Bicycle backpacking??

Does anyone else around here do what I do?
I ride with a school kids style backpack filled with water, food
and other odds and ends and go into the mountains until I run out
of rideable road or trail. I then hike with the bike until it
gets rideable again and repeat as needed until I get to
a spot where I have to abandon the bike and navigate rocks
and things on foot. Sometimes this gets me to a spot where
I could ride the bike again but since it is a ways back I now
just hike, secure in the knowledge that bears don't steal bikes.
I get to some amazing places like this that there is almost no
other way you could get there except maybe a hiking trip with
the use of a car to get to base camp.
The day usually come out at about 70-80 miles on the bike, and
maybe 3 or 4 hours of hiking, sometimes keeping me away from
home over 9 hours. Fun but alone time too, since I can't find
anyone to do this with, actually their loss.
I have found waterfalls, swimming holes, caves, and more, even
disturbed some large wildlife (Sorry Mr. bear, sir.) which in
retrospect I hope was only a deer.
Anybody???
Bill Baka

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Subject: Bicycle backpacking??
From: Bill Baka
Date: 8/9/2004 6:46 PM US Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

Does anyone else around here do what I do?
I ride with a school kids style backpack filled with water, food
and other odds and ends and go into the mountains until I run out
of rideable road or trail. I then hike with the bike until it
gets rideable again and repeat as needed until I get to
a spot where I have to abandon the bike and navigate rocks
and things on foot. Sometimes this gets me to a spot where
I could ride the bike again but since it is a ways back I now
just hike, secure in the knowledge that bears don't steal bikes.
I get to some amazing places like this that there is almost no
other way you could get there except maybe a hiking trip with
the use of a car to get to base camp.
The day usually come out at about 70-80 miles on the bike, and
maybe 3 or 4 hours of hiking, sometimes keeping me away from
home over 9 hours. Fun but alone time too, since I can't find
anyone to do this with, actually their loss.
I have found waterfalls, swimming holes, caves, and more, even
disturbed some large wildlife (Sorry Mr. bear, sir.) which in
retrospect I hope was only a deer.
Anybody???
Bill Baka

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Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/


No, but that sounds like a lot of fun....
Whereabouts are these mountains?

Bill Baka wrote:

I ride with a school kids style backpack filled with water, food
and other odds and ends and go into the mountains until I run out
of rideable road or trail. I then hike with the bike until it
gets rideable again and repeat as needed until I get to
a spot where I have to abandon the bike and navigate rocks
and things on foot. Sometimes this gets me to a spot where
I could ride the bike again but since it is a ways back I now
just hike, secure in the knowledge that bears don't steal bikes.

Take away the backpack, the water, food, and the abandoning the bike
part, and you've just described a Jobst Brandt ride.
--
terry morse Palo Alto, CA http://bike.terrymorse.com/

On 10 Aug 2004 00:52:04 GMT, Fx199 wrote:

Subject: Bicycle backpacking??
From: Bill Baka
Date: 8/9/2004 6:46 PM US Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

Does anyone else around here do what I do?
I ride with a school kids style backpack filled with water, food
and other odds and ends and go into the mountains until I run out
of rideable road or trail. I then hike with the bike until it
gets rideable again and repeat as needed until I get to
a spot where I have to abandon the bike and navigate rocks
and things on foot. Sometimes this gets me to a spot where
I could ride the bike again but since it is a ways back I now
just hike, secure in the knowledge that bears don't steal bikes.
I get to some amazing places like this that there is almost no
other way you could get there except maybe a hiking trip with
the use of a car to get to base camp.
The day usually come out at about 70-80 miles on the bike, and
maybe 3 or 4 hours of hiking, sometimes keeping me away from
home over 9 hours. Fun but alone time too, since I can't find
anyone to do this with, actually their loss.
I have found waterfalls, swimming holes, caves, and more, even
disturbed some large wildlife (Sorry Mr. bear, sir.) which in
retrospect I hope was only a deer.
Anybody???
Bill Baka

--
Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/


No, but that sounds like a lot of fun....
Whereabouts are these mountains?

Northern California, about 40 miles north of Sacramento. I live on
the west side of Beale AFB, which is a huge amount of real estate,
and I have to put in about 15 miles to get to the paved hills
north of the base, then another 10 climbing to anything like a
trail. On the south side, which is where I was talking about, I
go about 15 miles flat, 10 miles getting hilly on pavement, then
another 10 miles of gravel and climbing, THEN I get to the good
stuff. The waterfall is actually called (3 guesses)Beale falls,
and is in the Spenceville wildlife area. The only person I have
ever seen back there was a 20 something female type with a
USAF cap on and she had driven a car as far as possible. I have
seen bicycle prints but they may have been mine, since very few
people seem to be ambitious enough or even know about this
nature hideaway. The closest thing on a map is called Waldo junction
and it is only a spot on the map as I have ridden all oround the area
and there is not even the remains of a building. I take advantage
of the waterfall to fill my water jug with real tasty mountain water.
I carry a 1 gallon Orange Juice plastic jug sometimes with juice,
sometimes water, but when I refill at the waterfall it comes home with me.
I can swim there, or just sit and enjoy before the ride back,
my personal get away spot.
Now I am just gloating, sorry.
Bill Baka


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"Bill Baka" wrote in message
news
Does anyone else around here do what I do?
I ride with a school kids style backpack filled with water, food
and other odds and ends and go into the mountains until I run out
of rideable road or trail. I then hike with the bike until it
gets rideable again and repeat as needed until I get to
a spot where I have to abandon the bike and navigate rocks
and things on foot. Sometimes this gets me to a spot where
I could ride the bike again but since it is a ways back I now
just hike, secure in the knowledge that bears don't steal bikes.
I get to some amazing places like this that there is almost no
other way you could get there except maybe a hiking trip with
the use of a car to get to base camp.
The day usually come out at about 70-80 miles on the bike, and
maybe 3 or 4 hours of hiking, sometimes keeping me away from
home over 9 hours. Fun but alone time too, since I can't find
anyone to do this with, actually their loss.
I have found waterfalls, swimming holes, caves, and more, even
disturbed some large wildlife (Sorry Mr. bear, sir.) which in
retrospect I hope was only a deer.
Anybody???
Bill Baka

--
Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/

i used to know some hardcore dudes who did bike/hike/ski trips off the
ptarmigan in mt ranier park. come to think of it sound like a great way to
get to mowich lake after they close the gate!

Bill Baka wrote in message ...
On 10 Aug 2004 00:52:04 GMT, Fx199 wrote:

Subject: Bicycle backpacking??
From: Bill Baka
Date: 8/9/2004 6:46 PM US Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

Does anyone else around here do what I do?
I ride with a school kids style backpack filled with water, food
and other odds and ends and go into the mountains until I run out
of rideable road or trail. I then hike with the bike until it
gets rideable again and repeat as needed until I get to
a spot where I have to abandon the bike and navigate rocks
and things on foot. Sometimes this gets me to a spot where
I could ride the bike again but since it is a ways back I now
just hike, secure in the knowledge that bears don't steal bikes.
I get to some amazing places like this that there is almost no
other way you could get there except maybe a hiking trip with
the use of a car to get to base camp.
The day usually come out at about 70-80 miles on the bike, and
maybe 3 or 4 hours of hiking, sometimes keeping me away from
home over 9 hours. Fun but alone time too, since I can't find
anyone to do this with, actually their loss.
I have found waterfalls, swimming holes, caves, and more, even
disturbed some large wildlife (Sorry Mr. bear, sir.) which in
retrospect I hope was only a deer.
Anybody???
Bill Baka

--
Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/


No, but that sounds like a lot of fun....
Whereabouts are these mountains?

Northern California, about 40 miles north of Sacramento. I live on
the west side of Beale AFB, which is a huge amount of real estate,
and I have to put in about 15 miles to get to the paved hills
north of the base, then another 10 climbing to anything like a
trail. On the south side, which is where I was talking about, I
go about 15 miles flat, 10 miles getting hilly on pavement, then
another 10 miles of gravel and climbing, THEN I get to the good
stuff. The waterfall is actually called (3 guesses)Beale falls,
and is in the Spenceville wildlife area. The only person I have
ever seen back there was a 20 something female type with a
USAF cap on and she had driven a car as far as possible. I have
seen bicycle prints but they may have been mine, since very few
people seem to be ambitious enough or even know about this
nature hideaway. The closest thing on a map is called Waldo junction
and it is only a spot on the map as I have ridden all oround the area
and there is not even the remains of a building. I take advantage
of the waterfall to fill my water jug with real tasty mountain water.
I carry a 1 gallon Orange Juice plastic jug sometimes with juice,
sometimes water, but when I refill at the waterfall it comes home with me.
I can swim there, or just sit and enjoy before the ride back,
my personal get away spot.
Now I am just gloating, sorry.
Bill Baka


I would do that if I live in your area.

On 10 Aug 2004 22:53:49 -0700, Red Cloud wrote:

Bill Baka wrote in message
I can swim there, or just sit and enjoy before the ride back,
my personal get away spot.
Now I am just gloating, sorry.
Bill Baka


I would do that if I live in your area.

It makes the whole day worth getting up for. I am still exploring
the area to find more but in the middle of a 70-80 mile day there
is only so much time and energy for exploring each time. I still
want to hike upstream and find the source or until I run into
another road where I can ride to and start again.
Bill Baka


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Bill Baka wrote in message ...
On 10 Aug 2004 22:53:49 -0700, Red Cloud wrote:

Bill Baka wrote in message
I can swim there, or just sit and enjoy before the ride back,
my personal get away spot.
Now I am just gloating, sorry.
Bill Baka


I would do that if I live in your area.

It makes the whole day worth getting up for. I am still exploring
the area to find more but in the middle of a 70-80 mile day there
is only so much time and energy for exploring each time. I still
want to hike upstream and find the source or until I run into
another road where I can ride to and start again.
Bill Baka


Can you carry your camping equipment on your bike? If you can, you must
be the ultimate biker. I'm not sure if European bike able to carry
camping equipment.

On 11 Aug 2004 22:13:46 -0700, Red Cloud wrote:

Bill Baka wrote in message
...
On 10 Aug 2004 22:53:49 -0700, Red Cloud wrote:

Bill Baka wrote in message
I can swim there, or just sit and enjoy before the ride back,
my personal get away spot.
Now I am just gloating, sorry.
Bill Baka


I would do that if I live in your area.

It makes the whole day worth getting up for. I am still exploring
the area to find more but in the middle of a 70-80 mile day there
is only so much time and energy for exploring each time. I still
want to hike upstream and find the source or until I run into
another road where I can ride to and start again.
Bill Baka


Can you carry your camping equipment on your bike? If you can, you must
be the ultimate biker. I'm not sure if European bike able to carry
camping equipment.]

I could maybe carry that much if I put some saddle bags/racks on the back
of
the bike. For now it is just what I can carry in a large back pack, and
that has to include water and food. I did have the bike rigged with bags
in the back and a basket in the front but it looked like some silly
paper boys bike at that point. I was able to carry my Minolta 35 mm camera
and all the professional grade lenses plus quite a bit of food for a
100 mile plus ride. Not exactly a purists century, since I made many stops
to take pictures and hike, but I have a lot of great pictures from that
time, all on film so I would have to scan. One of my favorite things was
to climb to the very top of a mountain and use my 500 mm lens with a few
doublers and take shots of scenery with the effective 2000 mm focal length
of distant points of interest. Some shots of valleys from a 3,000'
vantage point were pretty good too, almost like looking down from an
airplane. The problem with the Minolta is that all the lenses take up most
of the room in the saddlebags. Loaded down with the bags, basket in front,
and backpack of food adds another 40 pounds or so to the bike so level
riding is not bad but climbing gets a little slower. Since I have lost
about 60 pounds biking in the last year I am still ahead of the game, but
the bike itself weighs 48 pounds. I may get there and get healthy but I
won't win any races. Camping equipment would probably mean adding a
trailer.
Bill Baka, the 2 wheeled outdoorsman.


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