Thanks for the ride report, sounds like a bit of a mixed bag. But I sure would have rather been there with you guys than in the work meetings I was in.
Although teh funny thing was we we're doing the same activity, in the spirit of the trip I too was drinking some Canadian beers (mine was imported though) with some Canadian guys for four evenings.
#10
-- Edited by WPR10 on Sunday 31st of January 2010 04:50:46 PM
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I'll be looking back for ya on the White stuff. :-) Keep the rubber side down! #10
Coming off of a rainy day one and looking at another questionable day of riding we began from the ski resort Passion. We left without saddlebags free of that extra weight.
We headed east on route 93. This trail was in decent shape with plenty of snow. We found that the further east and north that we went the better the conditions. We had ideas of taking as many of the orange local trails as possible. As we headed east and north things were really fast and furious. The snow was coming down rather than rain. We were loving life. We spent some time talking about the great conditions "for a change". We found our way to an ungroomed trail headed towards Relais Onatchiway. This trail was a mess and things started getting ugly as we embarked north and west.
It began raining again and the trails turned pretty messy. We ate lunch in a somber mood at Onatchiway. It was day 2 of the trip and things were looking pretty bad. #3 wanted to head back the same way. #5 wanted to go south down a different route hoping for better trail conditions. We gassed up at the Relais and decided on #5's route. The conditions improved in terms of snow on the trail, but the rain kept coming. We got lost trying to find the green trail 328 east.
#5 lead us to a camp of some sorts that was on a river. I noticed that this group of six seemed to stand around and talk more than any other trip. I wanted to ride more and talk less. It was my own fault that I rarely spoke up. We finally found a local trail that lead us to 328 east.
Things began improving as we headed east on 328. We had about 50 miles on our tanks since the relais as we made it to the intersection of 93 and 328. At this juncture, we were 15 miles from Passion, our destination. There were discussions about what we wanted to do from there. #388 and #99 wanted to head back to Passion to relax and drink beer. We took a vote what to do. Everyone voted to head back rather than continue another 50 miles east, then north, then west to Passion 50 more miles and possibly run out of gas. When I was asked to vote, lastly, I said I wanted to continue. One in this group told me I would be riding alone. Another heard my vote and made his best pitch to get me to go with the group. I said if you don't want my vote or my opinion, don't ask for it. I would not budge.
Suddenly we had #2, #3, #5 and #7 heading east onto some pretty awesome riding on 328. The trail was in fantastic condition in the early evening. It was snowing and for the first time all day I did not have to wipe my mask every 30 seconds or so. We kept a scorching pace of 45-65mph on the twisting, turning and hilly trails. We took the local orange trail north on freshly groomed trails. One of the arguments decenting was that we would not be back 50 miles for at least 2 hours. As we would later find, it took exactly one hour. Things just worked out for a change.
The riding was fast and smooth the whole way. We did not run out of gas. It was extremely satisfying to ride that last 50 miles coming off 1 and a half days of poor riding. This was a turning point in our trip. It was something the group needed. We thought everything would be ok for the rest of the trip as we headed back to the cabins for a quick change and a relaxing dinner.
When we got back inside the cabin, euphoria turned to worry as we found that #388's father was in the hospital. There's a special relationship between a father and sone as we all know. That news effected us all. There were offers to head home and drive all night, but that did not happen. We would wait until morning for more news and information.
This stifling news reminds us all how delicate life is. It also reminds us that time with family is more important than we seem to realize.
Day 2 of riding was 150 miles, the most of the 3 days of our trip. The lowest total for any trip ever. Snow conditions will always be terribly unpredictable. If we had gone the week before, everything would have been fine. I'm sure conditions will be great within another week. We were just unlucky. Any day on a snowmobile is better than a day at work.
