Ramblings from Moe Mountain

Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
Here are two dear I saw along the Laurel Trail Saturday.

I put yellow dots over them so you could see them.
Laurel Deer01.jpg


Then I made a clicking noise for the close up. It's ears went up!
Laurel Deer06.jpg


Here I am with my Pete-cycle from my breathing mask, it works great!
Pete Icycle08.jpg
 

Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
Well I got a bunch of stuff done this morning in anticipation of the big snow storm tomorrow, so I thought I’d take a bike ride around the neighborhood and stretch my legs. I went through the 3 inches of snow in my yard and realized I had to hit the trails!. So off I went into the woods. Boy was I surprised how many hikers or dog walkers use the small trail by my house, it was pretty well packed down and ride able. Looks like motor bikes were on the wider more popular section just before Banker Trail. I crossed the double log and made a right on Banker heading towards Plymouth Lane. Great riding! The packed down part was only about 12 or 14 inches wide and if you wanted you could go off packed and still pedal just fine in the deeper softer snow. I had too much air in my tires, about 9 PSI, so I was bouncing around a bit, but I was too lazy to lower it and gave myself the excuse I’d ride Banker all the way out to tarmac and then I’d like the 9PSI. As I passed the Plymouth Lane exit on my left. I could see I was making fresh tracks, as in nobody goes this way. They’re smarter than I am! I already know this way sucks with the water traps ahead, but I thought they might be frozen enough for an easy crossing. Meh, somewhat true. The farm owner that the trail borders HATES intruders and does everything he can to discourage people. There once was a small bridge that has been removed and some other smaller boards used to cross. The stream was flowing pretty good and the ice too thin (and slippery) to use. So I used the fallen trees to cross on. If I was a better rider I might have be able to ride the log! But that only happens in the movies. I made it across and out to Banker Road and then I rode the roads back home. It was a great little three mile outing with an average heart rate of 150 and a max of 170. Perfect workout!

The log bridge
Banker Loop02.jpg


Banker Trail
Banker Loop04.jpg


Icy wet spot
Banker Loop05.jpg


The stream
Banker Loop06.jpg


The Log Crossing
Banker Loop08.jpg


The last section
Banker Loop09.jpg
 
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Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
So last week I joined the MBNJ Strava group to see who’s there and how I measure up. It’s kinda fun. So that made me ride every day this week instead of hiking or running with my park pals. As of today (Sunday) I managed to get #39 spot in the top 100. During the week there was plenty of rain. I got wet three days in a row. Today was the last ride for the week and I took out the Softride for a road ride on Clinton Rd. Getting out early is great, I only had about six cars pass me in over twelve miles and mostly had the road to myself, except for Tom Turkey and his harem. Earlier in the week riding WayWay, the trails and fire roads were pretty muddy. I saw my first bear of the season on Hoeferlin trail. Managed to squeeze in a little trail maintenance too. All in all a great week.

Rainy Pumphouse Tr
Farly rain07.jpg


Tom Turkey
Tommy08.jpg


Tommy09.jpg


Clinton Reservoir
Clinton watersheds03.jpg


Clinton watersheds02.jpg
 

rick81721

Lothar
So last week I joined the MBNJ Strava group to see who’s there and how I measure up. It’s kinda fun. So that made me ride every day this week instead of hiking or running with my park pals. As of today (Sunday) I managed to get #39 spot in the top 100.

Pete remember that the default "ranking" is based on miles per week so roadies will always dominate. Focus more on rides/hours put in, don't worry about the mileage.

PS big tom turkey!
 

Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
Pete remember that the default "ranking" is based on miles per week so roadies will always dominate. Focus more on rides/hours put in, don't worry about the mileage.

PS big tom turkey!
This was just for the fun of it, seeing the ranking, I'm not serious about it.
 

clarkenstein

JORBA Board Member/Chapter Leader
JORBA.ORG
Maybe a hawk. Never saw an eagle with a white body. Which reminds me I saw a strange duck in the canal near 6mr last week - had a white body and a black head.

you got yourself a "common mergenser" (spelling?) or a "lesser scaup" (spelling?).

my dad collected decoys, growing up my house was full of them. add to that the ducks unlimited membership, that's the only way i know this crap. that's a good sighting around here.
 

rick81721

Lothar
you got yourself a "common mergenser" (spelling?) or a "lesser scaup" (spelling?).

my dad collected decoys, growing up my house was full of them. add to that the ducks unlimited membership, that's the only way i know this crap. that's a good sighting around here.

Yeah I was on the road bike and it def caught my eye. Haven't seen one around here before
 

Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
@JimN
I decided to go exploring today.
I went down Clinton Road and took the Old Coal trail up to what’s called Bearfort Waters trail, marked yellow.
I’ve been on this trail years ago while Geocaching. It is not well traveled and quite remote with a few water crossings that look bad at first, but are easily ride able because they are hard packed on the bed. This trail is very cool, kind of wide open scenery and very ride able. Great rock gardens that give you several lines to choose from. Some nice uphill climbs and great downhills too. Hey, remember who’s reviewing this ride, a tired old man.
There was plenty I had to walk-a-bike. I really didn’t know where this was going to lead me, but I had an idea it would take me to a bail out spot on Clinton Road down by the Reservoir. This was such a fun trail I forgot to keep track of my energy level, as I knew the end was near and I‘d ride the road back. These rock gardens were so much fun because they had me riding at my maximum limit, finding my line and getting thrown off it and finding it again. Great stuff.
Don’t get me wrong, it wasn't an easy ride, I was shaken to the bone and had jello arms, and sweating like a pig with a heart rate over 160, (I’m 73).
So, I see water ahead and figure I’m nearing the end by the Reservoir. I go down a great downhill to check it out. Wrong....it’s a great spot and I figure it’s just a few hundred feet down from my bail out point to Clinton Road. Wrong, so I realize I have to backtrack a few hundred feet and look for a trail that does what I want. Nope, it isn't working for me.
I climb back up the hill and see a trail that goes deeper into the abyss heading west when I want to go east, but it might be good and work out, but it’s a huge downhill and I can’t be sure. At this point I’m five miles in and lost. Damn! I’m also out of energy, as I was hoping to get to my bail out point and the road for an easy ride back. Time to reavaluate my situation. Lets see, out energy and lost, go into the unknown trail and hope for the best, or go back about two and a half miles to a known bail out point. GO BACK! That’s what I did. Climbing the brutal uphills, go two feet and holding the brake and resting. Climb some more and rest. Lying on the bike and resting and climb some more.
Then riding those great trails and rock gardens again, hell, this is fun again! I can’t believe I’ve upped my game and riding like a real mountain biker! Shit! I’m good!
I’m glad I chose to back track now and having fun again, no energy left, but so what. I find I’m riding harder stuff because I don’t have the energy to get off the bike and back on it again. It’s too hard to lift my leg over the saddle after pushing the bike uphill, so I ride harder stuff, great! I’m lovin’ it! Hey, it’s three hours of struggle and only nine miles traveled but I didn’t die!
I hate that feeling of being five miles out, no cell phone, no one knows where I am, I don’t know where I am, and I’m worn out. But ya know I’m glad I did it. What a blast and fun adventure. I just wish I had a way to see where I am and where I’m going, but my Garmins suck too.

I wasn't even close to my projected ride! Crap!

stream crossing
BuckabearSu01.jpg


da climb
BuckabearSu02.jpg


I see water
BuckabearSu04.jpg


map
BuckabearSu05.jpg


map 2 my track
BuckabearSu06.jpg
 

JimN

Captain Wildcat
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Awesome! I'm gonna eventually go explore this trail, with the goal of getting more lost than you, but also not dying.
 

Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
These trails aren't marked very well. When I started at Old Coal trail yellow was clearly marked for about the first mile and a half, . just past the P5 parking area, that section is just past the stream and makes a hard right back over the stream which has been made good with cement pipe and crushed stone. This now goes to what borders private property and is posted, but it's still the trail. The map shows that the Highland Trail hooks up here and goes out to P4 parking on Clinton Road. I didn't see this hookup myself, could be there though, although the main trail I was riding is clearly visible.
What I did notice though was at the end of my ride as I was looking for another way back or a better trail I headed towards the lake and
I DID come upon Yellow / Highland Trail markers that skirt right along the lakes edge. This looked WAY to rough for me to attempt.
So the maps show the Yellow / Highland Trail is the trail here, but it was not marked as such while I was riding.
I just wanted to update this as I think of it.
 

Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
So today was my lucky day! I got a flat tire. It’s been a year and a half since I got a flat and it was also the front on my Moonlander. I rode my 7 miles and stopped at the car show by the beach. Looked around a little and rode away headed back to my car. That’s when I saw it! A softie. I tried a co2. but it was empty, grabbed another and shot it in, it went semi hard and then soft again. I started riding anyway, I remember my last flat on the same bike same front. I spent an hour taking it off and blowing up the tube and not finding a leak and repeating the process a few times before ditching the bike and hiking 5 miles out. This time I wasn't even trying, I only have a mile to go and I can ride the blacktop, which I did. Forget about steering, but straight was pretty good. I could see the bead was broken off the rim, but the tire was staying on and as long as I was going it was good enough for me. Got home and took it apart and there was the hole in the tube, a small puncture right in the middle of the tire, just opposite the tire valve. I found it in 2 seconds, crap I could have done this in the parking lot.
Patched it and reinstalled it. Good to go. And it was my lucky day because,
1) It didn’t happen 3 days ago on my exploration ride!
That would have been REAL bad for me.
2) I got to upgrade my new Camo rim strips on this wheel.
I just bought two wheels and tires last week
3) I got this shit over with now, before my vacation in June in Wildwood.

CamoClown05.jpg
 

huffster

Well-Known Member
@Kaleidopete

I went over to the other side of Wawayanda Rd. to check out those trails you mentioned. The NYNJTC map shows very little of what seems to be over there. I thought you would be interested to know since you turned me onto the goods.

The trailhead was pretty easy to find based on your directions. Within 100 ft. there were 3 options. The 2 to my right seemed like they might be heading toward the lakes so I hoped I might loop back on those later. That was purely a guess. So, I went with the 3rd option which was pretty much straight ahead. This soon started to climb, then descend, then more climbing (and some HAB) up Wawayanda Mountain.

There was a 4-way intersection at the crest. I mainly wanted to mark the intersection on my GPS by riding it. I went left first and was following some nice ridge riding. After about 1/2 mile I decided I was giving up too much altitude and I knew I was pointed away from my intended direction. So, I turned back. This will require further exploration another day, because the trail definitely continued - downhill.

I went back to the intersection and went straight from my original climb. This was a pretty clear trail for awhile and then it just started to fade into nothing. When I couldn't make out a trail anymore, I turned back.

Next, I went back and went to the right from my original climb. This went up a little and then mostly downhill. I was really hopeful that this would bring me around to the east to support my hopes for that loop. After awhile I picked up some unofficial looking blue markers. These were good for awhile but the area became so overgrown and had so much deadfall, it became untraceable. I reached a point where I could see a marker off in the distance, but there was simply no trail. I poked around there for awhile and then decided to climb back out to the 4-way intersection.

It was a pretty nice downhill ride back toward Wawayanda road. I then determined that the original 2 rights, came back together quickly into a single trail. This is the one on the NYNJTC map (unmarked). The brief left turn you see on my GPS shortly thereafter is a faint single-track. That needs more exploring. I rode it to mark it, but I did not follow it very long. It does keep going though. To be continued. Then it was that double-track all the way up and around the lakes to the Lakeshore Dr West. Then roads back into the park proper.

I didn't even touch what is to the north toward the AT and there is stuff on the map...and maybe more.

Thanks for the heads-up on this. Always fun to go find some new stuff.

https://www.strava.com/activities/977057255
 
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Kaleidopete

Well-Known Member
Thanks for all the great information. Looks like some hard climbing in there. Like I said, I didn't go in from the road like you did, I went in where you came out. I think next time I'll stick with heading West of my original ride, towards the AT. Thanks again for the great recap.
 
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