swooped up just as i was checking the maps, so my plans for some rock slide/skiing/bike photos were quashed by a couple of overzealous LEOs. Maybe next time.
I have to confess, i love backcountry skiing as much as i love bicycling, and to combine the two in one trip was a definite PLUS. three good days of skiing in June, and great road riding to boot -
I was pushing it up to 40 miles an hour some of the downhills, skis up behind me like a flagpole, grinning hugely as i shot video one handed during the descent.
lighter leather telemark boots, lots of pertex and silnylon in the kit, wool, Trangia, no tent just a tarp. Experimented with moving the fully loaded touring bike across the snow with skis on. Worked very well downhill
but not so easy upgrades. (pic lower left).My drill was: 20 miles of riding or so up to the pass, 3000 vertical feet of climb, m/l, to 5432 feet, that first afternoon, set up a tarp camp in a tree hovel (pic right), skied the first night, then dinner and off to bed.
the next day, I got up in the morning, brewed coffee, took a few quick yoyo ski laps, then back to the trees and the hovel for breakfast. Then a nap in the sun ,and more skiing till lunch. After lunch, a little messing around with the bike, more skiing, catching afternoon rays and just soaking up the mountains grandeur, then dinner and a quick sunset ski before hitting the sleeping bag at dark.
up at 5, repeat. Then a screaming bike descent back off the mountain and out that third afternoon. I had enough food for another day, but had to come back to go to work....shucks.
boy, how to describe it.. i combined mountain approach bike riding thru boreal forests and virgin timber stands up into the alpine zone in the park. in the National Park, not on Mount Rainier proper, but east of the volcano by about 7 miles. great views of Rainier when it was out.
I was going to ride more of the roads in the park, but the road to Sunrise was strictly closed, and the road around to Paradise was also closed due to rockfall. I was actually going to sneak down the road and take a look, but some pesky rangers swooped up just as i was checking the maps, so my plans for some rock slide/skiing/bike photos were quashed by a couple of overzealous LEOs. Maybe next time.
I have to confess, i love backcountry skiing as much as i love bicycling, and to combine the two in one trip was a definite PLUS. three good days of skiing in June, and great road riding to boot -
I was pushing it up to 40 miles an hour some of the downhills, skis up behind me like a flagpole, grinning hugely as i shot video one handed during the descent.
Last edited by Bekologist; 06-22-06 at 11:09 AM.
06-22-06, 01:37 AM
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more photos, sorry not many good ones of me skiing.
top row, left to right - me skiing downhill with my fully loaded touring bike; on the way up to the pass, sun in the background; camoflage stealth tarp deployed at camp hovel in the pines.
bottom row, left to right - "road closed" sign at cayuse pass and where the rangers stopped me from travelling down the road to check out the rockslide; ski boot strapped to front pannier ( I skiied that main snow slope on Naches Peak in the background); on the fly with skis poking up behind me.
top row, left to right - me skiing downhill with my fully loaded touring bike; on the way up to the pass, sun in the background; camoflage stealth tarp deployed at camp hovel in the pines.
bottom row, left to right - "road closed" sign at cayuse pass and where the rangers stopped me from travelling down the road to check out the rockslide; ski boot strapped to front pannier ( I skiied that main snow slope on Naches Peak in the background); on the fly with skis poking up behind me.
Last edited by Bekologist; 06-22-06 at 11:07 AM.
06-22-06, 09:11 AM
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Awesome! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing!
